Courier-Journal

Sunday, November 5, 2006

 

 

Assumption, Trinity win region titles

By Kenzie L. Winstead
Special to The Courier-Journal

 

Assumption and Trinity used superior balance to capture the Class AAA Region Three high school cross country team titles yesterday at E.P. "Tom" Sawyer State Park.

 

The top four teams and the top seven individuals not on a qualifying team advance to Saturday's State Meet at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington.

 

Girls

Assumption placed four runners in the top seven and rolled to the team title, totaling 36 points to 62 for second-place Oldham County. Sacred Heart was third, six points behind Oldham County.

 

Eastern sophomore Sarah Turi took the lead within the first 400 yards and never relinquished it. She ran the 5,000 meters in 19 minutes, 3.80 seconds.

 

Turi said she kept pushing herself despite feeling tired. "I just wanted to do my best," said Turi, who finished third in last year's region meet. "Every race is another opportunity."

 

Sacred Heart's Emily McAtee was the runner-up, finishing less than seven seconds behind the winner.  Turi said she's aiming for at least a top-five finish at the State Meet. "I want to be in the top group of people," she said. "I think I can. I've got some good coaches. They kept pushing us."

 

Eastern coach Mike Horan said yesterday's close race will help Turi.

"I knew it was going to be a good race," he said. "You never want to waltz into the state championship."

 

Assumption coach Barry Haworth said he pleased with the Rockets' effort.  "This is a good group," he said. "We just told them to go out there and run hard."

 

Haworth said he'll employ more strategy at the State Meet. "Manual is the favorite, without a doubt," he said. "They're very solid."

 

Boys

Trinity had seven of the top 13 finishers and rolled to the team title with 32 points. Oldham County was second with 90, and Eastern had 91. Oldham County senior Ken Prather took the lead at the two-mile mark and pulled away from Trinity senior Thomas Noel to win in 16:11.47.  "I planned it exactly like that," Prather said. "This is great going into the state championship, a morale boost."

 

Shelby County freshman Stacey Eden was third.

 

"We ran in a good pack today, which is what we wanted to do," Trinity coach Chad Waggoner said.

 

The Shamrocks are trying to win their first state title since 1997. The past two seasons they've finished second to St. Xavier (last year) and Daviess County (2004). "We want to be on that podium this year," Waggoner said.

 

 

 

 

Girls' winner Sarah Turi, right, got a hug from runner-up Emily McAtee of Sacred Heart at the Class AAA Region Three meet. (Photos by David R. Lutman, Special to The Courier-)

 

 

 

YESTERDAY'S RESULTS

 

TOP FOUR TEAMS ADVANCE TO STATE MEET; X-DENOTES STATE MEET INDIVIDUAL QUALIFIER.

CLASS AAA REGION 3

GIRLS

Team results: 1. Assumption 36, 2. Oldham County 62, 3. Sacred Heart 68, 4. Eastern 128, 5. Shelby County 138, 6. South Oldham 160, 7. Ballard 177, 8. Atherton 208.

Individuals

1. Sarah Turi (Eastern) 19:03.80, 2. Emily McAtee (SHA), 19:10.03, 3. Annie Barry (Oldham) 19:20.54, 4. Ellen Daly (Assumption) 19:21.55, 5. Adrienne Curtis (Assumption) 19:45.97, 6. Hillary Raidt (Assumption) 20:09.67, 7. Allison Riedling (Assumption) 20:10.04, 8. Danielle Willingham (Oldham) 20:36.21, 9. x- Helen Hagg (Ballard) 20:41.04, 10. Amanda Deane (Oldham) 20:41.45, 11. x- Courtney Weihe (S.Oldham) 20:43.62, 12. Adreinne Bartlett (SHA) 20:58.42, 13. x- Kacie Niemann (S.Oldham) 21:00.46, 14. Amanda Day (Assumption) 21:00.89, 15. Amanda Perkins (Assumption) 21:01.44; x- Shera Clark (Shelby) 21:53.34, x- Sara Wright (Shelby) 22:03.94, x-Janelle Solinger (Shelby) 22:04.78, x-Summer rines (Atherton) 22:05.83.

BOYS

Team results: 1. Trinity 32, 2. Oldham County 90, 3. Eastern 91, 4. South Oldham 106, 5. Shelby County 143, 6. Ballard 175, 7. Fern Creek 182, 8. Seneca 191, 9. Southern 228, 10. Atherton 245.

Individuals

1. Ken Prater (Oldham) 16:11.47, 2. Thomas Noel (Trinity) 16:16.46, 3. x- Stacey Eden (Shelby) 16:23.69, 4. Ethan Short (Trinity) 16:33.92, 5. x-Jacob Law (S.Oldham) 16:37.68, 6. Sean Darrow (Trinity) 16:40.42, 7. Devon Willingham (Oldham) 16:48.84, 8. x- Derek Berry (S.Oldham) 16:53.54, 9. Matt Schafer (Trinity) 16:59.47, 10. x- Shane Quinlan (Ballard) 17:04.04, 11. Brian Hancock (Trinity) 17:17.53, 12. Dane Flinchum (Trinity) 17:20.03, 13. Bryan Henn (Trinity) 17:20.96, 14. Mitch Jones (Eastern) 17:25.78, 15. Joe Mallek (Oldham) 17:28.94; x-Brandon Chesser (Seneca) 17:34.63, x- Chris Lewis (Atherton) 17:47.54, x- Aaron Goeing (Seneca) 17:52.87,