Front row, from left, Maggie Roberts (sister), Nick Roberts (father), Braylan Roberts, and Crystal Roberts (mother); Back row, from left, Shawnee State Assistant Coach Dean Freitag, MHS Cross-Country Coach Sean Inman, Logan Bell (family friend), Julie Rader (grandmother), Jerry Rader (grandfather) and Shawnee State Head Coach Conner Flynn. (Photo by Mark Carpenter)
Front row, from left, (Grandparents William Hurst and Nancy Hurst, Emma Hurst, (Mother) Sierra Jones and (sister) Jasie Jones; Back row, from left, Shawnee State Assistant Coach Dean Freitag, MHS Cross-Country Coach Sean Inman, (Father) Christopher Hurst, (Stepfather) Jason Jones, and Shawnee State Head Coach Conner Flynn. (Photo by Mark Carpenter)
By Mark Carpenter
People’s Defender
College signings are always a big event at Manchester High School and such was the case on November 13 as a large crowd gathered at the Veterans Stadium track as two senior Greyhounds made their college choices, both heading for the same place.
Greyhound seniors Braylan Roberts and Emma Hurst along with their families and many friends inked their letters of intent in a dual ceremony last Wednesday evening to continue their athletic/academic careers at Shawnee State University as members of the SSU Cross-Country/Track programs.
The college choice of both runners was influenced by the presence at SSU of 2024 Manchester graduate Connor Darnell, who was a key member of the Shawnee cross-country squad until suffering a late-season injury.
For Braylan Roberts, the ascension to a college runner began late as he only entered the sport very late in his junior year, then just seemed to find his niche as he improved by leaps and bounds as he progressed through his senior campaign, enough so to catch the eyes of the Shawnee coaching staff.
“Coach (Sean) Inman would bug me every day in gym class to try running,” said Roberts. “I finally did it for the last four meets of my junior year and now I’m here. My whole family has gone to Shawnee and they have a great program. Connor (Darnell) is there and I know him well and it’ll be good to be connected with him again.”
“I’ll always remember our team here at Manchester being county champions and almost winning the league championship, then running in districts and regionals. It was a great team with a lot of memories.”
For Hurst, some of the story remained the same when asked how she came to choose Shawnee State.
“Connor runs there and he seems to really like it,” said Hurst. “And I see this as a chance to improve my running. I visited the campus and liked it there.”
“At Manchester, the group of friends I’ve made I will always remember and I have improved my running a lot over that time.”
It was a proud day gain for Manchester cross-country coach Sean Inman, sending two runners to the next level.
“Even with the late start in his career, Braylan has just continually improved his times, getting from the 19’s down into the 17’s. He ran really well at districts and regionals and was close to making it to state. He’s right there at college running level so we’re excited to see him move to the next level.”
“Emma ran all four years and has improved a lot as a runner, dealing with a lot of injuries, especially her senior season. She is one of the hardest working girls I have ever coached and I’m excited to see her sign as well.”
Shawnee State is an NAIA school and the Bears compete in the River States Conference.
