The Bradford girls cross country team opened their season at the McDowell Invitational with an 11th place finish led by medalists Hannah Lary and Erica Marshall.
“It was nice to finally get a race in. Everyone has been working hard in practice and it was nice to see those workouts pay off,” head coach Mark Kelley said.
Hannah Lary led the way with a 24th place finish in 21:29.
“This race was a little redemption for Hannah as the last time we were at McDowell she was directed off the course and missed out on a medal. Hannah put herself in position in the first mile and maintained it throughout the race,” Kelley said.
“She has worked hard this summer and it was nice to finally race. Hannah’s goal is to get back to the PIAA state meet.”
Erica Marshall was 26th in 21:38.
“This was Erica’s first cross country race and she ran outstanding. The workouts that she was able to get in told me she was capable of running this well but the race can be a little intimidating. It will now take some planning to keep her race ready the rest of the year,” Kelley said.
Shea Crissman was 95th in 26:38.
“She really only had about two weeks of practice since joining the team this year,” Kelley said of Crissman. “She looked really good for the first half of the race but I think the distance was tough with the limited practices. Shea understands what it takes for this sport and has had a positive attitude every day at practice. I think after a few weeks of practice she is going to run a lot better.”
Alex Safran was 100th in 27:54 and Abbi Schleicher was 103rd in 28:36.
The Lady Owls junior high team placed second at the event with 95 points led by a third place finish from Korie Dixon.
“Korie ran very well, running 11:49 for the 1.78 mile course. She got out in the first mile and was in 2nd most of the race but was passed in the last 400m. Korie has been running great in practice and it showed today,” Kelley said.
Aubrey Cruz placed 13th (12:21), Karsyn Gracey-Dalton 17th (12:38), Leila Bines 30th (13:15) and Kendall Gracey-Dalton 32nd (13:17).
Elsewhere on the course, Jaylee Koppenhaver was 71st (14:49), Mayla Smith 79th (15:04) and Cameron Gallup 82nd (15:11).
“This was a very good start to the season for us,” Kelley said. “We now have a starting point to build off and continue to work hard in practice. We have a tough turnaround with a race on Tuesday but then we have some rest coming up in the coming weeks. We can really start to build for the big invitationals.”
The Lady Owls return to action Tuesday at St.Marys with Kane. The junior high race will begin at 4:15 p.m. with the varsity following at 4:45.
