On-Site Coverage
Class 3A girls set off on the course and up the hill. Coming around near the first mile, Land O' Lakes' Natalie Abernathy got out to the early lead, just in front of the pack. Teammate Estafania Acosta and Harmony's Vanessa Bolen, along with Ocala Vanguard's Hannah Evans and Stephanie Hansen completed a group that had six seconds on the next Jamila Cardwell of Sunlake-led pack. Coming out of the back trails, near the three-mile mark, it was Abernathy with four seconds on Leesburg's Kara Funke. Funke had eight seconds on the third and fourth runners and that's how it shook out. Abernathy with the regional title in 19:17.37. Funke took second in 19:20.36 and Evans third in 19:25.74. Acosta grabbed fourth in 19:34.95.
"There were some steep hills and it was sandy, hard to get my footing," Abernathy said. "I wore my spikes but I kept slipping. I really enjoyed the last mile, though."
It was Abernathy's first time on the course at Holloway after running a personal best 18:53.81 last week at districts. It will be Abernathy's second trip to states in as many years and Acosta's first.
"There were some familiar opponents today (in Funke and Bolen)," Abernathy said. "But I wanted to make sure to get the regional title."
Vanguard, with both Evans and Hansen in the top 10, carried the team title with 75 points to runner up Matanzas with 91. The Gator girls also qualified as a team with 104, just behind Seabreeze's third-place team finish (101).
In the boys race, New Smyrna Beach's Aidan O'Gorman got out to the early lead with Vanguard's Diego Lavieri-Sosa and Liberty's Joshua Figueroa trailing him.
Coming out of the back trails, near three miles, Lavieri-Sosa had moved in front.
"We were really pushing it into the second mile," Lavieri-Sosa said. "I could tell he (O'Gorman) was starting to slow down and we stayed together for about a half mile but then he started to fade."
Lavieri-Sosa would take it in 16:13.20, after logging his personal best at district in sub 16-minute fashion.
"My legs were getting heavy by that two-mile mark and it was tough but states is a tough as well and that wall gets bad," Lavieri-Sosa said.
It will be Lavieri-Sosa's third trip to states in as many years.
Team-wise, Gainesville edged out New Smyrna Beach even as New Smyrna put O'Gorman and Payne Meyer in the top four. Gainesville's Logan Locascio took third and the rest of the Hurricane boys did enough to out-pace New Smyrna 64-82.
