Mustangs race as team in Div. III state for first time in program history
The Lynchburg-Clay Mustangs are pictured at the state meet: (l-r) head coach Todd Faust, Caden Faust, Asher Faust, Elam Faust, Kyler Fite, Wyatt Osborn, Tavion Huguely and Linkin Barnett. (Team Photo by Mark Faust) (Action photos by Stephen Forsha and Caitlin Forsha)
OBETZ — For the first time in Lynchburg-Clay’s boys cross-country program history, the Mustangs raced as a team in the OHSAA Division III State Cross-Country race Saturday, Nov. 2 at the Fortress Obetz course.
The Mustangs finished 20th as a team with 474 points.
Lynchburg-Clay had junior Kyler Fite finish in 62nd place with a time of 16:37.97 with splits of 1:20.51, 3:48.28, 5:23.20 and 6:05.98 as their top finisher.
“Kyler Fite has just been just a flat-out workhorse for us,” LCHS head coach Todd Faust said. “He's been training for this and working for this moment his whole high school career. The kid never stops. He just keeps working. He's always positive, just a great leader for us. I have a feeling he's going to set a goal for him to be back up here next year. I’m just really proud of him and how he led the team this year.”
LCHS senior Asher Faust finished with a time of 17:32.39, followed by teammates with times of: Wyatt Osborn (18:05.91), Elam Faust (18:21.86), Tavion Huguely (18:37.53), Caden Faust (19:20.94) and Linkin Barnett (20:50.22).
“This has been a kind of a dream season. It all kind of came together about middle, beginning October,” Lynchburg-Clay head coach Todd Faust said. “We started running really well, and we started seeing some times come down. We thought we'd have a shot for the league. Then the districts, we thought we had a really good chance there, and then we kind of redesigned our goals for the regionals, and we thought it might be possible to make state, and we did.
“Being able to come up here and compete today is pretty special. Anytime a kid is in high school athletics, this is what you try to get to. The experience of being here against some really, really good competition … obviously, these are really fast times today, but I'm just proud of the kids and how they came together, and this is a really good group of kids, too.”
The Mustangs won the Southern Hills Athletic Conference championship and a Southeast District title this postseason. They qualified for state with a fifth-place team finish at regionals.
The Mustangs have family members on the same team, plus they all get along, Faust said, which helped with their success in 2024.
“Everybody gets along,” Faust said. “They push each other, but one of the biggest things that competitors, obviously, we've won some championships, but five of my seven runners are going to be academic All-Ohio, so they do it in on the track, the course, and off-the-field in the classroom too, so that's really cool. I’m proud of them. We kind of soaked it all in yesterday and today, and hopefully this will be a lifelong memory for them.”
Faust also spoke about his two seniors and what they mean to him and the program.
“One of the things I'm really proud of is the grit and determination in that we have some soccer players who have done this sport as well, and so they committed to two sports this fall season,” Faust said. “It's been kind of a grind for them, and they've toughed it out. Caden Faust is our four-year senior. He's been here through the whole time. He didn't even have enough members to have a team as a freshman to piecing together one this season. I’m really proud of him that he gets to finish his senior year with competing at the state level.
“Then Asher Faust is also one of our seniors. He was a pretty integral part of their soccer team, and for him to come out and do both sports and do it as well as he did, he made all-district and all-league. I’m really proud of those two guys. Needless to say, you know, one's my son, one's my nephew, and I got another nephew running with Elam. It's been really special to make this a family kind of thing.”
Publisher's note: A free press is critical to having well-informed voters and citizens. While some news organizations opt for paid websites or costly paywalls, The Highland County Press has maintained a free newspaper and website for the last 25 years for our community. If you would like to contribute to this service, it would be greatly appreciated. Donations may be made to: The Highland County Press, P.O. Box 849, Hillsboro, Ohio 45133. Please include "for website" on the memo line.
