Even though the weather wasn’t cooperative Saturday for the
Bradford Cross Country Invitational, the day went smoothly with 10
teams competing on the 5,000-meter course with five different
races.
In the first race of the rainy morning, the Bradford Lady Owls
cruised to a team victory accumulating 34 points followed by Elk
County Catholic (72) and Oswayo Valley (107).
All seven of Bradford’s varsity girls medaled in the race, which
had 48 runners competing.
Leading the way for the Lady Owls was Sarah Lonzi (19:10), who
tied the course record.
“Sarah looked her best today,” BAHS coach Bob Macfarlane said.
“She was on a mission. She was determined to reset the record. She
set a fast pace in the first part of the race. The course was a
little tough due to the rain but she handled it well.”
Placing second (20:36) was Coudersport’s Emily Giannotti. She is
now eighth on the GGB top 20 list.
Taking third (20:57) was Kady Weisner of ECC. Placing fourth
(21:05) with her best time this year was Paige Ambrose of
Bradford.
Taking the eighth position (21:39) was Marissa Buchheit of
Bradford. Bradford’s Liz Keller and Renee Cavallaro took the 10th
(21:42) and 11th (21:44) positions.ð
“Liz is now running like a seasoned veteran,” the coach
said.
Erica Pascarella placed 15th (22:45). Megan Prosser, a freshman,
placed 19th (23:09) for the Lady Owls.
“Our varsity girls did a fantastic job today,” Macfarlane
admitted. “I’m extremely proud of these ladies and it’s a pleasure
to coach them.
“We had five runners go under the 21:45 mark, which is a
testament to their desire to excel. Also the varsity girls are
really packing in the race which is needed for the team to be
successful. The team knows that it takes seven varsity runners to
run good for the team to be good.”
In the JV race, Megan Kronenwetter of ECC was the winner at
23:53. For Bradford, Brittni Wiseman was second (24:02), Megan
Foster third (24:16) and Shannon Taylor fifth (26:54). Kara
Piganelli ran the course in 28:45.
In the middle school division, Bradford placed first (53 points)
followed by Coudersport 74 and Allegany-Limestone (99).
Placing first and leading the way for the Lady Owls was Lauren
Bauschard (10:48). The time puts her fifth on the top 20 list at
GGB.
Bradford’s Lisa Lau was second (11:14), Alexandra Szczupak sixth
(11:28, personal best), Kaitlin Barton 18th (12:50, personal best)
and Brigid Colligan 26th (13:16).
“This group of young runners is coming into their own,”
Macfarlane said. “They are beginning to understand the concept of
team work and work ethic. This is their second invitational win
this year.
“I want to thank all the members of our booster club who put in
countless hours to help us make this invitational possible,”
Macfarlane concluded.
Bradford is at St. Marys on Tuesday.
