Three In A Row For Xiang, Zimmerman Leads Chiles To Team Trophy At Mandarin Mustang Invitational

Mandarin Mustang Invitational
Todd Grasley



On-Site Coverage

Meet Recap by Coach Schmitt

It was a beautiful day for a race in Jacksonville. Sunny and dry in the early morning races. Perfect conditions for some great times at the Mandarin Mustang Invitational.

Boys Varsity


 
After the first mile, Mandarin High School’s tandem of John Weaver and Sam Mack were locked into a race at the top with a host of other runners, including Chiles’ Cade Zimmerman and Avery Bartlett, Robert E. Lee’s Rayford James and Dominic Williams, and Bishop Kenny’s David Yarborough. At the two mile point, the race appeared to favor Mandarin’s squad, with John Weaver in the lead and Sam Mack right behind, while Chiles closed from behind on the lead pack. In the end, Chiles’ running strategy paid off, as Zimmerman (1st: 16:16) and Bartlett (2nd: 16:20) outlasted Mack (3rd: 16:20) and Weaver (4th: 16:31),and Chiles’ Sean Turner and Ty Murray outpaced the 3, 4, 5 runners of Mandarin for a nine point team victory. Rounding out the top five finishers was Rayford James(16:36)  of Robert E. Lee.
 
Girls Varsity


 
The Girls Varsity race shifted quickly into a race for 2nd pace, as Nease sensation Karen Xiang pulled away early and led from the gun, guiding her team to a dominating 43 point victory. The top three runners, Xiang (18:30), Danielle Van Liere (2nd place: 19:18)  of Fletcher, and Hannah Giangaspro (3rd with a 19:36) of Bartram Trail ran separately and ahead of the “lead” pack for most of the race, and the Fletcher girls were able to sandwich their top three between Nease’s first two runners. However, the top five of Nease finished well in front of the Fletcher 4-5 to capture the team championship, while the Creekside girls slipped by Fletcher to capture the Runners-up honors on the strength of their 4-5 finishers, earning  2nd place honors by a mere five points. Rounding out the top five finishers were Fletcher’s Kayley Delay (20:01) and Mandarin’s Ania Grzesczak (20:13).
 
JV Boys


 
The JV Boys race lived up to the early hype as a three team race developed with Mandarin, Bishop Kenny and Chiles trading spots and places throughout the race. Trevor Knauf (17:41) of Chiles, carried the lead for much of the race, finishing in first place, followed by Bishop Kenny’s Sam Jaramillo (17:49), and Mandarin’s Jordan Webster (17:53). When the final team results were tallied, however, the order was reversed with the Mustangs edging Bishop Kenny by eight points and Chiles slipping to third by a mere two points. The top 24 runners came from one of those three teams, with Mandarin placing five in the top 13 for the win.
 
JV Girls

In the final race of the morning, Bishop Kenny’s girls edged Creekside by a mere four points with Creekside holding the edge on the first two places, but BK winning it on the legs of their 3,4,5 runners. 8th Grader Danielle Corbin from Episcopal won the race with a time of 23:05, finishing comfortably ahead of Creekside’s Cassie Hoekzema (23:25) and Fleming Island’s Abigail Millson (23:31). Rounding out the top five were Bartram Trail’s Victoria Velez (23:58) and Holly Strickland (23:59) of Creekside.
 

Elite Performances

Girls Highlights

Boys Highlights