Eisenhower and Youngsville were joined by Union City and took their county rivalry to the cross country course at the Warren County Fairgrounds Tuesday.
When the dust settled, the Youngsville girls ran to a sweep of their competition while the Eisenhower boys were victorious over Youngsville and dropped a one-point decision to Union City. Both the Eisenhower girls and Youngsville boys finished 0-2.
Anthony Amroski and Devin VanGuilder led the Knights to a 1-2 sweep in the boys race, finishing a mere two seconds apart. Amroski had the winning time in 16:48 while VanGuilder was close behind with a 16:50. Ben Perkins gave Eisenhower three runners in the top four, clipping a Union City foe at the line to finish in 18:06.
Article Photos
Times Observer photo by Allen Seybert
Sea of green
Youngsville’s Zach Ishman, right, runs in front of a pack of Union City runners near the start of the boys race of a cross country tri-meet with Eisenhower Tuesday at the Warren County Fairgrounds.
Ben Morrison was 12th for the Knights, finishing in 19:12. Teammates Matt Jewell (13th, 19:13), Derek Lasecki (15th, 19:45), Jason Morine (22nd, 21:23), Jacob McCool (23rd, 21:28) and Jacob Hoffman (27th, 23:36) followed.
"The boys really wanted a sweep today so it was tough to come up one point short," said Eisenhower coach Darlene Beach. "Anthony and Devin continue to work well together at the front of the pack and Ben did a great job nipping a Union City runner at the line. Derek ran his fastest time of the year and Jacob McCool also ran a personal best."
Youngsville's top finisher in Tuesday's race was a 10th place effort from Aaron Hoover. Rounding out Youngsville's scored runners were Gregg Yost in 16th, Zach Ishman in 17th, Andy Lalwani in 18th and Collin Lehnen in 20th.
The Eagles' lineup also featured Chester Ciukaj in 21st, Nathen Carr in 24th and Collin Alekson in 26th.
"(We) ran well overall," said Youngsville coach Ray Bennett. "We finally got two guys under 20 minutes and three guys were very close to breaking 20. The team is getting better and will be considerably more competitive as the year moves on. Hoover and Yost both PR'd tonight and we had a lot of classic kick-to-the-finish endings between pairs of runners."
In the girls race, Eisenhower's Julia Bauer came extremely close to her first individual race win, finishing second to Union City's Ashley Keefer. Bauer's runner-up time was 21:24. Eisenhower was again not scored due to having less than five runners, but did get outstanding performances from its individuals.
Freshman Kate Daugharthy finished among the top ten with a run of 23:47, Lacey Stanko was 11th in 23:48 and Grace Thompson was 13th in 24:39.
A powerful Lady Eagles lineup featured five Youngsville runners in the top ten. Abbie Swartzbaugh was the top finisher with a third-place run of 21:47. Kellie Lindstrom and Kaitelyn Maille followed directly behind Swartzbaugh in fourth and fifth. Lindstrom finished in 22:17 and Maille was one second back in 22:18.
Also among Youngsville's first five finishers were Lydia Swartzbaugh (8th, 23:41) and Piper Olson (9th, 23:42). Denise Devore (15th, 25:12), Samantha Tome (16th, 25:35), Tori Alekson (18th, 29:40) and Suzie Rose (20th, 31:20) also provided strong runs for the winners.
"Team-wise, the lady Eagles had a strong night," said Bennett. "There was a lot good about tonight. The strength and depth of this girls team is growing with every race. They aren't intimidated by bad weather and they aren't intimidated by good competition. I like the girls and I like the attitude."
Both teams will compete Saturday in the annual Sharpsville Invitational.
Union City15, Youngsville boys 49
Eisenhower boys 17, Youngsville 42
Union City 29, Eisenhower boys 30
Results (top 10 plus local runners): 1. Anthony Amroski (E) 16:48, 2. Devin VanGuilder (E) 16:50, 3. Ben Luce (U) 17:18, 4. Ben Perkins (E) 18:06, 5. Isiah Gardner (U) 18:06, 6. Cody Thomas (U) 18:19, 7. Noah Freel (U) 18:33, 8. Drake Burgess (U) 18:45, 9. Conner Hamilton (U) 18:55, 10. Aaron Hoover (Y) 19:00, 12. Ben Morrison (E) 19:12, 13. Matt Jewell (E) 19:14, 15. Derek Lasecki (E) 19:45, 16. Gregg Yost (Y) 19:47, 17. Zach Ishman (Y) 20:02, 18. Andy Lalwani (Y) 20:07, 20. Collin Lehnen (Y) 20:18, 21. Chester Ciukaj (Y) 21:13, 22. Jason Morine (E) 21:23, 23. Jake McCool (E) 21:28, 24. Nathen Carr (Y) 22:30, 26. Collin Alekson (Y) 22:52, 27. Jacob Hoffman (E) 22:52
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Youngsville girls 24, Union City 31
Youngsville girls 15, Eisenhower 50
Union City 15, Eisenhower girls 50
Results (top 10 plus local runners): 1. Ashley Keefer (U) 21:14, 2. Julia Bauer (E) 21:24, 3. Abbie Swartzbaugh (Y) 21:47, 4. Kellie Lindstrom (Y) 22:17, 5. Katelyn Maille (Y) 22:18, 6. Olivia Trauner (U) 22:42, 7. Eve Gardner (U) 23:28, 8. Lydia Swartzbaugh (Y) 23:41, 9. Piper Olson (Y) 23:42, 10. Kate Daugharthy (E) 23:47, 11. Lacey Stanko (E) 23:48, 13. Grace Thompson (E) 24:39, 15. Denise Devore (Y) 25:12, 16. Sam Tome (Y) 25:35, 18. Tori Alekson (Y) 29:40, 20. Suzie Rose (Y) 31:20
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Warren girls 27, Corry 30
Warren girls 15, Fort LeBoeuf 50
Corry 19, Warren boys 37
Fort LeBoeuf 16, Warren boys 41
CORRY - Warren left a rainy Corry Area High School cross country course with a pair of wins and a pair of losses.
Both wins were accumulated by the girls team who defeated Corry 27-30 and Fort LeBoeuf 15-50. The Warren boys team remained winless on the year after being beaten by both the Beavers (19-37) and Bison (16-41).
Ellis Beardsley and Anna Falvo ran near the front of the pack during the majority of the girls race with Corry's Danielle Munsee also in the mix for the win. Beardsley crossed the finish first with a winning time of 22:18 while Falvo came across just behind Munsee in third with a run of 22:35.
The Lady Dragons' strong pack included two more runners in the top six with Amanda Castagnino fifth in 23:04 and Deanna Hahn sixth in 23:30. The all-important fifth spot was held down by Alyssa Cumberland who clocked in 13th in 25:12.
The boys team didn't have as much success against a powerful lineup of Beavers and Bison. Seth Johnson was the first Dragon boy across the line, finishing ninth in 20:44. Close behind in 11th was teammate Christian Olson (21:13).
Eric Zavinski (21:14) and Mark Reiff (21:16) were 12th and 14 respectively, finishing within three seconds of Olson. Rounding out Warren's lineup were Dan Pierson (17th, 21:25) and Max Pierson (19th, 21:55).
The Dragons will join county rivals Eisenhower and Youngsville at Saturday's annual Sharpsville Invitational.
No other details, including results for Corry and Fort LeBoeuf, were available.