Staff

AJ Willey led a 1-3-4 finish for Bettendorf, but Pleasant Valley's Nos. 4 and 5 runners made the difference as the Spartans edged the Bulldogs 38-45 for the boys team championship Wednesday afternoon at the Mississippi Athletic Conference meet in DeWitt.

Willey, who took fourth in the meet a year ago, ran the only sub-16-minute time, finishing the 5,000-meter course at Grace Lutheran Bible Camp in 15:48.2. His time broke the course record of 16:22.65, set last Thursday by Davenport Central's Zack Ryan at the Jim Hetrick Invitational.

The top nine placers Wednesday, which included Ryan, bettered the previous record time.

Pleasant Valley's Cameron Gotto was the runner-up in 16:02.9, followed by Bettendorf's Andrew Heden (16:08.4) and Ryan Heden (16:13.2). Pleasant Valley's Jack Perry rounded out the top five in 16:14.7.

The key for the Spartans, though, were the finishes by Kameron Foad (ninth in 16:20.5), Jonah Whitson (10th, 16:25.3) and Joe Knepp (12th, 16:31.8). They combined for 31 points, while Bettendorf's final two scorers combined for 37.

Led by the Ryan brothers -- Zack, sixth in 16:15.8, and Tyler, eighth in 16:19.3 -- Davenport Central finished third in the team standings with 71 points. Central DeWitt, led by seventh-place finisher Caleb Olson (16:18.6) took fourth with 97, while Davenport Assumption edged Muscatine 166-168 for fifth place.