All Turpin Cross Country members will be volunteering at the Cincinnati Triathlon on Saturday July 25th and Sunday July 26th.  Ten helpers for registration are needed from 10:30am-4:00pm on Saturday at Yeatman's Cove down by the river.  On Sunday, anywhere from 30-35 people are needed by the Public Landing of the Purple People Bridge at 6:30am to help with the race direction.  This will give money to the Turpin XC teams, so be sure to arrive at the scheduled times.

All athletes should note that the 27th annual Newtown 5k will be held on Saturday, August 8th at Moundview Park in Newtown.  Runners should also be aware that the start time for the race is earlier than previous years and will begin at 9 a.m.  Be prepared for a large turnout, as over 700 runners and walkers are expected for this year.

Registration is online at www.getmeregistered.com or download the form.  More information is available at www.villageofnewtown.com 

Conditioning for the 2009 cross country season will begin on Monday June 15, 2009. Practice will begin at 7:15 a.m. at the following locations:

Monday: Woodland Mound Park (Leatherwood Shelter, enter off Nordyke road)
Tuesday: Turpin High School
Wednesday: Julifs Park
Thursday: Turpin High School
Friday: Woodland Mound Park
Saturday: Time and Location decided by captains

Note that while practices are not mandatory until August, attendance at summer conditioning is highly encouraged in order to build a base for a successful fall.

The Spartan boys settled for a disappointing seventh place finish at the District race just one year after they won that race and went on to place seventh at the State Championships.  The lone bright spot came from Nicholas El-Khoury and Drew DiSabatino, both of whom qualified individually for the Regional race in Troy.  Turpin’s girls team will accompany El-Khoury and DiSabatino after placing second in their District race.   

Entering the race, the guys knew the whole team would have to perform exceptionally well in order to advance out of the district.  Despite solid races from El-Khoury who finished fourth in 16:16, DiSabatino who finished fifteenth in 16:42, and David Rodriguez, who just missed qualifying individually with a 22nd place finish in 17:01, Turpin’s four through seven runners were unable to seal the deal.  Zach Smith ran under eighteen minutes for only the second time in his career placing 49th in 17:50.  Jon Risher was only seven seconds behind finishing 53rd, and Jack Reeder finished 62nd in 18:17.  The Spartan boys fell to the favorites LaSalle and St. Xavier, along with Sycamore, Oak Hills, Anderson, and Colerain.   

With three of Cincinnati’s top girls teams, Mason, Kings, and Oak Hills, choosing to race in the Pickerington qualifier, the Spartan girls had no trouble qualifying as a team.  Kaitlin Price and Megan Plichta finished third and fourth with respective times of 19:26 and 19:35.  Lauren Young placed 14th in 20:08, and Jillian Jaworek finished 17th in 20:35.  Lauren Keene rounded out the scoring Spartan girls finishing 19th in 20:40.  Victoria Clancey was not far behind finishing 20th in 20:45, and Maki Fujimoto placed 38th in 21:36.  Overall, the girls placed second, and will move on to Troy with Colerain, Sycamore, Milford.