SAINT XAVIER HIGH SCHOOL Cross Country Team

Through The Years

• The Saint Xavier Cross Country team earned its first state title in 1959 and established a benchmark for future Tigers to build upon for more than 50 years. During that time, the team has had its share of talented runners who were capable of capturing the individual state championship at the Kentucky High School State Meet, but the hallmark of the Tiger harriers has always been the incredible depth and teamwork that are the seeds of championship performances.
• The 1959 squad coached by Brother Brennan became the first Saint Xavier Championship Cross Country team. The undefeated Tigers were led by individual state champion Joe Kroh who set a new school and state record at the state meet.
• Coach Jerry Denny became the new head coach in 1960, and the Tigers promptly earned their second consecutive title. After a third-place finish at the regional meet, the harriers put together their best race of the season to capture the state crown.
• The team returned to top form again in 1962 led by individual champion Blaine Vetter. By winning the title in both 1963 and 1964, the Tigers became the first team to capture three consecutive KHSAA Cross Country Championships.
• Coach Joe Heitzman's runners earned the championship in 1971 by turning in a stellar performance a week after a second-place finish at the regional meet.
• The 1973 and 1974 Tigers earned back-to-back titles in dominate fashion. Only a second-place finish at the Covington Catholic Invitational kept the '73 squad from an undefeated season, and the '74 team found individual champion David Buechler leading Paul Kinny (2nd) and Mark Grundy (4th) across the line.
• The 1979 squad was one of the best in Kentucky history and established the record for lowest point total ever (20) at the KHSAA state meet. Coach Frank Cooper's undefeated squad was led by individual champion Joe Buechler who returned the following year to capture his second title and lead the Tigers to the 1980 team championship.
• Team depth was on display in 1983 and 1984 as the harriers earned the school's 11th and 12th titles. For the second time in Coach Cooper's tenure, the Tigers won the championship in consecutive years.
• After a decade of close calls, including a runner-up finish in 1993, the Tigers returned to the winner's circle by winning the title in 1994.
• In 1999 with Coach Chuck Medley at the helm, the Tigers earned the title led by the second-place finish of freshman Bobby Curtis. Bobby would become one of the greatest cross country runners in the history of the sport in Kentucky, following up his second-place finish in 1999 with three consecutive individual crowns and another team title in 2001.
• The next two cross country championships were earned in completely different fashions. The 2005 crown was one of the closest championship meets in KHSAA history as the Tigers prevailed by a mere 15 points. In 2009 the 77-point margin was the third largest ever.
• Recent spectacular team performances demonstrate the depth of talented runners in the program. Individual champion Conner Sheryak and second-place finisher Sam Lewis led five Tigers in the top 11 to a 31-point total and the 2011 title.
• The 2012 squad became the second St. X team to score a record 20 points in winning the championship. Five Tigers finished in a pack less than 11 seconds apart in dominating the field.
• In 2013, the Tigers earned their third consecutive crown and record 20th KHSAA championship.
• 2015 saw the Tiger Cross Country team bring home its 21st state championship. Spencer Hayden led the Tigers to the championship with a third-place individual time of 15:33:56 while St. X placed five runners in the top 11 spots. The Tigers top five finishers were Hayden, Matthew Thomas, Ryan Guenthner, Patrick Schaefer and Zachary Larkin.
• 2016 saw the Tiger Cross Country team bring home its 22nd state championship. Patrick Schaefer, Ryan Guenthner and Cooper Marchal led the Tigers to the championship, finishing third, fourth and fifth, respectively. Zach Larkin finished 8th giving St. X four finishers in the top 10. Grady Shiflet finished 14th to round out the scoring and Thomas Knepshield finished 15th. The time difference between the first and sixth finishers was a mere 29 seconds.
• In 2017, the Tiger runners finished with 66 points to out-distance the 84 points recorded by runner-up Trinity, giving St. X its third KHSAA State Championship in a row and its 23rd overall. The Tigers were led by senior Patrick Schaefer, who finished second with a time of 15:46:56, while Zach Larkin finished 10th and Grady Shiflet 17th. With another strong season, the Tigers were once again ranked nationally and finished as high as 10th in the country in one poll.
• In 2018 the cross country program finished as the state runner-up and witnessed the end of an era as Head Coach Chuck Medley retired after twenty-one years as the leader of the program. Under his tenure the Tigers won ten state championships and gained prominence nationally as one of the elite programs in the country. With the thirteen combined state championships, Medley retired as the third most decorated head coach in Tiger history. Only Marty O'Toole '57 (swimming and diving) and Joe Kroh '61 (tennis) have more won more championships at St. X.
• The 2019 Tigers again finished as the state runner-up, falling just three points shy of claiming the title. Junior Nolan Hester was the top St. X finisher, coming in 8th place with a time of 16:14.25.
• The Tigers claimed their 24th state title during the 2020 season, beating runner-up Conner by 23 points. Senior Nolan Hester was the Tigers top finisher, coming in 3rd, with a time of 15:50.64. Senior Joshua Striegel finished 11th with a time of 16:44.80 and sophomore Sami Hattab finished 17th with a time of 16:55.10.
• In 2021, Sami Hattab claimed an individual state title with a time of 16:32.29. The Tigers team was State Runner-up, marking the seventh straight year of finishing first or second.