Cortland, Ohio --It may not have been a shot heard 'round the world, but certainly the Gilmour girls fired a shot Saturday that will shock the state --at least in cross country circles.
Despite missing one of its top runners, Gilmour pulled a huge upset over defending state champion and No.1-ranked Liberty Center at the Legends Cross Country Invitational at the Trumbull County Fairgrounds.
The Lancers, ranked sixth in the state, showed superior depth as well as talent up front to easily defeat Liberty Center, 55-76, in the Division III girls race.
"It feels great," said Gilmour coach Matt Lindley. "We wanted to have a respectable showing against the defending champions, but this far exceeded our expectations."
Gilmour was one of five area teams to win their respective divisions, as St. Ignatius and St. Vincent-St. Mary's girls won in Division I, CVCA took honors in the Division II girls race, and the boys from Gilmour also won in Division III.
While Alexis Anton missed the meet because of SAT testing, Gilmour's girls welcomed back Halle Markell to the lineup. It was the first race of the season for Markell, who suffered a minor stress fracture in late August.
"Having Halle back was a huge boost for the girls," Lindley said. "Having her at the line was a fresh wind in their sails."
Running in training flats despite the muddy conditions, Markell was the second Gilmour runner to finish, crossing the line in fifth place. She was sandwiched by freshmen Catherine Dolohanty (fourth) and Hannah Markell (sixth), followed by Caitlin Whetstone (19) and Madeleine Krakowiak (21) as the Lancers had five finishers before Liberty Center's fourth.
"I felt really good," Markell said. "It's the first time I've run hard since Aug. 20. Everybody wanted to step it up and have a good performance against Liberty Center, but this is fantastic. I wasn't expecting to be this big of a factor. I had no idea if I could break 30 minutes."
CVCA sophomore Sammy Bockoven is also coming back from an injury. She suffered from a stomach ailment for much of the summer, causing her to lose weight and to miss about six weeks of training. Saturday she led a 1-2-3 finish for the Royals, who dominated their race, winning by nearly 100 points.
"I'd say she's about 70 percent," said CVCA coach George Hallis. "Some days are better than others, but she's never lost her desire and her ability to work hard."
Bockoven, who finished second in last year's state meet, crossed the line in 19:50.1, followed by Mallory Myers in second and Natalie Pasicyznyk in third. Kelly Janus in eighth and McKenna Tiley in 18th rounded out the scorers for CVCA.
"I'm feeling a lot better," Bockoven said. "I'm not 100 percent, but I'm getting there."
St. Ignatius and St. Vincent-St. Mary dominated their respective Division I races, with each team scoring an incredibly low 22 points. The Wildcats, ranked second in the state, had six finishers among the first nine, led by senior Jack Miller, who was second to Tyler Menear of Brunswick.
A similar level of domination was achieved by St. Vincent-St. Mary, which was led by the 1-2 finish of freshman Rachel Iacofano and senior Marissa Rossetti. The Irish, who proved last week that they are the top team in the state regardless of division, placed their top five among the first eight finishers despite stepping up a division.
Gilmour's boys benefited from the fact that McDonald and Maplewood, ranked 1-2 in the state in Division III, chose to move up to the Division II race, which was won by Maplewood. The Lancers rode the 3-4-5 finish of juniors John Brett, Alexander Clapacs and Alexander Ulatowski to easily outscore Berkshire, 52-72.
Joe Magill is a freelance writer in Auburn Township.
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