2020 Schedule:
Sept. 15 - DIERUFF (4 pm) - Won 15-50 (1. Ashleigh McNellis, 19:04, 2. Hailey Reinhard, 19:27, 3. Kera Reinhard, 19:36, 4. Belle Lees, 20:06, 5. Keerstin Augustin, 20:53)
Sept. 22 - ALLEN (4 pm)
Sept. 29 - CCHS (4 pm)
Oct. 6 - WHITEHALL (4 pm)
Oct. 14 - @ Parkland (3:30 pm)
Oct. 28 - District XI Meet (TBA)
Home meets (CAPS) @ Lower Macungie MS
10/30/18
Hornets edge Stroudsburg by one point at district meet, qualify for states
One point.
That's all that stood between a trip to the PIAA State Championships and the girls cross country team packing up its running gear for another season.
Fortunately for head coach Kelly Bracetty's team, they'll be making their reservations in Hershey thanks to edging Stroudsburg 94-95 and finishing runner-up at last week's District XI Class 3A Cross Country Championships held at the Bethlehem Municipal Golf Course.
"All season I've been telling the girls that every single place matters," said Bracetty, the Hornets first-year head coach during an interview on Monday. "I reminded them of that because I knew it was going to be a close matchup with Easton and Stroudsburg and I knew Parkland had a shot as well. It was clear by about two miles into the race that Easton was looking stronger upfront than our team and I knew we had a chance for second. "
And the Hornets got the district's second bid to states after having five of its runners place in the top-30 and two others finish just outside.
Leading the way was Keerstin Augustin who took eighth place, crossing the finish line in a time 19:57. The top-10 finish by Augustin came on the heels of finishing fifth at the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference championships.
"Keerstin has been a saving grace for this girls team in so many ways," said Bracetty of her sophomore who transferred into the school district from California. "She's been solid for us all year. As the season went on she got stronger and really buckled down and developed a good race strategy that she was comfortable with. I still think there's potential for her to run with the top girls in this district right from the start. "
Behind Augustin was freshman Bella Lees who finished in 13th place (20:28 ), followed by classmate Madison Toretta who was 22nd (20:54), and sophomore Clara Kennedy who was 24th (20.59). Senior Amanda LaVana finished just inside the top-30 placing 27th overall (21:01), while senior Abby Heilenman and sophomore Kera Reinhard, finished 31st (21:14) and 32nd (21:15), respectively. Reinhard, the Hornets No. 1 runner, returned to action for the first time since suffering an injury three weeks ago.
"We ran a very solid, very smart race and I saw a lot of improvement from my girls on that course," said Bracetty. "When everybody finished the race, I just told the girls before the results were posted, that I was so proud of them and it didn't matter if we got that state spot or not. They could not have run any better and they put their heart and soul into this race."
"I was so, so happy for them," she added. "To be such an underdog coming into the season where there were no media outlets even considered us to be one of the top three teams. Everybody overlooked us and sometimes that's a really good thing.
"For these girls to work so hard and keep that team goal all season, I was very happy with how they did.'
While Emmaus narrowly defeated Stroudsburg for second-place, it was Easton that ran away with the team title, finishing 22 points better (72) than the Hornets. The Red Rovers Meghan Vizian, a freshman, won the individual race in a time of 19:19.05
The PIAA State Championships will be held this Saturday, November 3. The girls race will begin at 11 a.m. followed by the boys race at 1:15 p.m.
Follow @Emmaussports on twitter for continued updates on the team throughout the season.
10/18/18
Short-handed Hornets finish third overall at EPC Championships
Competing without two of its top three runners, the Emmaus girls cross country team put together a strong effort at the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference Championships on Tuesday at the Bethlehem Municipal Golf Course as they finished third overall.
"I felt it was a solid performance considering we were without (our top runner) Kera (Reinhard) and Clara (Kennedy), our third runner, who had a fever the past few days," said Hornets first-year head coach Kelly Bracetty.
Without Reinhard and Kennedy in the lineup, Keerstin Augustin was Emmaus' top place-winner finishing fifth overall. The sophomore crossed the finish line in a time of 20:03.
"Keerstin ran a smart race from the start and moved up nicely over the second half of the course," said Bracetty of her 10th grader.
Teammates freshman Belle Less was 17th (21:06) and senior Amanda LaVana 26th (21:26), while freshman Maddy Toretta placed 27th (21:32) and sophomore Ashleigh McNellis 30th (21:41).
"The depth of our team really showed as Belle and Amanda were consistent for us and then we had Maddy and Ashleigh step in to fill our fourth and fifth spots," said Bracetty.
Easton won the team race with 78 points, while Parkland finished second (99) and Emmaus third (105). Freedom sophomore Lauren Charboneau won the individual title crossing the finish line in a time of 19:36.
