Union’s Millie Condon, second from left, pictured on Saturday, Oct. 28 at the 2023 Iowa High School Cross Country Championships medal ceremony held in Fort Dodge. Condon, a junior, medaled for the first time with an 11th-place finish. Also pictured (l-r), Unity Christian’s Katie Young (12th), [Condon], Osage’s Scarlett Byrnes (10th), and Crestwood’s Kinze Shea (9th). PHOTO BY JAKE RYDER

FORT DODGE – After three consecutive trips to the Iowa High School Cross Country Championships, Union runner Millie Condon returned home this year with something new – a top-15 medal.

“Millie ran a really smart race on Saturday,” Union head coach Justin Parson told the Telegraph via email following the race. “We talked about medaling as the goal. I told her before she raced that she sometimes comes back after a race and tells me she could have done better. I told her you are not allowed to tell me that today.”

The junior Knight took 11th place last Saturday morning at Lakeside Golf Course in Fort Dodge in the 2A girls 5,000-meter run with a time of 19:19.2 – beating her previous best at the state meet, set in 2021, by more than a minute and 20 seconds.

In 2021, Condon placed 38th at state; in 2022, she placed 41st.

Despite the cold weather, Condon had a strong cheering section present along the route.

PHOTO BY JAKE RYDER

“We had a lot of fans around the course to tell her where she was position wise throughout the race so she could make her goal of medaling,” Parson continued. “I am so proud of the progress she has made in three years. She is such a nice person, but a beast when it comes to racing. I can’t wait to see what she can accomplish in the upcoming track season.”

Prior to this year’s state meet, Condon was ranked seventh in Class 2A. She spent much of the 2023-24 season pacing behind the eventual 2023 state champ, senior Hillary Trainor of Sumner-Fredericksburg who finished with a time of 18:09.5, as well as No. 6 Lauren Krogmann of Starmont who finished in sixth.

In a change from previous seasons, Condon was the lone state qualifier from Union.

Iowa High School State Cross Country Championships, at Fort Dodge

Class 2A GIRLS

Knights cross country runner Millie Condon, left, pictured alongside her coach Justin Parson at the state meet in Fort Dodge last Saturday after meeting her goal of medaling for the first time. Together the two of them flash the number one for Condon’s 11th place finish this year. PHOTO COURTESY OF JUSTIN PARSON.

INDIVIDUAL (top 15) – 1. Hillary Trainor, Sumner-Fred, 18:09.5; 2. McKenna Montgomery, Albia, 18:35.7; 3. Mackenzie Wilson, Jesup, 18:38.7; 4. Clare Wright, Jesup, 18:46.2; 5. Danielle Hostetler, MPW, 18:55.3; 6. Lauren Krogmann, Starmont, 18:57.8; 7. Raenna Henke, Clarinda, 19:00.3; 8. Hailey Egbert, Shenandoah, 19:05; 9. Kinze Shea, Crestwood, 19:07.5; 10. Scarlett Byrnes, Osage, 19:08.9; 11. Amilia Condon, Union, 19:19.2; 12. Katie Young, Unity Christian, 19:24.4; 13. Laura Streck, Van Meter, 19:31.1; 14. Bethany Warren, Forest City, 19:35; 15. Mary Schriever, GLR-CL, 19:39.3.

PHOTO BY JAKE RYDER

PHOTO BY JAKE RYDER