Twins set the pace in the Everhart Invitational
Brownsville's Jessica Vance tries to hold off a couple runners during the final stretch of the A.J. Everhart Invitational at Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus on Saturday.
West Greene's McKenna Lampe finished 14th in 21:34 at the A.J. Everhart Invitational at Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus on Saturday.
Laurel Highlands' Anthony Lowery (784) and Uniontown's Jonathan Desvarro (6) race each other to the finish line at the A.J. Everhart Invitational at Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus on Saturday.
The A.J. Everhart Invitational girls varsity race Saturday morning featured a pair of twins, and the quartet had a pretty good day after three finished in the top 15.
Brownsville’s Sara Vance led the way in third place with a time of 19:57.7. Her twin sister Jessica placed seventh in 20:34.9.
West Greene’s McKenna Lampe finished 14th in a time of 21:34. Her twin sister Madison was close to making the awards stand, finishing 24th overall in 22:15.9.
Both sets of twins are sophomores.
THE FUTURE: Forest Hills went 1-2 in the girls junior varsity race with Liz Zajdel finishing first in 22:39.12, 15 seconds ahead of teammate Jozie Smith.
Uniontown’s Josephine Maher was the top local finisher in ninth place with a time of 26:18.65.
Forest Hills also dominated the girls junior high race with Remi Smith first in 12:27.3, 10 seconds ahead of teammate Katelyn Beyer. Connellsville’s Shelby Basinger was the top local racer in fourth place in 12:48.9.
Host Uniontown finished 1-2-3 in the boys junior varsity race with Harry Strauser first in 18:18.83, followed by Austin Metts (18:20.15) and Riley Gilleland (18:29.23).
Penn-Trafford’s Ben Yant won the boys junior high race in 11:24.3, with teammate Austin Prokopec second in 11:30.6. Albert Gallatin’s Preston Core was the top local runner in fifth place in 12:02.2.
BUSY COURSE: Uniontown’s course on the grounds of Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus will be busy in the next couple weeks.
The Red Raiders host Connellsville, Albert Gallatin, Laurel Highlands and Ringgold Tuesday in the Section 2-AAA finale. Then, on Thursday, Oct. 13, the annual FCCA Cross Country Championship will be held at Fayette campus.
Not surprisingly, many of the county’s runners used the invitational as a prep for the two races.
“I really like this course. It’s different than most courses,” said Laurel Highlands’ Bailey Rohm. “It’s uphill most of the time. It was a challenging course.
“I’ll work the hills a little bit more.”
AROUND THE DISTRICT: Connellsville’s Ally Wilson just missed the awards podium, finishing in 22nd place with a time of 21:55.5. Uniontown’s Madison Bertovich was right on her heels, finishing in 21:58.1.
Yough’s Addie Bradish finished 52nd in 24:14.4. California’s Sami Kluz was 68th with a time of 25:06.3. Albert Gallatin’s Skyler Bogus finished 73rd in 25:28.8 and Waynesburg Central’s Olivia Kiger finished 100th in 32:28.1.
California’s Charles Roberts was just a couple places from returning home with an award after he finished 22nd with a time of 17:59.5.
“I wanted sub-18 (minutes),” said Roberts. “I felt pretty good.”
Roberts complimented the run by Waynesburg Central’s Ben Bumgarner, saying, “He seemed like it was a recovery run for him.”
Frazier’s Nyoah Marteny continued his recovery from injury by placing 44th in 18:34.5.
Laurel Highlands’ Anthony Lowery finished 49th in 18:41. Albert Gallatin’s Brandon Bogus was 61st in 19:12.5. Yough’s Javen Gunther placed 64th in 19:15.8. Cameron Kromer led Brownsville home in 75th place with a time of 19:48.6. Southmoreland’s Ian Megela was 84th in 20:11.1 and Mitchell Murdock placed 118th with a time of 23:33.8.