FROM THE SOUTH FLORIDA SUN-SENTINEL
Ashley Brasovan was not looking forward to doing laundry Friday night.
In less-than-ideal conditions on a muddy course, the Wellington sophomore still managed to break 18 minutes and defend her title in the first major meet of the season at the Wellington Invitational at Village Park.
\"Those kind of conditions are definitely interesting but I don\'t like having to wash all my stuff when I get back home,\" Brasovan said. \"I washed my shoes, they were covered in mud, and threw my clothes in the wash.\"
Brasovan won in 17 minutes and 54 seconds. Last year she won in 18:03. Hailey Neal of King\'s Academy was runner-up in 20:05.
\"That means I\'m improving,\" Brasovan said. \"I was very pleased with my time considering the conditions. I am still trying to build up. I don\'t want to peak right now. I want to see where the season takes me.
\"You definitely have to have a strategy to get around the mud and not get stuck in it. It takes a lot more effort to propel yourself out of the mud instead of regular grass.\"
The light-footed Brasovan was not as muddy as the rest of the field of 177 runners.
\"She\'s a little tiny thing and doesn\'t sink in so far,\" said veteran coach Roy Chernock of Palm Beach Central. \"She runs on top of the mud.\"
\"That time was pretty amazing for this kind of course,\" Wellington coach Sal Mucino said.
The boys\' race was delayed by lightning for 30 minutes. When it resumed, sophomore Michael Burke of West Boca Raton led the field to win his first title of the season. Fourth last year, Burke won the boys\' race in 17:10 and topped an impressive field.
St. Thomas Aquinas swept the boys\' and girls\' team titles. The girls had five runners in the top nine places after runners without teams were dropped out of team scoring. The Raiders won with 29 points. Pope John Paul II, led by fourth place finisher Andrea Mascaro, was the top Palm finisher placing fourth with 137.
The Raiders won the boys\' team title with 51 points. Defending county champion John I. Leonard was the top Palm boys\' team placing second with 81 points. Much-improved West Boca Raton was fourth with 148.
