After his team participated in the East Penn Conference (EPC) cross country meet at DeSales University Tuesday, Whitehall head coach Mike Lelko was having all of his runners take ice baths the following day.

Some may have been for rewards, while others may have been for the injuries. They were as a result of the current state of both teams.

Overall, the girls finished 12th out of 14 teams, and the boys were 13th in the 18-team field.

“We did about what I expected,” said Lelko. “Our girls have been battling through some injuries, and our boys continue to grow.”

Senior Devon Roberts needed to take a week off from running due to an ear infection, as she last ran the previous Tuesday. Roberts’ infection spread to her legs and she had two brief stays at a local hospital’s emergency room.

Still, Roberts ran Tuesday afternoon and finished 58th overall in a time of 22.33.

“She was shut down, but she wanted to run,” said Lelko. “She showed us how determined she always is.

“We as coaches could see that she didn’t have her stride, and she was in pain. We all hope she can recover for next week (districts). Devon’s our senior leader and she has really helped set the pace.”

Sophomore Mackenzie Laub was the second Whitehall girl across the line with a 63rd finish in 22.44. Freshman Mikayla Warren followed at 72nd in a time of 23.17.

Juniors Lindsay Solderitch (74th, 23.25), Brianna Uhnak (101, 25.24), and sophomore Allison Pavone (104, 25.36) rounded out the top six for the Zephyrs.

Sophomore Daisha Hamilton, who has been among the team’s top finishers all season, had been battling a leg injury. He was slowed and finished 110th in a time of 27.00.

Sophomore Gavin Hagley has continued to lead the boys’ unit. He was 32nd overall in a time of 17.54, an important stat for his coach and him.

“We were so happy that he ran under 18 (minutes) for the first time,” said Lelko. “He was working very hard and I knew he could do it this year.”

Among the other top five finishers were sophomore Sean Connolly 993RD, 19.23), Freshman Christian Foehrkolb (99, 19.40), junior Jakob Schlosser (102, 19.40), and freshman Vinson Eggleston 9109, 20.90).

“Overall, I was happy with the way we ran,” added Lelko. “We have a lot of good, young boys who keep getting better, and our girls are growing as well.

“Hopefully, we can get healthy for next week.”