"Being only six points away from Parkland without Reinhard and Kennedy in the mix should give our girls confidence for districts next week when we get to the line with a full, healthy squad," said Bracetty. "Our team goal this entire season has been to win districts and move on to states. It is still a very realistic goal."
The District XI Championships will be held next Wednesday, October 24 back at the Municipal Golf Course.
Follow @Emmaussports and @HornetsXC on twitter for continued updates on the team.
10/14/18
Hornets knock off rival Parkland to cap off undefeated regular-season on Senior Day
On a day when they honored their seniors for their contributions to the program, the Emmaus girls cross country team also had other reasons to celebrate following their final regular-season meet at the Lehigh Parkway on Tuesday.
How about knocking off, at the time, the only other undefeated team in rival Parkland.
Finishing undefeated in the regular-season with a perfect 17-0 mark.
And being crowned Eastern Pennsylvania Conference champions.
It's been that kind of season for first-year head coach Kelly Bracetty's team.
"I knew from Day 1 when I stepped into this position just how possible it was to go undefeated," said the Hornets coach on Thursday. "I've believed in these girls since the first day."
"I can remember at one of the first days of practice when we talked with the girls and telling them that no other four people in this entire valley believe in you more than me and the other coaches here. I still believe that we can be conference champions, district champions and go on to states as a team."
Thanks to a 27-28 win over the Trojans, along with victories over Whitehall 19-42, Central Catholic 15-50, Allen 15-50 and Dieruff 15-50, Emmaus has already accomplished two of its goals.
"Beating Parkland was our best win of the season and not just because we won by one point, it was because we ran that race without our top runner Kera Reinhard (out with a back injury)," said Bracetty. "That showed all the girls on the team that we're good and we can do this. It gives them a lot of confidence heading into the upcoming league and district championships."
Emmaus had three of their runners finish in the top five as sophomore Keerstin Augustin finished second overall in a time of 20:13, followed closely behind by another sophomore, Clara Kennedy (third, 20:35) and freshman Belle Lees (fourth, 20:36).
The Hornets also occupied four of the 10th-15th place spots as senior Abby Heilenman finished 10th in a time of 21:03, classmate Amanda LaVana 12th (21:23), sophomore Olympia Curley-Katrishen 13th (21:30), freshman Madison Toretta 14th (21:35) and sophomore Ashleigh McNellis 15th (21:50)
"We have a very young girls team and the majority of our top five runners our sophomores and freshmen," said Bracetty. "My goal for them is to keep developing them as runners both physically and mentally and over the next few years, I'd like to have five girls under 20 minutes and take a crack at states."
Up first, however, will the EPC Championships which get underway on Tuesday at the Bethlehem Municipal Golf Course. The girls race will get underway at 2 p.m.
SENIOR SALUTE - Eight seniors were honored on Senior Day. They include: Abby Heilenman, Amanda LaVana, Edna Creelman, Marley Wait, Ashlee Davies, Katharine Downey, Jaelyn Miller and Faith Rhoads
EPC Standings (Final) - EMMAUS 17-0, Parkland 16-1, Stroudsburg 15-2, Easton 14-3, Northampton 12-5, Liberty 12-5, Nazareth 11-6, Freedom 10-7, Whitehall 9-8, CC 9-8, Pleasant Valley 6-11, ES South 6-11, BC 6-11, PM East 4-13, Allen 0-17, Dieruff 0-17, ES North 0-17, PM West 0-17
10/2/18
Hornets edge Liberty, defeat Freedom and BC to remain unbeaten
The Emmaus girls cross country team remained unbeaten on the season Tuesday afternoon as the Hornets swept three more opponents.
Head coach Kelly Bracetty's team won a tight race over Liberty (27-30) while also defeating Freedom (18-42) and Bethlehem Catholic (15-50) to improve to 12-0 on the season.
Sophomores Keerstin Augustin and Kera Reinhard led the pack for the Hornets with Augustin finishing second in a time of 20:02.46, just seconds ahead of Reinhard who was third (20:02.89). Another sophomore, Clara Kennedy, also placed in the top 10 crossing the finish line in a time of 20:46.
The Hornets also got solid efforts from the rest of its lineup as they occupied the next four spots in the race with freshman Isabella Lees finishing 12th (20:49), senior Amanda LaVaana 13th (21:08), sophomore Ashleigh McNellis 14th (21:17) and freshman Madison Toretta 15th (21:20)
Freedom sophomore Lauren Charboneau finished first overall in the race in a time of 19:03.
