PLYMOUTH — Even out its top runner, Warsaw’s boys cross country team was able to finish off a perfect run through the Northern Lakes Conference ranks Tuesday night. Likewise, Warsaw’s girls easily beat out both host Plymouth and Wawasee despite sitting out a full five of their top seven to close their NLC slate with just one loss at the conference dual meet-capper at Pretty Lake.

The Tigers topped their hosts, 20-41, and narrowly edged out Wawasee, 27-28, while the Warriors beat out the Pilgrims, 21-41. The Lady Tigers seized five of the top six spots, meanwhile, to down Wawasee, 19-44, and Plymouth, 15-48, while the Lady Warriors split with a 20-41 victory over the Pilgrims.

Warsaw’s boys have taken a big hit with the suspension of pace-setter Zeb Hernandez, who finished out his sophomore season in 24th place at the state finals last year. Tuesday’s meet was the Tigers’ third since Hernandez was suspended, but the rest of the team’s lineup has moved forward the best they can in his absence.

Warsaw boys coach Jim Mills was reluctant to say much about Hernandez’s situation after Tuesday’s meet, and even he doesn’t have all the details. He’ll know more after a meeting Wednesday afternoon, he said.

“I will know exactly what’s going on tomorrow afternoon, but I’m going to say he’s gone for the season, suspended.”

News of the suspension was like a bombshell to the team.

“When I dropped the bomb on them, they were just in shock,” Mills recalled. “We’ve talked every night about the loss of one is an opportunity for another. We managed to do OK, and really (at the New Prairie Invitational) Saturday we didn’t run all that great — we had bigger gaps than we normally do — and against our semi-state opponents we were only one place from making it out. So we’re happy.

“The guys, we’re proud of them for stepping up. It’s tough.”

A wrong turn at the course at Pretty Lake Golf Club midway through the boys race also threw an interesting twist into Tuesday’s race.

Heading into the third mile, Wawasee’s Spencer Hare led the field, while Warsaw’s Justin Fleming and Xavi Ramirez trailed close behind, followed by teammate Taylor Mills and Wawasee’s Luke Griner. But as the leaders crested the final hill at Pretty Lake, it was Griner (17:23) leading Mills (17:25) into the chute, then Plymouth’s Jeff Oliver (17:34) with Hare (17:40), Fleming (17:46) and Warsaw’s Lucas Howett (17:53) following in order. Ramirez crossed the line in seventh (17:57), just two seconds ahead of Wawasee’s Braxton Alexander (17:59), to hold off the Warriors, who closed NLC duals at 5-2 behind Warsaw’s 7-0 record and Northridge’s 6-1 mark.

The wrong turn was par for the course, said Jim Mills.

“We had a wrong turn up there so that almost got us too because we had two and I think they had one, but we survived,” he said.

“I think we had two and Wawasee had one guy, and they overshot the turn. I’m telling you, every time we come to this course something awful happens. I’m serious.”

“I’m going down there and Griner is in fourth place, and all of a sudden he’s in first place. I’m with a couple of the Warsaw coaches, and we’re going ‘OK, what just happened here?’ “ explained Wawasee coach Chad Hoffert.

Hare’s bad break was Griner’s good fortune, as the junior broke the tape Tuesday. But Griner also made his own luck staying near the front of the field through the first two-thirds of the race.

“I think it’s good for him that he was up there from the beginning throughout the entire race,” Hoffert said. “Sometimes he likes to lag back a little bit, and sometimes that doesn’t give him enough time to get where he needs to be by the end. But he was up there against Elkhart Memorial last week, and he still then has enough to finish the race. So I think that’s good for his confidence, that even though it’s kind of weird circumstances because he put himself in position in the middle of the race, he could be there at the end of the race.”

Hoffert got a faster starting pace from throughout his lineup, and it was a heartening sign for the Warriors’ coach. Michael Hammer (18:08) and Jace Alexander (18:09) finished within a second of one another in 10th and 11th as Wawasee challenged the NLC front-running Tigers to the finish.

“First of all I think we showed a little bit of a learning curve from a couple weeks ago when we ran against Northridge where we started off a little bit too slow thinking that Northridge would come back to us and they didn’t, and they squeaked it out by one. So we talked about that,” Hoffert said.

“I was really proud of all the guys. I think our top seven pack is still coming along pretty nicely. We just need to try to slide everybody up another 10 or 15 seconds. The main thing is I saw a kind of mano-a-mano competitive difference tonight than against Northridge.”

The absence of Lady Tigers ace Mia Beckham did little to affect Tuesday’s outcome. In fact, head coach Matt Campbell rested five of his top seven runners as Angie Sanchez, Remi Beckham, Carmen Yoder and Emma Bohnenkamper also sat out the meet.

Megan Metzger set the pace in Plymouth (21:36), while Wawasee’s Kenzie Smith (21:38) was close behind as the only non-Tiger among the top five. Metzger’s teammates Adree Beckham (21:50), Taylor Gunter (22:22) and Siera Palmer (22:23) finished in third through fifth.. In fact, Warsaw crowded out 11 of the top 15 spots, with only Smith, and Plymouth’s Ella Hissong (seventh, 22:29) and Wawasee’s Cailtin Wortinger (13th, 23:28) and Reagan Atwood (15th, 23:54) breaking up the pack.

“It’s nice. We’re just a lot bigger school so we kind of have the advantage there. But yeah, our team works hard, all of them, so it’s just nice to be able to give other girls opportunities to get some attention,” Campbell said.

“We’re trying to hopefully build confidence. Hopefully those girls think they can run up there with our top girls.”

Smith’s second-place finish was the Lady Warriors’ lone bright spot in Plymouth. In particular, her grit over the middle portion of the challenging course was a positive sign.

“Honestly the first mile she was about in eighth, ninth place, and then her second mile — the tough part of the course — she put herself in position,” said head coach Doug Slabaugh.

“I was glad to see that in the part of the race she’s struggled right now, and that was our focus, was to be strong in the middle.”

Autumn Turner placed 16th (23:58) behind Atwood, and Valeria Pizana finished 19th (24:08) for the Lady Warriors, who were out two of their own top seven at the meet and finished the NLC dual meet season at 3-4.

“We aren’t running like we need to. I’m not going to sugarcoat it,” said Slabaugh. “We’ve got a pack in practice, but when it comes to a meet we’re MIR. And I’ve told them that — we’re missing in racing. It didn’t help today two of our top seven were out. Lila Gregory has got a foot issue, and Aubrey Kuhn has got a personal matter. That doesn’t help. Not that it changes team scores today, but I think maybe a little fire. We came not with a lot of fire.”