Cape boys’ team captures cross country championship
Cross country runners race for championships. It’s sustained pain pushing beyond the comfort zone over five kilometers, needing all seven runners to show up and throw down in the same race.
The Cape boys upset regular-season dual-meet champion Caesar Rodney Saturday afternoon 45-52 in the Henlopen Conference Championship Meet at Killens Pond State Park on the strength of the last 800 meters.
“With a half-mile to go, we were down 15 points,” said Cape coach Matt Lindell. “And that’s when the real racing began.”
Blaise Moyer of CR ran 16:18 to hold off Ethan Edery of Cape, who ran 16:20. The Vikings then put four runners in the top 16, all running under 17:45, highlighted by Julian Calloway, fifth, 16:58; Ryan Baker, eighth, 17:12; Hunter Jones, 14th, 17:25; and Lance Kauffman, 16th, 17:44.
San Epstein, 18th, 17:52 and Daniel Adili-Khams, 19th, 17:54 put all of Cape’s runners in the top 20.
Other notable top 10 performances for the boys were Kenny Guy, Polytech, third, 16:55; Jake Mundok, Sussex Academy, fourth, 16:57; Jacob Bole, Caesar Rodney, sixth, 17:00; Matt Gatune, Polytech, seventh, 17:03; David Wooten, Sussex Central, ninth, 17:14 and Justin Green, Caesar Rodney, 10th, 17:15.
Boys’ team scores were Cape Henlopen 45, Caesar Rodney 52, Polytech 86, Indian River 126, Sussex Central 180, Smyrna 189, Sussex Tech 189, Dover 197, Milford 225, Lake Forest 237, Sussex Academy 276, Woodbridge 327, and Delmar 375. Both Seaford and Early College had fewer than five runners and no team scores.
The Smyrna girls won the team championship with 46 points over second-place Cape with 71.
The Eagles put four runners in the top 10.
Josephine Ledford, a Lake Forest sophomore, was the overall winner in 19:24. The top 15 runners were Ledford followed by Keely Arndt, CR, 19:27; Reagan Sebastianelli, Smyrna, 19:39; Sarah Larose, Smyrna, 19:41; Faith Mitchell, Milford, 19:46; Katie Kuhlman, Cape, 19:56; Kelly Barr, Smyrna, 20:08; Brianna Thompson, Milford, 20:36; Emily Trout, Sussex Academy, 20:40; Alyssa Young, Smyrna, 20:50; Olivia Brozefsky, Cape, 20:57; Helena Helou, Sussex Academy, 21:00; Brianna Riggi, Lake Forest, 21:05; Sydney Wissman, Caesar Rodney, 21:07 and Mia Nuebling, Cape, 21:08.
The DIAA State Championship Meet, with both Division I and II boys and girls, will be Saturday, Nov. 9, at Killens Pond State Park. The time schedule is not yet posted.
