Braxton Theel, Garden City Emerge Victorious
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Every year it seems that the 6A boys team title is up for grabs and there is always a handful of teams that could easily win it on any given day.
2024 was no different, with a number of squads built to fend off a competitive field and win big.
At different points throughout the season, Junction City, Shawnee Mission South, Olathe West, Mill Valley, and many more were all regarded as true contenders, but when it truly mattered, the Garden City Buffaloes got the job done.
Led by Trevor Fry and Hayden Nemechek in ninth and 10th, the 'Buffs were one of four teams with a pair of runners in the top 10, but the only ones out of that group with another runner in the top 20.
Garden CIty's margin of victory was much less of a nail-biter than the rest of the team races at Rim Rock Farm as they beat Junction City and Shawnee Mission South, 66-101-104.
Although his team was just eight points shy of making the podium, Olathe West's Braxton Theel had himself a day, snagging his first state title over one of the deepest fields in state history.
Just like a few others, Theel used a big move over the last mile to establish a hefty gap, running 15:20 with 16 seconds of silence behind him.
Theel's second win of his cross country career was more than deserved, marking the end of an in-state career that saw him improve from 19:55 as a freshman to state champion as a senior.
Olathe South's Dylan Plath and Mill Valley's Carter Cline took second and third, with Olathe West's Gunnar Hornung taking fourth.
