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Highlights
Thomas Jefferson, VA makes a quick call after Bull Run, Manassas meet
cancelled, and joins Jamestown, VA at William Tennent meet. Jonna
Reinhardt, Jamestown, wins in 15:02 for 4800 meters. Jefferson takes
team title behind the 2-3 finish of Christo Landry (15:04) and Keith
Bechtol (15:13).
At Delaware County Championships, Cardinal O'Hara runs alone, going 1-2
in boys' and 1-2-3 in girls races for 32-34 point team dominance.
Christine Taranto, West Allegheny, 18:45 @ Rocky Grove.
PA's Adam
Breisch, Quakertown, Keith Bechtol, Jefferson, Jonna Reinhardt, Jamestown
(partially obscured),
and Christo Landry, Jefferson, lead charge up a hill at the William Tennent
Inv
Rienhardt,
Bechtol
photos
by Don Rich
Summaries
Virginia's
Thomas Jefferson HS glad to be out of DC area for a day.
William Tennent Invitational @ William Tennent HS (4800
Meters) - Some
of Virginia's (and the country's) best came north, and took the top
three spots. Jamestown senior Jonna Reinhardt expected (and hoped) to
be
going for the course record held jointly by former teammate Bryce Ruiz
and PA's Danny Coval. But those plans were dashed when, ten minutes
before the race, his coach told him "your buddies are here."
The buddies
he was referring to were Thomas Jefferson's Christo Landry and Keith
Bechtol, who had beaten Reinhardt in mid-September when Jonna was
recovering from a virus. "That changed my stragegy. I had to switch
from
thinking about time, to thinking about the win. I thought I had a better
kick, and I did. It was a good surprise. I'm glad they were here."
Reinhardt won in 15:01, but Jefferson tallied just 32 points for the
team win. In the girls' race, Allentown Central Catholic's Frances Koons
led wire-to-wire, answering every challenge from Hatboro Horsham's
Janine Ricci, to win in 18:05. But Ricci's squad took the team win with
just 68 points.
Thomas Jefferson made the trip because they had no place to race in their
home state October 12th. Held in the grip of fear generated by an
unknown sniper who had attacked ten times in ten days, area activities
had been cancelled. They searched, and found a welcoming meet in PA. And
the short trip from northern Virginia to the northern suburbs of
Philadelphia seemed like lightyears from home.
The unimportant part of the day was that Jefferson easily won the meet
in a neatly packaged 32 points (2-3-5-10-12-18-21). The important part
was that several parents, the coaches, and the team (photo
below by Don Rich) got to spend a day
without looking over their shoulders. Diane Landry (3rd from left) is
Christo's mom. Christo, a junior, was 2nd to Jamestown, Virginia's Jonna
Reinhardt in 15:03. Diane Hanak (far left) is Brian's mom. Brian is most
probably off to Yale in a year. Brian finished 5th in 15:39. And Ellen
Smith (far right) is Kyle's mom. He's a sophomore who finished 12th in
15:57. The three stuck together before, during and after the race. They
didn't learn of their destination until they received calls from their
sons yesterday afternoon.
The three did not disagree with the decision to cancel the very popular
(great fan course) Glory Days Grill Invitational in Bull Run Regional
Park, Manassas, Virgina. Manassas was the site of shooting #9 earlier
this week. The school looked to Charlottesville, Virginia for another
meet, but it was deemed to be too close. So they searched north.
In-state rival Jamestown has come to William Tennent for years. (Last
year's senior star Bryce Ruiz shares the course record with Council Rock
star Danny Coval.) They called, along with a few other teams who had
been left out by the last minute cancellation. "We were happy to
take
them" according to Meet Coordinator Ted Abel of William Tennent.
"They're going through a very tough time now, and after all, this
is for
the kids. We had room, so we gladly accepted them."
According to the three moms, the varsity is practicing on their own in
their neighborhoods, and in a park that is out of the way. "They
have to
keep running. They can't stop now." They feel their sons are safe
at
school, because "the schools are in total lockdown. No one gets in
they don't know."
But the pressure is starting to get to them. Ellen says that she was
doing OK until the last shooting (Friday morning). "After that, I
just
didn't want to go out.
And Diane Hamak, who volunteers at her son's school every Friday, spent
much of the day caught in traffic on I-95 as police searched vehicles
looking for the killer, or killers. "My car was even searched by
a
policeman with a sniper rifle."
Jonna Reinhardt, the Jamestown senior who won the race, was a bit
concerned about travelling from his home near Williamsburg, through the
troubled area around Washington, DC, to Pennsylvania. "We were stopped
for two hours. We took a charter bus and when we stopped, we had to stay
in a group. It was unnerving."
The Jamestown girls team also made the trip, and made a good showing,
finishing 6th. The team, the coaches, and Diane, Ellen and Diane were
all heading home Saturday evening. They were thankful for the day. "It
was nice to get out of the area for a day and take a break," said
Diane
Hamak. "But if you don't live there, you can't understand. We all
knew
someone who knew someone affected by the terrorist attack on the
Pentagon. Now it's back."
Delaware County Championships @ Rose Tree Park - There
was absolutely no
resistance from the Delaware County teams as Cardinal O'Hara's boys and
girls harriers simply dominated the field, easily winning both
individual and team titles. The mild surprise of the meet was O'Hara's
Vince Gravelle winning the championship by 13 seconds over teammate
Steve Hallinan, going 16:04. O'Hara tallied just 32 points (1-2-5-6-18).
Monsignor Bonner was 2nd with 75 points. In the girls' race, O'Hara
swept the top three spots and finished with just 34 points, 66 better
than 2nd place Haverford. Frosh prodigy Katie Kelly ran a strong 19:00,
to win the individual title. Teammate Danielle Schopf was 2nd, 21
seconds back, while Mary Debevec, finished 3rd in 19:26.
Rocky Grove Invitational @ Two Mile Run County Park,
Dempseytown - West
Allegheny's Christine Taranto toured the 5K course in a strong 18:45 to
win by just three seconds over Eisenhower senior Heather Wilmoth. Elk
County took the girs' team title behind the 6th place finish of Erica
Hoffman in 20:41.8. Twin Valley was just five points back with 100.
General McLane took the boys' title with 53 points behind the 2nd place
finish of junior Hayden Harrison in 16:24.5. Shawn Moore, Twin Valley,
was 1st in 16:20.5.
George School Invitational @ The George School, Newtown
- New
Hope-Solebury's Joanna Marlow was the top PA finisher, getting 2nd in
19:36, 20 seconds behind Lawrenceville's (NJ) Becky MacKenzie, who led
her team to a 21 point win over Germantown Academy. Lawrenceville also
took the boys' race behind the 2nd place 17:26 of Andrew Alvarez.
Germantown Friends' Ian Mactavish won the race by a comfortable margin
in 16:57.
DyeStat Pennsylvania
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