Photo Courtesy of Hillcrest Academy

The third biggest athletic story from Hillcrest Academy during the last school year takes us to the oval where senior Leah Bontrager closed out her Raven running career with a trip to Des Moines and a spot in the record books. Due to injury and a lost year to COVID, Bontrager, despite being a senior, was only participating in just her second track season at Hillcrest in 2022. At the Class 1A state qualifying meet in Sigourney, she earned a bid to state in the half mile by winning the race in a time of 2:32.98.

At Drake Stadium in Des Moines, she finished in 2:28.97, placing 14th in the 1A field and setting a new school record for Hillcrest Academy, breaking the old Raven record set by Melinda Leichty in 1996.

Catch Thursday’s sports page for the second biggest story for the Ravens from the most recent year, which again highlights Bontrager’s work, this time on the cross country course.