TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Cross Country: LOL Boys, WR girls triumph At SAC Meet

ADVERTISEMENT

LARRY BUGG

Tribune correspondent

Published: November 2, 2008

DADE CITY - Ariel Grey and Jessica Furst were having friendly chat during a pleasant day at the office Saturday morning.

Grey, a sophomore at Wiregrass Ranch High, and Furst, a junior at Wesley Chapel, happen to be friends who both were trying to win the girls Sunshine Athletic Conference cross country meet at Withlacoochee River Park.

Unlike some sports like football, there was no trash talking or macho intimidation. Grey and Furst were talking about how to navigate the hills of the course.

Grey won the race with a 19:32 giving her a second straight conference title. Furst, who finished second in 2007, finished third as Kelli Martin of Mitchell, slipped in to finish second. Martin had a 19:46 time. Furst had a 19:50 time.

Grey's Wiregrass Ranch High girls won the team title with 39 points. Land O' Lakes was second with 47 points.

"Me and Jessica worked together,'' said Grey. "We're friends so I was helping her out, telling her where the hills were. I broke off. My go-for time was to get under 19:40 and I did it. This (the second SAC title) feels very good. I was doubting whether I would get it although I shouldn't. I want to keep it going for four years straight. Kelli Williams surprised me because I didn't know she was that good. I have a lot of congestion in my throat but I didn't pay attention to it today."

"She did it,'' said Wiregrass Ranch coach Don Howard of Grey. "I'm proud of her. She (had a personal record). It's not a fast course out here. We had five PRs out there. I am very proud of them. They were all under 21 (minutes) which is what we wanted."

Furst liked having Grey as a tour guide but Furst wasn't impressed with the hills. She used to run in mountains in Idaho before coming to Florida over a year ago.

"I felt good (about taking third),'' said Furst. "Me and Ariel were there most of the way. She told me when there was a hill coming up. To me, they (the hills) were bumps. My time was 19:50, almost my PR."

Ridgewood's girls and boys were both fourth and their coach liked what he saw.

"The girls have really come on,'' said Ridgewood coach J.D. Baker, whose girls were fourth. "No one expected them to do what they have done. We did well. I was very impressed with their performance. Our top seven boys were under 19 minutes which is good. For the boys, Tyler Camacho was third (16:52). I think almost everybody (had a personal record). Mitchell always gets us."

The Mitchell girls were fifth and the boys were third in the conference meet.

"The boys had 100 percent lifetime personal records,'' said Mitchell Jeff Leavey. "They worked very hard to get to this position and they ran very well. Kelli has been working very hard. She's learning how to race and today, she raced. She ended up second and I was a little surprised she didn't win. I like winning."

Land O' Lakes High senior Felix Soto surprised no one by winning his third and final SAC title. He said the course was "rough" but he won with a time of 16:08. Teammate Matt Schwartz was second with a time of 16:45.

Soto didn't use a lot of strategy but he cheered on his team, which narrowly took the team title.

"I knew I was a favorite to win and I was just going to run my race,'' said Soto. "(Schwartz finishing second), that's a big help. There were three guys from Wiregrass coming in at the same time. I don't really like it (the course). Too much sand. A lot of people Pred but not me. It was a rough course for me."

Schwartz, the number two Gator runner, did his part to keep the title with the Gators.
"I'm more of a kicker,'' said Schwartz. "I got into it the last mile. I was in about sixth place (when he made his move). It was a good course. A little bit sandy."

The Gators needed Soto and Schwartz to do the job as Land O' Lakes edged Wiregrass Ranch 53-54 to win the SAC boys title. Land O' Lakes has won the title four years straight.

"He (Soto) did what he needed to do,'' said Land O' Lakes coach Kris Keppel. "Matt pushed it 100 percent. That's what I expected from him. I think overall, it was a good effort. I'm disappointed the girls didn't win but this is their first pressure situation. I was hoping Alyssa (Brandt, fourth, 19:55) would finish a little higher than that. I thought she had the confidence to win it. Today just wasn't her day."

Wiregrass Ranch boys coach Chris Loth appreciated the efforts of Land O' Lakes.

"They are still the class of the county,'' Loth said. "They are still the team to beat. Ryan (Pulsifer) had a good time. He ran a tough race."

Sunshine Athletic Conference Cross Country Meet Results

Girls team scores

Wiregrass Ranch 39, Land O' Lakes 47, New Port Richey Gulf 92, New Port Richey Ridgewood 107, New Port Richey Mitchell 114, Dade City Pasco 119, Land O' Lakes Sunlake, New Port Richey River Ridge 198.

Girls Top 10 Individuals

1. Ariel Grey, Wiregrass Ranch, 19:32; 2. Kelli Martin, Mitchell, 19:46; 3. Jessica Furst, Wesley Chapel 19:50; 4. Alyssa Brandt, Land O' Lakes 19:55; 5. Nicolle Forcier, Land O' Lakes 20:06; 6. Megan Ibison, Wiregrass Ranch 20:07; 7. Renae Forsch, Land O' Lakes 20:18; 8. Leeann Eble, Pasco 20:30; 9. Kelsey Sturman, Wiregrass Ranch 20:34; 10. Jillian Browne, Ridgewood 20:46.

Boys team scores

Land O' Lakes 53, Wesley Chapel Wiregrass Ranch 54, New Port Richey Mitchell 97, New Port Richey Ridgewood 102, Land O' Lakes Sunlake 111, New Port Richey Gulf 129, Dade City Pasco 152, New Port Richey River Ridge 234, Wesley Chapel 265.

Boys Top 10 Individuals

1. Felix Soto, Land O' Lakes 16:08; 2. Matt Schwartz, Land O' Lakes 16:45; 3. Tyler Camacho, Ridgewood 16:52; 4. Kenneth Fessell, Sunlake 16:53; 5. Ryan Pulsifer, Wiregrass Ranch 16:56; 6. Sebastian Ruiz, Mitchell 16:59; 7. Mason Chilmonczyk, Ridgewood 17:00; 8. Jake Morken, Land O' Lakes 17:03; 9. Anthony Flourde, Pasco 17:14; 10. John Davis, Wiregrass Ranch 17:17.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT