Kimmel shatters state record, wins D1 state title
*GAZETTE EXCLUSIVE* Tippecanoe junior Landon Kimmel left no doubt on Saturday who the best runner in Ohio truly is.
Kimmel, who missed last season with an injury, came back with a vengeance this year by completing his goal and winning the OHSAA Ohio Division 1 Cross Country State Championship at Fortress Obetz. And he did so in record fashion.
His time was 14:33.81, which was 14 seconds ahead of his closest competitor and rival Aex Bruns of Cincinnati St. Xavier.
Kimmel also shattered the all-time state course record with his time, leaving his name etched among the all-time previous state champions in Ohio high school history. The only time in Ohio lower was at the NIKE Regionals in 2022 when Connor Ackley ran 14:29.
“The race plan was for him to let last year’s runner-up lead for the first mile,” Tipp coach Byron Kimmel said. “The second mile was all about maintaining pace and letting fatigue settle in with the other runners.”
“At the two-mile mark, he had planned to push the pace. Eli Ilg fell off after two miles and it was just Landon and Alex. Bruns tried to take the lead at the hill, but Landon surged at the top and never looked back. He executed the plan perfectly.”
Kimmel trailed Ilg of Massilon Jackson after the first mile and the Tipp runner maintained that position throughout a lot of the race.
He was at 9:21.66 at the second mile, trailing Ilg by a very slim .05 heading into the final mile before the Tipp runner took it to another gear.
Kimmel finished the race with a 5:12.15 final split and not only overtook Ilg, but widened the margin over Bruns who was hanging around with them all race. Kimmel dominated the final stretch and brought home the gold by a comfortable margin and brought the gold home to Tippecanoe.
Kimmel was not alone at the state meet, as fellow Red Devil runner Everett Muhlenkamp also competed against the best on Saturday. He ran a time of 16:17.07 to place 100th overall among all of the Division One runners.
“Everett was bottled up early and had to fight hard to get back to the mid pack,” coach Kimmel said. “He rallied and held well. He had an outstanding season and will continue to emerge as one of the area's best distance runners.”
Tipp also was well represented in the girl's Division 2 race, as the entire Red Devils team had qualified for the state finals after their place at the regionals.
The Red Devils placed 18th as a team, led by Morgan Collins, who landed 88th overall with a time of 20:06.37, followed by Lucia Ranly with a 20:22.22 to place her 103rd overall.
Other Tipp times included Sydney LaBreck 20:27.25, Mary Wailbel 21:27.71, Katelyn Beeson 21:30.33, Aubrey Davis 21:52.19 and Lauren Anderson 22:10.45.
“The girls team ran great today,” said coach Matt Lieber. “We were not ranked to do very well but we got 18th as a team, and five of our seven girls ran their personal best in this race.”
“We will have all of these girls back next year and a few others in the mix for varsity and will have a solid core. I am very proud of all of these girls for fighting all year long. It was great to see that hard work pays off.”
Olivia Brumbaugh, a freshman runner at Bethel, also placed at the state meet. She ran a 19:47.78 to place her 72nd in Ohio for the Division Two girls.
