Catasauqua’s runners knew the competition would be difficult at the annual recent Colonial League meet, but the Roughies put aside individual finishes for overall improvement.

Catty had seven girls and nine boys who participated at the meet. On the girls’ side, nine teams were involved, while 13 boys teams took part in the race at DeSales University. Both the boys’ and girls’ teams finished last among the team scores.

“This was a real challenge for us,” said head coach Kyle Rusnock. “The league is very talented and is sometimes difficult for us to compete against the bigger schools. The competition is tough.

“It also was a very tough course on a very hot day. Our girls tend to run in packs and our boys have continued to lower their times.”

Junior Bree Sheldon was the top girls’ finisher with a 61st place finish from the 75 girl field with a time of 28:35. She was followed by fellow junior Katie Verenna, who was close behind with a 64th place finish and a time of 29:52.

Other girls who finished were Bethany DeLucia (68, 32:07), freshman Alexis Sheldon (70, 33:29), junior Makena Webber (71, 33:32), senior Dani Pluchinsky (73, 34:58) and junior Tylar Treiber (74, 37:19).

“Bree (Sheldon) and Katie (Verenna) both ran really well,” added Rusnock. “All the girls don’t give up no matter what happens. They all have a lot of determination and have improved throughout the year.”

Senior Alec Hartranft was the top boys’ finisher with a time of 20:58 for a 59th place finish in the field of 107. Freshman Jordy Leon was the second Roughie finisher in a time of 21:31 and 70th overall. Sophomore Bradshaw Henning was fourth for the boys with a 78th-place finish in a time of 21:42.

The remaining Roughies finishing in order were sophomore Jacob Schneck (89, 22:19), sophomore Sebastian Henry (92, 22:44), junior Darren Wasser (99, 23:20), junior Cam Ritter (101, 23:39), senior Nick Shelak (104, 23:59) and sophomore Ryder Faustner (107, 25:10).

“All of the boys ran hard,” said Rusnock. “Jordy Leon has developed into a fantastic runner for us. He also plays soccer, but he is a high intensity runner who goes out and gets it.

“Darren Wasser also had a good race and has come along. He had a good summer, and if he puts his mind to it, he can make great strides.”

The Roughies looked to continue to make their mark at the District 11 meet at Bethlehem Municipal Golf Course Wednesday. The girls will compete in the A bracket, while the boys will be in AA. Ritter advanced to the state meet last season.

“Our girls should be in a good spot,” said Rusnock. “The boys also could have a good showing. We see if we can get a couple of them to move on.”