Ocala Vanguard super-sophs Elizabeth Mulford and Audrey Carpenter go one-two for the Knights. Photo by Jeff Adams/FLRUNNERS.COM
On-Site Coverage
Race Recap
The Nature Coast teams were joined by around a dozen out-of-towners to create a competitive atmosphere to open the regular season. Twenty-seven teams went at it at Lecanto High School, which typically runs about 20-25 seconds slower than “a pancake” due to some hills on the 5,000 meter course. The weather cooperated though with just enough clouds to help keep temperatures in the comfortable range, floating in the mid-seventies.
The Girls Varsity kicked off the day with an 8AM start time. Up front it was a battle of the sophomores with Ocala Vanguard helping itself to just three points from their top two. Elizabeth Mulford and Audrey Carpenter went one-two with the two sub-20 times on the day in 19:34 and 19:45, respectively.
While Vanguard opened scoring with brute force, Nature Coast Tech helped to remind us why all the veterans know cross country is a team sport. Though they didn’t place anyone in the top ten, NTC got the job done and rode to victory behind junior Brielle Perlingini’s 12th place 21:47. They scored 94 points to beat out George Jenkins (104), Sickles (105), and Sarasota (117). Vanguard held on for a fifth place with 164 points.
For the Boys Varsity, it was all Garrett Westlake up front. The senior from PK Yonge lost his two buddies Jordan Brown and Derek Bolser to graduation (the two made a stellar top three last year!), but personally picked off where he left off last season. He debuted with a big twenty second win in 16:05, and he should be one of the 1A state champion favorites come November. PKY was eighth in the team standings, with Joseph Janson also having a nice race in 17:08.
The team battle for the boys literally could not have been closer. Individually, they went back and forth. George Steinbrenner HS took the early lead with second, fifth, and tenth place by Matt Magee (16:25), Tyler Bess-Lima (16:53), and Zach Bess-Lima (17:26); Sarasota was just behind with the third, sixth, and fourteenth place of Courtland Bernard (16:28), sophomore Zackery Summerall (16:58), and Ian Hull (17:37). But after that, Sarasota struck back with some depth from Adam Bradtmueller (17:55) and Brandon Drumm (18:15); the teams were dead-even at 69 points through five runners. Sarasota’s sixth runner Calum Pilkey made the decision with an 18:18 and seventh runner Kael Gouriluk solidifyied it by getting under the Steinbrenner five with a 31st place 18:20.
Full Results and Coverage of the Lecanto Invitational...