Last Thursday’s first-place finish at the Wildcat Cross Country Classic in Menlo put Panorama sophomore Ella Waddle in a class of her own. Panther head cross country coach Greg Thompson shared with local media outlets last week that Waddle’s medalist finish at West Central Valley’s annual meet is the third overall victory of her career. Waddle’s top finish surpassed Elly Arganbright for the most individual wins in program history. The Raccoon Valley Radio Network spoke with Thompson after Thursday’s performance at the Wildcat Cross Country meet and is very pleased with Waddle’s early season performance. “Running 19:49 this early in the season, and beat her own teammate by two minutes,” Thompson said, “Ran 19:39 last year at state for her lifetime best, so she’s right there already second meet of the season.”

Thompson says Waddle entered the season with a goal of clocking a race in 19:15, but he feels that she can lower her time even more than that. The Iowa Association of Track Coaches recognizes Waddle as the sixth best runner in the Class 2A field so far this season. She’s currently the best-rated sophomore in the group. The Panorama Panthers girls cross country team is the fourth-ranked squad in the 15 team Class 2A poll. The Panorama Panther cross country teams resume their season tomorrow in the annual Greene County Cross Country Invitational at Spring Lake near Jefferson.