C.J. Buchanan setting and then resetting school records

Woodmore junior C.J. Buchanan has been setting and breaking his own school records all season. 

Buchanan won the Northern Buckeye Conference individual championship, finishing in 16:59 and beating out Eastwood junior Cory Jay (17:07) by eight seconds. Beating the 17-minute mark was nothing new for Buchanan —  actually he did not come close to his school record time. But placing first has been the norm for Buchanan this year.

Buchanan has been on top of his form all season with only a couple hiccups. In the opening invitational at Seneca East, he and Woodmore girls runner Ava Beam swept the individual titles, but Buchanan improved his time by over 40 seconds even in sloppy conditions. The two were sweeping invitational races all season.

At Columbus Grove, Buchanan not only set a personal record, he set a school record. He followed with individual championships at the NBC Jamborees 1 and 2, he and Beam both won individual races at the Tiffin Columbian Carnival, and at the Lakota Invitational he set a school record again, finishing in 16:08.13.

“Although he’s gone faster in practice, C.J. came through the first two splits faster than his official track PRs and didn’t slow down as a late challenger helped push him across the line a whopping 13 seconds under the previous record he shared with Montana (Garcia),” Woodmore coach Lacy Seamans said. “This was also a new course record but the large division winner ran the same time so he will have to share that record for the next year.”

Then came a difficult race at Liberty Center. 

“Hot, humid conditions on a tough course had PRs in short supply but the kids still made sure to compete and get stronger over the hills and through a few creeks,” Seamans said, adding that Buchanan and Beam both swept individual titles.

At the Old Fort invite there were “more wins on a very chilly morning,” Seamans said. Buchanan took the boys win by 50 seconds while the team finished fourth.

Buchanan then finished second at the Fostoria Invitational, but Seamans said that prepared him well for the NBC meet. The Wildcats took fifth as a team against mostly Division II schools.

“(It was a) great tune-up before tournament season starts,” Seamans said. “The teams got another look at the NBC course for the next weekend on a windy day.”