Hertenstein-Delay Duel, Steinbrenner Girls Take Down Winter Park, STA Raiders Defend 4A Title

FLORIDA XC 2016: FHSAA CROSS COUNTRY FINALS
Andy Warrener



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The Class 4A girls race had the intrigue on Saturday at Apalachee Regional Park in Tallahassee. Defending state champ and course record holder Bailey Hertenstein of Riverview was likely to repeat but Duncan Fletcher senior Kayley Delay was poised to unseat her. The pair had the two best times, regardless of classification, coming into the meet, both in the 17:30s. It was destined to be a showdown and it delivered. Delay and Hertenstein got out in front quickly. Coming around for the first mile, it was Delay and Hertenstein in complete control. Somewhere in that first mile, Hertenstein ditched her hair tie that was giving her problems. Back lit from the rising sun, Hertenstein's hair looked like a blond fireball trailing her and Hertenstein turned up the heat coming around for the second mile.

"After two miles, I wanted to make sure I had some distance (between her and Delay) so I started making my move," Hertenstein said. 


That's about when Hertenstein hung an 11-second gap on Delay, basically securing the win. An even bigger gap opened between Delay and the rest of the field as she tried to run down Hertenstein. Hertenstein would hold and win it in 17:40.36, eight seconds off her course record from a year ago but still tops among all classifications. Hertenstein made it her second-straight title. She's just a junior.

"It was terrifying (pondering defending the title), there were so many expectations, so much pressure. My friends that don't run don't understand just how hard it is to do this," Hertenstein said. "Thankfully, my family and my team calmed me down and that made it a lot less stressful."


Delay held course and took second in 18:20.33.

Then a great battle for third erupted between Winter Park junior Rafaella Gibbons and Hertenstein's freshman teammate Alyssa Hendrix. Coming down the grassy hill, Gibbons tried to peek back over her shoulder to gauge Hendrix's proximity. That's when Hendrix turned it up and drew even. Pounding it out to the tape, it was a photo finish but with Hendrix getting third in 18:33.70 and Gibbons ever so close at 18:33.72.

"This was a crazy experience, my body was shutting down but I just gave it all I could, last race of the season," Hendrix said. 


The 18:33.70 was a new personal record for Hendrix, who has already broken Hertenstein's freshman record in cross country.

"I was not that fast as a freshman," Hertenstein said. 

To top off the already thrilling top individual finishes, the team battle between two-time defending champs Winter Park and upstart Steinbrenner wound up to fever pitch. Gibbons grabbed fourth with Plant senior Laura Jones, a 26-minute cross country runner as a freshman, in fifth (18:44.02). Then Steinbrenner's lead runner, freshman Lydia Friedman came in seventh at 18:45.68. Sophomore teammate Alexandra Straumann came in at 18:54.73 for 11th, Winter Park's Hana Herndon took 18th, Steinbrenner's Brooke Santiesteban landed in 24th, teammate Alexandra Perri came in 28th. Winter Park countered as Melanie White came in at 31st and finally Steinbrenner's Brieanna Rekow wrapped up the scoring finishing 36th. 


"I can't really comprehend it until we're up there on the podium holding the trophy," Straumann said. "We talked about it (winning a state title) for so long, now it's ours, it's amazing."

The Steinbrenner girls rose to the occasion. Rekow, Friedman and Straumann all set personal bests and Perri and Santiesteban were just seconds off their personal bests.

"Amongst ourselves we were confident coming in but we didn't know if it would be enough to beat Winter Park," Steinbrenner girls coach Ladd Baldwin said. "We felt good after winning the region at that tough course at Holloway Park. We thought their (Winter Park's) regional course was much faster than ours."

The two teams missed a square off at Pre State because Winter Park's county was put under a travel advisory due to Hurricane Matthew. Steinbrenner took second as a team at the meet and the teams looked to be on even footing most of the season but on Saturday it was Steinbrenner 81 and Winter Park 105. Plant took third with 144. The first team title for Hillsborough County since Plant girls won it in 2011. 

"This was our goal 51 weeks ago," Baldwin said. 


On the boys side, Lyman's Bryce Bell, the top seed, pushed out to an early lead, battling Sandalwood's Terrance Sessoms. Coming around for the first mile, it was Bell, Sessoms and senior Matthew Doyle of Winter Springs just in front of the lead group.


Over The Wall and out for 1.5 miles, the top three spread out but held position. Coming down the grassy hill, Nicholas Rischar moved up to the front group and started applying pressure. Coming around the sand, near two miles, Doyle moved into the lead with Rischar trailing and Forest Hills' Isaiah Dela Puente entering into the mix.



Coming down hill for the finish, it was Doyle in 15:56.11. Dela Puente moved into second at 15:59.36 and Rischar held for third in 16:05.44. 

"I wasn't worried about my time, I just wanted to go top four," Doyle said. "This was the toughest race I've run all year, I wanted to just leave it all out there."


Rischar's third-place finish set the table for Aquinas. Antonio Martinez came in at 16:15.04 for seventh place. Pierce Statham placed 35th and the Aquinas boys racked up 82 points, easily out-distancing runner up Lakewood Ranch's 177. 

"I know we were favored (to win the team title) but we didn't have that mentality," Statham said. "We came in hungry, we stuck together and pack-ran and things just fell in place."

It made it Aquinas' second-straight title and third in the last four years.



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