Emmaus will compete in its final meet of the season next Tuesday, October 9 at 4 p.m. at the Lehigh Parkway as they host the only other undefeated team, rival Parkland, along with Dieruff and Allen
Emmaus 27, Liberty 30
Emmaus 18, Freedom 42
Emmaus 15, Becahi 50
Follow @Emmaussports and @HornetsXC on twitter for continued updates on the team throughout the season.
2018 Preview
Head coach - Kelly Bracetty (1st year)
Last year - 13-4 (6th place EPC Meet/4th place District XI Meet)
Losses to graduation - Abby Dalton (1st Team EPC/Muhlenberg), Amber Ziegler, Brynn Myers
Key returnees - Sr. Abby Heilenman, Sr. Amanda LaVana, Sr. Edna Creelman, Sr. Marley Wait, Soph. Kera Reinhard, Soph Clara Kennedy, Soph. Olympia Curley-Katrishen
Key newcomers - Soph. Cali Guastella, Soph. Keerstin Augustin, Fresh. Isabella Lees, Soph. Ashleigh McNellis, Fresh. Morgan Belisle, Fresh. Bethany Brown, Fresh. Madison Toretta
Coach Bracetty - "I definitely think we are going to surprise a lot of people out there this season in a lot of dual races, but more importantly, at the end of the year conference meet and district meet. Those are the two most important meets of the season."
EPC top challengers - Stroudsburg, Easton, Liberty
Season-opener Tuesday, Sept. 11 vs Easton/Nazareth/Northampton @ Lehigh Parkway
Follow the team on social media: Twitter: @Emmaussports, @EmmausXC
Aug. 31, 2018
Cross Country teams to open season at Northampton Invitational
The Emmaus girls' and boys' cross country teams will open their season on Saturday morning as they make their first-ever appearance the Northampton Invitational at Bicentennial Park in East Allen Township.
The invitational, now in its 11th year, is one of the largest in the area with 38 different schools and over 1,000 athletes competing in six races.
First-year head coach Kelly Bracetty's team will compete against teams from Archbishop Wood, Berks Christian, Bethlehem Catholic, Boyertown, Building 21, Central Bucks East, Collegium Charter, Council Rock South, Downingtown East, Easton, Emmaus, Exeter, Fleetwood, Hamburg, Holland, Lansdale Catholic, Lehighton, Louis Dieruff, Mahanoy, Marian Catholic, Northampton; Oley Valley, Palmerton, Pennridge, Pope John Paul II, Quakertown, Reading, Schuylkill Valley, Shenandoah Valley, Souderton, Southern Lehigh, Stroudsburg, Susquehanna Community, Tamaqua, Upper Dublin, Upper Perkiomen, William Allen and Wilson.
Action gets underway at 9 a.m. with the girls varsity race followed by the boys race at 9:45 a.m.
First-year head coach Kelly Bracetty has announced the seven girls and boys competing in the varsity division.
The girls lineup consists of sophomore Keerstin Augustin, senior Edna Creelman, senior Abby Heilenman, sophomore Clara Kennedy, senior Amanda LaVana, sophomore Kera Reinhard and senior Marley Wait.
The boys will feature senior Jake Brown, junior Mason Brown, sophomore Cameron Carter, junior Ian Cox, sophomore Geoffrey Kleinberg, junior Mark Magee and sophomore Keshav Shankar
The Junior varsity races will start at 10:30 a.m. for the girls followed by the boys at 11:15 a.m. There will also be middle school races for girls (noon) and boys (12:30 p.m.). Awards will be presented at 1 p.m.
Follow the team this season on twitter (@Emmaussports) and (@HornetsXC)
| Name | Class |
|---|---|
| Edna Creelman | Sr |
| Ashlee Davies | Sr |
| Katharine Downey | Sr |
| Abby Heilenman | Sr |
| Amanda LaVana | Sr |
| Jaelyn Miller | Sr |
| Faith Rhoads | Sr |
| Marley Wait | Sr |
| Kaia Berrio | Jr |
| Keerstin Augstin | So |
| Abigail Barnes | So |
| Christina Colosimo | So |
| Olympia Curley-Katrishan | So |
| Claire Engel | So |
| Kyla Fanning | So |
| Cali Guastella | So |
| Clara Kennedy | So |
| Ashleigh McNellis | So |
| Kera Reinhard | So |
| Haley Rowlands | So |
| Brooke Transue | So |
| Sara Jane Waterman | So |
| Paige Wickkiser | So |
| Bri Young | So |
| Morgan Belisle | Fr |
| Bethany Brown | Fr |
| Sadie Dallas | Fr |
| Sadie Kennedy | Fr |
| Isabella Lees | Fr |
| Emma Miller | Fr |
| Lauren O'Malley | Fr |
| Madison Toretta | Fr |
| Isabella Truong | Fr |