The Cape Henlopen Vikings showed their strength in the Sussex County Cross Country Championships Nov. 24, winning both team titles. Cape won the boys’ race with 20 points. Indian River was second, while Sussex Central was third. On the girls’ side, Cape tallied 19 points. They were followed by Sussex Tech in second and Sussex Academy in third.
Individually, the Vikings put six runners in the top 10 positions, led by junior Ethan Edery in a season-best time of 16:16 for his second consecutive Sussex County title. Edery won last year’s title with a time of 16:05. Junior teammate Julian Callaway was second in 16:26 for a season best, while senior Lance Kauffman finished fourth in his final county meet at 16:54. Senior David Adili-Khams was fifth in 17:02, while sophomore Liam O’Donnell came up from wave two to finish eighth in 17:22. Rounding out the top 10 finishers was sophomore Andrew Wolak from wave two in a time of 17:29.
Top Golden Knights runner senior David Wootten finished third in a time of 16:34, while teammate Jaden McTeer ran 17:18 for seventh place in the race. David Geyer, a Sussex Tech senior, finished sixth overall in a time of 17:13. Indian River senior Declan Burke ran 17:27 for ninth overall. Five of the top 10 finishers will be returning next season.
Cape sophomore Katie Kuhlman, last year’s county champ, led the Vikings with a tough second-place finish and a season best of 19:33, while junior Mia Nuebling threw down a time of 20:22, a season best, for fourth place. Sophomore Ariana Adili-Khams was fifth in 20:41, while coming all the way to the top 10 from wave two was sophomore Elizabeth Melson for sixth in a time of 21:41. Sophomore Peyton Evans finished seventh in 21:41 to round out Cape’s top five finishers.
Fantastic freshman Brynn Crandell of Indian River won her first Sussex County title by pulling away from Kuhlman after an opening 5:59 mile and never looked back. Having set the course record last week at 18:48, she cruised to victory in a time of 19:05.
“Brynn is a strong runner and very impressive for not having a lot of experience under her belt,” said Seashore Striders coach Derek Shockro. “It was fun to watch her race.”
Sussex Academy senior Emily Trout, nicknamed “The Mailman” because she always seems to deliver, finished third at 20:17. Her junior teammate Sadie Tunnell was ninth in 22:00. Arina Varrato, a freshman out of Sussex Tech, finished eighth in 21:48 to lead the second-place Ravens, who scored 51 points, just six points ahead of Sussex Academy in third with 57 points. Although Sussex Academy put its top two ahead of the Sussex Tech No. 1, it was the Ravens’ impressive 22-second top four gap that proved to be the difference in finishing second or third. That is what they call pack running in cross country. Rounding out the top 10 was junior Victoria Lecates from Sussex Tech in a time of 22:01. Nine of the top 10 finishers will be returning next season.
The Henlopen Conference Championships will be held Saturday, Nov. 28, at Killens Pond State Park, with the boys going off at 10 a.m. and the girls at noon.
Pumpkin Pie 5K
The Seashore Striders will host its annual Pumpkin Pie 5K at 9 a.m., Sunday, Nov. 29. It was moved this year from Grove Park in Rehoboth Beach to Cape Henlopen State Park in Lewes due to COVID restrictions. The race will start from the main beach parking lot. Park entrance fees are in effect. A long-sleeved 100 percent cotton pre-shrunk T-shirt is guaranteed to the first 200 entries. Custom awards will be presented to the overall and masters winners, and the top 3 in 10 age groups. Entry fee is $30. We will do a rolling start with groups of no more than 30 based on pace per mile. For more information and to get registered, go to www.seashorestriders.com.
