The Pennsbury girls cross country team finished second and the Council Rock North boys were third at the District One AAA Championships on Friday. To view photos of all the action, please visit the Photo Gallery.
By DENNY DYROFF
LOWER SAUCON -- The team championship titles and the individual gold medals belonged to the Ches-Mont League at this year’s District 1 Class AAA Cross Country Championships while both silver medals and one team runner-up trophy were claimed by the Suburban One League.
Just as it was last year, the showdown for the team title at the District 1 Class AAA Girls Cross Country Championships was a two-team battle between Unionville, which is the top-ranked team in the state, and Pennsbury, which is ranked number two.
Unionville took first in the meet that was held Friday morning at Lehigh University’s Goodman Campus with 39 points and Pennsbury placed second with 56. Central Bucks East was third with 163 followed by Strath Haven with 187 and Great Valley with 188. The top five teams from District One qualify for the state meet as teams.
As expected, Unionville not only finished with the best team, it also produced the best runner in the meet. For the second year in a row, Courtney Smith won the gold medal. This year, she did it with a clocking of 17:18.
The fight for the runner-up position brought about an interesting reaction from fans lining the final stretch to the finish line. Everyone was cheering for Olivia -- but some of the screamers were wearing Pennsbury black-and-orange and others were wearing Unionville blue-and-gold
It was a “Battle of Olivias” that ended with Unionville’s Olivia Young taking second place at 17:47 and Pennsbury’s Olivia Sargent finishing third at 17:57.
“The ‘Battle of Olivias’ -- it was exciting,” said Young. “I heard my name even if it wasn’t specifically for me. I moved into second place and then tried to hold it for the last 1,200. But, I knew that Olivia Sargent had a great kick and that if she was anywhere near me in the last straightaway, she’d beat me.”
Both Unionville runners had a lot of respect for Sargent’s talent.
Smith said, “Olivia Sargent took the lead for the first part of the race but she was never out of striking distance. She was just a couple steps ahead of me. The second mile was when I moved up. At the 2400 (meter-mark), I was up by 30 yards.”
Sargent, whose father Greg Sargent won a number of state gold medals when he competed for North Penn a few years back, said, “I was very happy with the pace of the first mile. It was quick and I felt good.
“It was great because it set me up for the rest of the race -- a race that gets mentally tougher as it goes on. I was in the lead until we crossed the bridge. Then, Courtney opened it up a lot. Still, I’m thrilled with finishing third because last year, I was seventh.”
The Falcons’ other scorers were Hannah Molloy (fifth, 18:04), Erica Gray (15th, 18:37), Maddie Sauer (16th, 18:39) and Meridith Twomey (17th, 18:41).
“This was a great race for me,” said Molloy, another of Pennsbury’s speedy sophomores. “My best time on this course before today was 18:28. The first mile was hard.
“I got out slow and got stuck behind a lot of people. I started moving up in the second mile. My finish was good. I passed the C.B. East girl (Tate Dawson) and got close to the Downingtown West girl (fourth-place finisher Aislynn Devlin).”
The top 25 finishers not from qualifying teams earned individual berths for the state meet.
Other state qualifiers from the Suburban One League were Council Rock North’s
Kaelyn Heinicke (eighth, 18:20), Pennridge’s Marissa Sheva (ninth, 18:27), Central Bucks West’s Maddie Villalba (11th, 18:33) and Lindsey Gerlach (26th, 18:52), Central Bucks South’s Kaitlin Poiesz (13th, 18:35) and Brynne Mulloy (29th, 18:55), Wissahickon’s Lotte Black (18th, 18:42) and the North Penn trio of Brianna Mengini (19th, 18:43), Phoebe Clowser (27th, 18:52) and Melanie Vlasic (35th, 19:01).
“I knew last year I got an 18:55 and I wanted to beat that time,” said Black, who won her second consecutive Suburban One League American Conference gold medal last week on the same course at Lehigh. “I picked the North Penn girl (Brianna Mengini) to work off.
“She really helped me push myself. Whenever I felt her surging, I’d pick it up. I worked the uphill, passed a few girls on the downhill and then got a few more on the last straightaway. I finished strong.”
In the Boys’ Class AAA meet, West Chester Henderson won its fifth consecutive district title. The Warriors took first with 58 points -- well-ahead of runner-up Conestoga at 159. Council Rock North was third at 186 followed by Pennsbury at 271 and Penncrest at 280.
Henderson accounted for the top spot as a team and in the individual standings. Tony Russell successfully defended his district crown with a blazingly fast time of 14:59. Russell’s closest challenger was Council Rock North’s senior ace Ross Wilson, who took second at 15:15.
“Ross (Wilson) was about seven meters behind going into the third mile,” said Russell, the defending Class AAA state champion. “I know he has a dangerous kick so I pushed the whole third mile. Breaking 15:00 was a good time. I really wanted to break 14:50 but I knew I wouldn’t do it with all the wind.”
Wilson, who finished second to Russell in last year’s district meet, said, “It was a pretty steady race. All my miles were at the same pace. But, I wanted to run faster. I put in the work to run better than I did today. Fortunately, I still have states next week.
“I ran right there with Tony Russell for about two miles. Then, after the two-mile mark, he pulled away. That’s what was most upsetting to me. I just couldn’t go with him today. I feel I’ve worked harder than anyone in the state.
“I feel like I can run with anyone. Tony Russell is just in better shape right now. I usually have a great time running. Today, it wasn’t there. But, next week is the state championship race and that’s the main goal.”
Council Rock North’s other scorers were Brian Arita (27th, 15:56), Robert Simmons (32nd, 15:58), Sean Griswold (46th, 16:16) and Jesse Laitman (93rd, 16:46).
The five runners who combined to earn a state meet berth for Pennsbury were Sam Webb (eighth, 15:32), Alek Sauer (26th, 15:55), Liam O’Connell (42nd, 16:13), Dan Tokar (70th, 16:37) and Thomas Wick (151st, 17:01).
Other SOL runners who qualified for the state meet were Central Bucks East’s Jake Brophy (fourth, 15:04),Hatboro-Horsham’s Casey Comber (ninth, 15:34), Bensalem’s Kyle Francis (13th,15:46) and Steven Davis (43rd, 16:13), Quakertown’s Alexander Balla (14th, 15:47), North Penn’s Ryan Grace (15th, 15:47) and Ryan Tung (29th, 15:57), Plymouth Whitemarsh’s Dan Shalala (20th, 15:52), Upper Merion’s Austin Cooper (25th, 15:55), Pennridge’s Joseph Logue (35th, 16:04), Council Rock South’s Andrew Hanna (41st, 16:13) and William Tennent’s Jesse Coleman (44th, 16:15).
“The start was amazing,” said Shalala, a Colonial senior. “I was out in with the front pack and really felt good. I was still with the front pack at the mile. Then, I slipped back to the second pack and stayed with them. I worked the second mile far better than I did here last week at our league meet.
“I also felt really good in the third mile. Then, on the last straightaway, I passed two guys (Downingtown East’s Billy Caldwell and Lower Merion’s Jonathan Perlman). My goal was top 30 so that I’d make states. I didn’t even think about a goal time.”
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