McDonald’s X-county Festival Recap
Posted Sunday, 30 September, 2007
Alton, Kosakowsi Win Men’s and Women’s
Richmond, VA – Guy Alton and Jackie Kosakowski kicked off the McDonald’s X-country Festival at Maymont with popular hometown victories in the men’s and women’s open 5K race that was contested by 276 male and female runners at Maymont Park tonight.
Alton, 24, of Richmond, covered the 3.1-mile course in 15 minutes 42 seconds, 14 seconds ahead of Jason Spong (15:56), also of Richmond. Alex Addison, 28, of Richmond, was third in 17 minutes 11 seconds.
Kosakowski, 24, of Richmond, won handily over Heidi Peterson, 13, of Williamsburg, VA, who was second in 19 minutes 42 seconds. Amirah Johnson, of Greenbelt, MD, was third in 20 minutes, 36 seconds.
Kosakowski, an assistant cross country at Hanover High School who will be urging her runners to victory in the high school events at the McDonald’s X-country Festival at Maymont tomorrow, was happy to have set a good example for her team. “The guys have been talking trash with me all week,” she laughed. “But they should run faster than me.”
Over 2,500 high schoolers from up and down the East Coast and as far west as Colorado are entered in the high school cross country events tomorrow that begin at 9:30 a.m. There will also be a 13.1-mile half marathon with over 600 runners starting at 7:00 a.m.
Kids 1-mile Run
Boys: Colton Galley, 11, Crested Butte, CO, 6:16; Connor Rea, 9, Midlothian, VA, 6:50; Matthew Pinson, 8, Richmond, VA, 6:58
Girls: Tenaja Jennings, 10, Clinton, MD, 6:48; Jessica Molloy, 10, Glen Allen, VA, 6:50; Samantha Hess, 10, Glen Allen, VA, 6:58.
For more information call Sports Backers Communications Director Mike McCormick at 804-901-9047.
U.S. #4 Midlo Girls Hold Off U.S. #6 Eleanor Roosevelt Girls
Richmond, VA – Midlothian High School’s girls team, ranked #4 in the United States, bested Eleanor Roosevelt High School’s girls team, ranked #6, in the U.S., while the Midlothian boys showed well on the grassy hills and dales that define the McDonald’s X-country Festival at Maymont.
“It’s a tough course,” said Kathleen Lautzenheiser, Midlothian’s star 10th grader who won the girls individual race in the prestigious Invitational Division over the top female cross country runners in the region, many of them seniors and juniors. “My strategy was to keep a steady pace and see what I had left in the last mile. It was exciting having all these girls here. They pushed me a lot.”
In all, over 2,500 kids raced in the McDonald’ X-country Festival at Maymont, which features hilly 5K (3.1-mile) course that winds a serpentine trail through Richmond’s scenic park. The fastest runners were designated for the Invitational Division, which had 119 girls and 154 boys registered. One hundred ninety-five teams from 110 schools ranging from 11 states and the District of Columbia competed in the Sports Backers-organized event that in only five years has grown to be one of the most prestigious cross country meets in the East. High school squads from as far away as Colorado, Connecticut and Ohio competed.
Midlothian also captured first place in the Invitational Division girl’s team event by combining the placings of Lautzenheiser, Paige Johnston, Samantha Dow, Amy Witt, Anne Tenser, Erin Stehle and Tierney Willard for overall low score of 66 points. Eleanor Roosevelt’s girls were second, with a score of 108 points, while Winston Churchill High School from Potomac, MD, took third with 117 points. The girls team from Tatnall High School, of Wilmington, Delaware, will surely drop from its present ranking of #22 in the U.S. after finishing sixth in the team events.
In the boys Invitational Division individual races, Senior Pete Dorrell, of Blacksburg High School, in Blacksburg, VA, took first place in 15 minutes 31:16 seconds. Senior Jason Witt, of Midlothian, was second in 15 minutes 35:50 seconds, while Junior Andrew Colley of Jamestown High School in Williamsburg, VA was third in 15 minutes 39:24 seconds.
And the meet’s top ranked boys team, U.S. #6 Oakton High School, of Fairfax, VA, was upset by Medina High School, of Medina, Ohio. Medina’s boys team, which was comprised of Donny Roys, Jeremy Arthur, Sam Maynard, Hunter Heaton, Lucas Walters, Kent Rankin and Jake Boyert, scored 137 points, besting Oakton’s 151 points. The Midlothian boys were third with 162 points.
With a festival atmosphere of music, food vendors and a beautiful park setting, athletes and families from near and far enjoyed the pageant of Richmond’s finest cross country event. “This is our home course, so we like the hills,” said Maggie Walker Governor’s School runner Justin Pierce, who was 49th in the boy’s Gold Division.
“This was a great experience because our meets are tiny,” added Emma Coburn, 17, of Crested Butte Academy, in Crested Butte, CO. Coburn, who finished 17th . “Out in our part of Colorado, if we get a hundred runners, that’s a lot. It’s great being here with all these other kids.”
Other Events:
In the McDonald’s X-country Festival at Maymont half marathon, a 13.1-mile trail and road road through Richmond’s riverside trails in the James River Park that was open to runners of all ages, Marcus Jones, 25, of Richmond, won the men’s overall race with a time 1 hour 11 minutes, 47 seconds. Second place went to Ben Gaspar, 25, of Chapel Hill, NC (1:14:23), while Paul Olivere, 43, of Wilmington, DE, took third place (1:19:17.)
Mina Thorsten, 23, of Blacksburg, VA, won the women’s half marathon overall race with a time of 1 hour 27 minutes, 30 seconds. In second place was Mindy Reese, 32, of Richmond (1:30:16), while Richmond’s Kathy Gvozdas, 37 was third (1:30:52).
“I had a lot of fun,” said Reese, who liked the trial running challenge. “The volunteers at the water stops were very excited, and you had Ronald McDonald at the finish! That was great.”
Age group results posted at www.sportsbackers.org
Middle School Boys 3K (1.86-miles): 1st, Matt Galley, 14, Crested Butte, CO, 10:39; 2nd, Alan Moore, 13, Dayton, VA, 10:51; 3rd, Christopher Springer, 13, Gordonsville, VA, 10:54.
Middle School Girls 3K (1.86-miles): 1st, Adrian Newcomb, 13, Blacksburg, VA, 11:31; 2nd, Megan Moye, 13, Moseley, VA, 11:40; 3rd, Hannah Brown, 13, Blacksburg, VA, 11:43.
For more information call Sports Backers Communications Director Mike McCormick at 804-901-9047.
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