By Alex Frazier
Katie Gorman doesn’t usually have nightmares.
But this week she was having vivid dreams “about all kinds of cross country stuff” in anticipation of her key matchup against Upper Dublin’s Sarah Holl in the Suburban One American Conference Championships Friday at Goodman Field on the campus of Lehigh University.
“I was really nervous about it,” the defending American Conference champion said. “You want to win your league.”
The two had not met during the season. They were supposed to run against each other at the Carlisle Invitational and in the dual meet. Holl pulled out of the former with a knee injury, and coach Megan Gallagher kept her out of the dual meet.
Anticipation was running high. Unlike in the Continental Conference in which North Penn was the odds-on favorite and in the National Conference where Council Rock North ruled supreme, the American was up for grabs. Whoever won the league meet between PW and Upper Dublin would take the conference.
At the sound of the starter’s gun, Gorman bolted from the pack. She led Holl by 50 yards at the mile mark, extended her lead by two miles and finished 23 seconds ahead of Holl with a winning time of 18:42.
“I got out how I wanted to,” she said. “I carried the second mile pretty well. Everybody I’ve been talking to, their times have been slow including mine.”
Gorman’s win helped ensure PW its first-ever league championship.
“From the last week of August when the season started until now, it’s been our focus the whole season,” said PW coach Ryan Buterbaugh. “We really wanted to win an American league title. We were nine seconds off last year as far as average time. We knew if we worked hard we could make it happen. It was an overall team effort.”
It was not a personal best for Gorman, but it was 15 seconds faster than last year’s PR on the same course.
“I was hoping to really drop it today,” she said. “I don’t know what the problem was. The wind might have played a factor, Being up there alone might have played a factor.”
Gorman had been expecting to hear Holl breathing down her back, but she never got that close as Gorman led wire to wire.
“I was really nervous,” she said, “but it was a good opportunity to run against her.”
Maybe it was the green fingernail polish that did the trick.
“I have all different colors,” said Gorman. “It’s fun and bright and happy.”
Just like she was.
• The races in the Continental and National Conferences were also one-sided, certainly for the top spot. Christy Cohick led the Continental girls the whole way, winning in a time of 18:38, second fastest of the day.
A sophomore, it was Cohick’s third race on the course. She dropped a whopping two minutes off last year’s time in the league meet.
Her biggest competition came from teammates Heather Selheimer, who finished second (18:43) and freshman Rachel Brown who came in third (18:58).
“It was pretty good,” said Cohick. “It didn’t feel too hard. It wasn’t too hilly, so I was glad. I didn’t want to lose since I had won the league meets. I wanted to keep my reputation of staying on top.”
Last year Cohick was North Penn’s No.7-8 runner. She won the jayvee race.
“She works hard every single day we go out there,” said coach Jim Crawford. “She just goes out and runs as hard as she can. She made us all happy.”
Pennridge’s Tori Gerlach and the Maidens’ Lauren Bond duked it out for fourth, with Gerlach winning that battle by a scant second.
After winning the National Conference last year, North Penn added the Continental Conference to its resume this year.
“We wanted to at least do as well as we’d done before,” said Crawford. “Time-wise, compared to last year, they’re way ahead on the same course.”
• In the National Conference, sophomore Lindsay Rheiner led from start to finish. She and William Tennent’s Anne Areias led Rock North’s Juliann Fricke and Pennsbury’s Ann Herman by a small margin at the mile mark.
Herman pulled away but was still trailing Rheiner by the second mile. By the finish, Rheiner led the Pennsbury freshman by eight seconds with a personal best of 18:24.
“I like this course,” she said. “It’s flat and downhill for the most part and you can divide it to see where you are. I couldn’t have asked for a better day.”
Her first place finish was much more gratifying than last year’s 11th place finish.
“I didn’t have a good race at leagues,” she said.
Rheiner knew that Herman would be a factor. She had held her off by about 10 seconds at Tyler State Park in the dual meet, winning with a PR of 18:49.
“I knew Ann would be on me, so I just tried my best, and it paid off,” said Rheiner, whose time was the fastest in all three conferences.
Teammate Juliann Fricke finished third in 18:51 to help the Indians win the team championship.
“The kids ran some nice times,” said veteran coach Cliff Robbins.
The action will heat up even more next week at the District One Championships. The SOL girls may have an advantage since it will be their second week in a row on the same course.
“I’m going to go out there and run my own race,” said Gorman, “but use them to help me run my own race and try to get my time down even farther and make it to states.”
“I’m kind of nervous about it,” said Cohick. “I’m glad it’s this course. I know it and it’s not that hard. I’m hoping to get in the top 10, but I don’t know if that’s doable or not.”
“I know North Penn will be our major competitor,” said Rheiner.
Both Robins and Crawford had a chance to scope the competition on the same course. They were supposed to run a dual meet earlier in the year but there was a mix-up in time and it never came off.
“This gives us a measuring stick,” said Robbins. “We have a ways to go to beat North Penn.”
Suburban One League Girls Cross Country Championships
Team standings (in order of races)
Continental Conference
1. North Penn 23
2. Pennridge 88
3. Central Bucks West 94
4. Central Bucks South 99
5. Hatboro-Horsham 110
6. Central Bucks East 121
7. Quakertown 171
8. Souderton 184
National Conference
1. Council Rock North 36
2. William Tennent 59
3. Pennsbury 71
4. Neshaminy 100
5. Council Rock South 104
6. Abington 142
7. Bensalem 222
8. Harry S Truman 226
American Conference
1. Plymouth Whitemarsh 33
2. Upper Dublin 45
3. Wissahickon 78
4. Cheltenham 89
5. Upper Merion 124
Individual results (top 20 overall)
1. Lindsay Rheiner, C.R. North, 18:24
2. Ann Herman, Pennsbury, 18:32
3. Christy Cohick, North Penn, 18:38
4. Katie Gorman, Plymouth Whitemarsh, 18:42
5. Heather Selheimer, North Penn, 18:43
6. Juliann Fricke, C.R. North, 18:51
7. Anne Areias, Wm. Tennent, 18:56
8. Rachel Brown, North Penn, 18:58
9. Tori Gerlach, Pennridge, 19:01
10. Lauren Bond, North Penn, 19:02
11. Sarah Holl, Upper Dublin, 19:05
12. Emily Chappell, C. B. South, 19:07
13. Jenny Guidera, C.B. East, 19:08
14. Nicole Mehlman, Pennridge, 19:13
15. Jackie Conklin, Wm. Tennent, 19:14
16. Bethanie Kruman, C.R. North, 19:23
17. Becky Kratz, Souderton, 19:25
18. Christine Esposito, Neshaminy, 19:26
19. Kaylee Irwin, Hatboro-Horsham, 19:27
20. Meg Elgin, C.B. East, 19:29
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