For the past six seasons, the Emmaus girls’ cross country team has participated in the PIAA Championships in Hershey as District XI 3A champions.
They will now have some familiar company joining them.
Led by a strong pack of talented underclassmen, their male teammates will be joining them on the state’s biggest stage after they surprised many by capturing their first District XI title in 25 years on Wednesday afternoon at DeSales University.
The Hornets, who last won a championship back in 2000, had four runners finish in the top 10 to shock favorite and rival Parkland 33-45.
“Today was a surprise to many as our boys were not favored to win the title,” said a proud Emmaus head coach Kami Reinhard. “Parkland has been a strong force all season with amazing coaches and athletes who always hold the bar high for our district.
Sophomore sensation Roen Woolf was Emmaus’ top place winner finishing second overall in a time 16:34, just 14 seconds behind Parkland junior Colin McGuigan (16:20) who also captured the EPC title last week on the same course.
Hornets senior Ryan Fach was two spots back in fourth place (16:43), while sophomores Michael Carwell (16:52) and David Hearn (16:55) were seventh and eighth, respectively. Freshman Luke Harris was just outside the top 10 finishing 12th (17:19).
“It turned out to be a lucky day with outstanding performances by each and every one of the boys on our team. They made tremendous progress these last few weeks to really come together when it matters most. They made history again today, with a team that is pretty young!”
While there was a surprise with the Hornet boys knocking off Parkland, there were no real dramatics in the girl’s race.
Emmaus senior Madelyn McCartney continues to show why she’s been the top runner in the 3A classification for the last several years as she won yet another individual championship crossing the finish line in a time of 18:02.
“Mady is the District XI AAA champion for the third year in a row and set the girls team up nicely to overcome the challenge to earn that trip to Hershey,” said Reinhard.
The Hornets, who had their six-year reign as champs come to an end, finished runner-up with 84 points, edging rival Parkland who was third with 87 points. Pre-season favorite Easton won the team title going away (57 points).
McCartney, a University of Kentucky commit, was the only Emmaus runner to finish in the top 10. Junior Grace Nosal was 14th overall (20:12), while senior Olivia Fleck finished in 17th place (20:22) and junior Isabella Alwine-Balliro 19th (20:29).
“The girls team significantly improved from last week, despite some illnesses going around the team,” said Reinhard. “Easton and Parkland both improved as well, which made for a tough nail-biting race for our girls. Credit to Easton who ended our district winning streak and to Parkland, who put up a strong fight with a stacked team.
“With a few position changes in the last 400m, our girls were able to come out with a second place finish to secure another trip to states.”
Both squads will now prepare for the upcoming PIAA Championships which will be held on Saturday, November 1 in Hershey.
“I would like to give a shout out to our coaching staff,” added Reinhard. “Casey Frank, Rob Gallagher, Kristin Susens, coach Woodbury, Ashleigh McNellis and Kera Reinhard who are simply the best! These results are 100 percent due to the dedication, support and unity we have among our staff far beyond racing.”
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BOYS – 1. Emmaus 33, 2. Parkland 45, 3. Solehi 88, 4. Nazareth 122, 5. Easton 148
Results (Top 10)
- Colin McGuigan (Park, 16:20), 2. Roen Woolf (Em, 16:34), 3. Miles Etters (Solehi, 16:43.5), 4. Ryan Fach (Em, 16:43.9), 5. Jacob Casey (Naz, 16:46), 6. Evan Guydish (Ea, 16:51), 7. Michael Carwell (Em. 16:52), 8. David Hearn (Em. 16:55), 9. Alex Abosamra (Park, 17:02), 10. Luke McEvoy (Park, 17:11
GIRLS – 1. Easton 57, 2. Emmaus 84, 3. Parkland 87, 4. Liberty 106, 5. Solehi 113
Results (Top 10)
- Madelyn McCartney (Em, 18:02), 2. Elizabeth McClarin (Lib, 18:49), 3. Hannah Broadhead (Free, 19:06), 4. Katie Drabouski (Lib 19:09), 5. Harshita Keerthi (Park, 19:10) 6. Lyla Knoble (Easton, 19:30), 7. Vivian Clark (Easton, 19:40), 8. Caelee Lenhart (Solehi, 19:43), 9. Lama Mahmoud (Easton 19:48), 10. Taylor Vidumsky (Free, 19:51)