Nice article on NKY.com

 

St Henry's 10-yr Reign Figures to Face Challenges (But Crusaders are confident.)

 

St. Henry cross country runner Daniel Wolfer has a voracious appetite for winning.

 

“The kid is tenacious,” Crusaders coach Ernie Brooks said of the defending Class A regional champion. “He doesn’t back down from anybody. He really enjoys finishing first and he works very hard to reach his goals.”

 

That’s a good thing because St. Henry’s 10-year run as regional and state champion is under siege by four local challengers, all of whom are in the top 10 of the kytrackxc.com statewide preseason rankings. Following top-ranked St. Henry are second-ranked Newport Central Catholic, seventh-ranked Villa Madonna, ninth-ranked Bishop Brossart and 10th-ranked Walton-Verona.

 

The Crusaders began their run of dominance in 2002. Wolfer was beginning elementary school the last time the Crusaders did not win the region and he wants no part of second place during his senior year, even though St. Henry returns just two of its top seven runners from last season.

 

“This year, I have to really pick up the ball,” said Wolfer, who finished fourth at state. “It’s anybody’s game for the region and we can’t slip.”

 

Wolfer sees challenges coming from all sides but also an 11th straight regional crown for the Crusaders.

 

“Connor Bartels (of NewCath) and Michael Caldwell (of Bishop Brossart) will be my main competition at the regional and they’ll make it tough for us as a team, but I think we can definitely repeat,” said Wolfer.

 

There’s also Villa Madonna’s Eric Baugh and Covington Latin’s Peter Rodgers to contend with individually.

 

Even if the Crusaders get past the local contingent, there is likely to be St. Mary, Heath and DeSales standing in the way at November’s state meet at Lexington’s Kentucky Horse Park. That’s why Wolfer doubled down on his leadership responsibilities during summer training and spurred freshman Josh Hannon, sophomore Rob Blackman, junior Jacob Plummer and Ryle transfer Michael Ridalla to new levels of commitment.

 

“We started running more than twice as long, getting in seven or eight miles a day, and Josh has had the self-motivation to stay up there with me,” Wolfer said.

 

Covington Catholic is seeking a regional repeat in Class 2A and a fifth crown in six years while Highlands is looking to improve upon its third-place finish.

 

In Class 3A, almost everybody’s back for Cooper, including sophomore Brady Baker, the defending regional champion.

 

The Jaguars, fourth at the regional meet, will battle defending champion Grant County, runner-up Ryle, Dixie Heights and Campbell County for local supremacy.

Looking forward to a great senior year performance for Daniel Wolfer. He is an inspiration.

Good Luck to the Crusaders!