Marteny pushes past Stahl for FCCA crown
Frazier’s Nyoah Marteny celebrates as he crosses the finish line to capture the crown Thursday at the Fayette County Coaches Association (FCCA) Cross Country Championships at Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus. Marteny’s winning time was 18:04.36.
John F. Brothers | Herald-Standard
Connellsville's Chris Stahl set the pace for most of the race, but finished in second place at Thursday's Fayette County Coaches Association (FCCA) Cross Country Championships at Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus. Stahl finished in 18:19.29, 15 seconds behind Frazier's Nyoah Marteny.
Uniontown's Evan Klatt takes third place with Connellsville's Devin Pisarski closing in at the Fayette County Coaches Association (FCCA) Cross Country Championships Thursday at Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus.
Connellsville's Chris Stahl set the pace for most of the race, but finished in second place at the 2015 Fayette County Coaches Association (FCCA) Cross Country Championships at Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus. Stahl finished in 18:19.29, 15 seconds behind Frazier's Nyoah Marteny.
Uniontown’s Evan Klatt takes third place with Connellsville’s Devin Pisarski closing in at the 2015 Fayette County Coaches Association (FCCA) Cross Country Championships at Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus.
John F. Brothers | Herald-Standard
Frazier’s Nyoah Marteny made his move when the race turned up the final hill of the Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus cross country course, and Connellsville’s Chris Stahl was unable to respond with Marteny continuing the momentum all the way to the finish line Thursday afternoon to win the FCCA cross country title.
Marteny won his first county meet title in a winning time of 18:04.36. Stahl finished second in 18:19.29.
Uniontown had five runners in the top-10 to win the team title with 35 points, six points lower than Connellsville.
Stahl took the pace early in the race and sat in the lead for nearly two miles until Marteny surged past him.
“I caught him at the bottom of the last hill. I gave everything I had on that hill and I think it broke his confidence. I think it surprised him more than anything,” said Marteny. “I hit the top of the hill and didn’t slow down. I had a plan and stuck to it.
“I hung back until the last downhill. He was seven seconds ahead (heading to the final downhill). That’s a lot of ground to make up.”
Marteny described what it’s like to be the county champion, saying, “It means a lot, especially as a junior, to know I can come back as the defending champion.”
Stahl reluctantly took the lead at an unusually comfortable pace.
“Someone had to take the lead. I decided to go for it at the start. I knew (Marteny) was going to be a tough one,” said Stahl. “I know a lot of people push the hill. I saw a red jersey out of the corner of my eye.”
Stahl was disappointed he was unable to hold the lead, but not dismayed with his performance.
“I did as best as I could for my team. Leading from start to finish is hard to do,” said Stahl.
Uniontown’s Evan Klatt took a fall during the final lap around the field, but recovered to finish third in 18:23.12.
“I really wanted to make a move about 1½ miles in, but I lost my footing, my spikes gave out. I’m not using that as an excuse,” said Klatt.
The stumble led Klatt to start talking to himself.
“You fell. What are you doing?,” Klatt said of his conversation to himself. “I felt great about the race, strategy-wise.”
The race panned out just as Klatt thought it might.
“When I visualized the race, it was Chris, Nyoah and me vying for it. It was comforting to see it came out that way,” said Klatt.
Frazier competes in Class AA, so Marteny is somewhat of an “outsider.”
“You don’t really think of him, but he’s a very strong runner,” complimented Klatt.
Connellsville’s Devin Pisarski charged hard to the finish line for a fourth-place finish in 18:25.27, just four seconds ahead of the Red Raiders’ Austen Metts.
Laurel Highlands’ Jordan Eadie finished sixth in 18:48.64.
“I kept my pace slow at the beginning. The second time around, I started to pick up my pace and pick kids off,” said Eadie, a sophomore. “The last time around, I lost feeling in my legs and took off.
“I used (Uniontown’s) Caleb Metts as my pace-setter. I wanted to just go for places. If I did that, I’d get the time.”
Connellsville’s Ethan McIntosh was seventh with a time of 18:53.48. The Red Raiders followed with David Tercho (19:01.80), Cameron Kutek (19:02.99), and Caleb Patton (19:03.37). Connellsville freshman Logan Gonzales’ mad dash to the finish line fell .38 seconds short of all-county honors.
NOTES: Uniontown’s Riley Gilleland won the boys’ junior varsity race in 19:31.50. … Laurel Highlands’ Brendan Kopich won the junior high race in 9:43.03, nine seconds ahead of Albert Gallatin’s Jackson Core. … The Mustangs won the junior high team title with 41 points, seven points better than Connellsville.