CENTENNIAL - Danny Vavrik wasn’t going to get too worked up over how he finished at the Warrior Invitational cross country meet.

The Arapahoe senior knows there’s plenty of time before the biggest meet of the season.

That said, a top-five finish was what Vavrik was hoping for and he got it, as he placed third overall in 16 minutes, 31 seconds on the hilly course at deKoevend Park.

“I thought it was decent,” said Vavrik of his performance. “I’m happy with the top-five finish. I was hoping my time would’ve been a little faster but I came into the race a little fatigued.”

Finishing ahead of Vavrik was Cerake Geberkidane of Denver East, who won the race in 16:06, and Andrew Walton of Mountain Vista, who finished in 16:20.

“I’m proud of the way those guys raced,” Vavrik said.

He was also happy with how his teammates attacked the course and kept a tight pack. Ian Stockdill placed 13th overall with a time of 17:21, and he was followed closely by teammate Louis Hood, who was 17th overall with a time of 17:32. Nick Peterson’s time of 17:39 was good for 20th overall, while Jon Johannsen (23rd, 17:47) and Ryan Tekolste (26th, 17:48) turned in top-30 finishes.

“Seeing our guys packed together like that is good,” Vavrik said. “That’s what you’re going to need when you get to state. I’m really proud of our team so far.”

Cherry Creek and Heritage also took part in the Warrior Invitational, which featured 24 boys teams and 19 girls teams.

Arapahoe girls finish two-three

Almost from the outset, Arapahoe’s Lauren Lipski and Emily Wolff were side-by-side.

The duo stayed that way for nearly the entire race before Lipski out-kicked her teammate down the home stretch and finished second overall in 19:26, two seconds ahead of Wolff.

Karlee Schwartzkopf of Mountain Vista won the girls’ race in 19:09 and propelled the Golden Eagles to the team title. Arapahoe finished second, 30 points behind Mountain Vista and just one point ahead of third-place finisher, Pine Creek.

Erica Petersen turned in a top-15 finish for the Warriors as she crossed the line in 20:29, good for 13th overall. Elizabeth Gibbs (21:02) and Devan Foster (21:03) finished 24th and 25th, respectively, while Jordan Seitz came in 37th overall with a time of 21:25. Sarah Slack was 40th overall with a time of 21:39.

Erin Keale was the top finisher for Cherry Creek, as she placed 30th overall with a time of 21:11. The Bruins were sixth in the team standings. Lillian Markusch was 35th (21:20) and Elizabeth Hoffman was 42nd (21:40) for Cherry Creek.