Martins Ferry boys win fifth straight Invitational
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MARTINS FERRY -- Home sweet home! There's no other way to put it.
For the fifth straight year, the Martins Ferry boys' cross country team captured its own invitational. The Purple Riders placed three runners in the top 10 to easily outdistance second-place Union Local, 36-79, on a chill-filled Saturday morning high atop the Purple City. Shadyside finished third with 89, two less than Brooke.
"We lost a ton of seniors last year, so this year's team is a mix of some older kids and some younger kids," Martins Ferry head coach Chrissy Lewis said. "We're counting on a bunch of freshmen to help us out this year and they have so far."
Leading the Martins Ferry contingent was junior standout Marcus Clark with a second-place finish. Justin Geery (5th) and Ozy Gil (7th) joined him in the top 10.
"Those three guys have been leading us and our two freshmen placed in the top 20, so it was a good day," Lewis added. "That was really nice."
Shadyside junior Chase Stewart ran away from the 83-runner field. The Tigers' standout clocked in at 16:41, which was 41 ticks better than Clark's 17:22. Brooke's Matthew Harvey was third with 17:41, while Wheeling Central's Quintin Thomas edged Geery for fourth, 18:06-18:08.
"It was a pretty good course. This was my first time running it, so I didn't know how to go into it," Stewart said. "I just chilled for the first mile and got through that first hill, which is probably one of the bigger hills in the race. I just went on my own after that and eventually pulled away a little."
Oak Glen's Hunter Gorby led the second five with a time of 18:10. Gil timed out five seconds later and Union Local's Aaron Prout was eighth in 18:44. Indian Creek's Colin Brown and John Marshall's Anthony Siler rounded out the top 10 in 18:50 and 18:51, respectively.
John Marshall was fifth in the team standings with 121 points. Buckeye Local ended in sixth with 155, and Wheeling Central rounded out the seven full teams with 158.
Shadyside took home top honors in the girls' race as it tallied 74 points in a close battle with Union Local, Linsly and Martins Ferry. Only 12 points separated the four. The Jets were second with 81, while the Cadets nipped the Purple Riders, 84-86, for third.
"I'm really proud of the girls. They are really working hard and working together," Shadyside head coach Jenna Coyne said. "We had groups of them running together. On any given day you don't know who is going to be our first runner and who is going to be our last. But they work well together."
The Tigers were led by freshman Katie James who finished third in 21:27. Other runners were Sophia Ferrelli (16th), Cali Weber (19th), Jadelyn Smarenski (21st) and Sydnie Destifanes (29th).
Breaking the tape first on the 63-participant female side was John Marshall freshman Zara Zervos who was running her first 5K in high school. Her time of 20:36 was an unofficial course record, according to Lewis.
"My goal was to break 21 minutes and I did that, so that was good," she said. "The course was good. It was mainly flat with a couple of hills, which I train for, so I liked that."
Union Local's Hannah Kemp was next to cross the finish line in 21:19, while River's Olivia Beard followed James in 21:33. Linsly's Molly Heron was fifth with a 22:08. Taking sixth was Martins Ferry's Olivia Walton (22:15). Linsly's Maddie Campsky (22:31) was seventh and Oak Glen's Kennedy Quinlin eighth (22:42). Finishing ninth was Martins Ferry's Jamie Fogle (22:43) and Linsly's Mackenzie Courtney (22:47) rounded out the top 10.
Both individual winners said the conditions were ideal.
"Perfect running weather," Stewart noted. "Absolutely perfect."
"I love running in the cold, so today was nice," Zervos added. "The early morning race was nice and the sun wasn't out."
Team trophies were presented to the top two teams in each division. Medals were given to individuals placing 11-20, while 1-10 received small trophies.
Martins Ferry Invitational
High School
Girls
Team Scoring: 1. Shadyside 74; 2. Union Local 81; 3. Linsly 84; 4. Martins Ferry 86; 5. John Marshall 100; 6. Indian Creek 121; 7. River 137; 8. Wheeling Central 152
Top 10 Individuals
1. Zara Zervos (JM), 20:36; 2. Hannah Kemp (UL), 21:19; 3. Katie James (SS), 21:27; 4. Olivia Beard (Riv), 21:33; 5. Molly Heron (Lin), 22:08; 6. Olivia Walton (MF), 22:15; 7. Maddie Campsey (Lin), 22:31; 8. Kennedy Quinlan (OG), 22:42; 9. Jamie Fogle (MF), 22:43; 10. Mackenzie Coutney (Lin)
Boys
Team Scoring: 1. Martins Ferry 36; 2. Union Local 79; 3. Shadyside 89; 4. Brooke 92; 5. John Marshall 121; 6. Buckeye Local 155; 7. Wheeling Central 158
Top 10 Individuals
1. Chase Stewart (SS), 16:41; 2. Marcus Clark (MF), 17:22; 3. Matthew Harvey (Brk), 17:41; 4. Quintin Thomas (WC), 18:06; 5. Justin Geery (MF), 18:08; 6. Hunter Gorby (OG), 18:10; 7. Ozy Gil (MF), 18:15; 8. Aaron Prout (UL), 18:44; 9. Colin Brown (IC), 18:50; 10. Anthony Siler (JM), 18:51