The Lincoln cross country teams performed well on Saturday at the Missouri Southern Stampede in Joplin, MO, as both finished as one of top Oklahoma teams in the 4-state event.

The boys were the top finishing team from Oklahoma, placing 6th as a team. The girls were 8th and one of the top three teams from Oklahoma on Saturday.

"We took the trip up to Joplin to get to experience a new course and to compete against a high quality field of teams," said Lincoln head coach Stephen Lewelling. "We didn't know what to expect but the course was hilly and wooded with a lot of switchbacks and tight turns."

Not only did the new course provide a challenge but the stacked field was also great for Lewelling's teams to compete against.

"The competition was great," he said. "Deciding to run in the large school division was an easy choice, as we always want to go against the best and it pushed us to be on top of our game."

Baylee Woodrich led the way for the girls, placing 10th individually with a time of 18:37 in the 5k event.

"She led the first 1.5 miles of the race in her typical 'come and catch me if you dare' strategy and it paid off for her," Lewelling said. 

Tennyson Housley was 38th overall with a time of 19:44 and Bentley Stewart was 48th, running 19:56.

Lincoln's 8th place finish was out of 38 teams.

"Our other girls ran really well to help us to a top 10 finish as a team," Lewelling said.

On the boys side, the depth proved to be key for Lincoln, as all five scoring runners finished pretty closely together.

"Our boys are getting closer and closer to being elite," Lewelling said. "Our depth was our advantage, as all five scoring runners finished within 52 seconds of each other."

Sammy Farris and Trevor Hacker led the way for Lincoln, finishing back-to-back at 31st and 32nd.

Farris finished with a season-best time of 16:17, while Hacker was right behind at 16:19.

"They ran well and continue to lead the way for us with another strong performance," Lewelling said.

Ty Brooks was 44th at 16:28, while Garner McAfee was 96th with a time of 17:08 and Colin Pouge was 101st with a season-best time of 17:10.

The teams will be at the annual Chile Pepper event this weekend in Fayetteville, AR. The event is the premier event in the region and nationally.