Cross country kicks off the season at Lake Invitational
The Cape cross country team kicked off its competitive season Sept. 9 at the Lake Forest Invitational at Killens Pond State Park, as the Vikings were represented in varsity, junior varsity, and third-team races. Top runner Greg Boyce ran 17:01 for a good early-season race, leading his team to a third-place finish in the Varsity A race behind Caesar Rodney and Newark. Boyce, who competed at the Coaches Nationals last season, hit the line as the top Viking in Varsity A, while teammate Kolbe O’Donnell ran 17:48 for eighth place overall. John DiStefano finished 18th in 18:49, young Gabe Best was 20th in 19:19, Douglas Heid was 24th in 19:31, Bryan Ciabattoni was 25th in 19:39, Tristan Holland was 27th in 19:46, Ryan Bixler was 28th in 19:49 and Collin Thompson was 31st in 20:14. The boys are young and rebuilding, and they will have to close the top five gap of 2:30 if they wish to be competitive with the top Henlopen teams.
Sophomore Olivia Brozefsky was Cape’s top finisher with a time of 20:52, good for third overall. Lindsay Rambo was sixth in 22:00, Taylor Johnson was 12th in 23:18, Amaya Daisey ran 23:22 for 14th overall, and Leah Marsh ran 23:39 for 17th to wrap up the top five scorers. The girls recorded a top five gap of 2:47 in the opener. The Vikings were 16 points behind Smyrna in the team standings.
The Vikings will travel to the White Clay Creek Classic Friday, Sept. 15, in Newark, beginning at 3 p.m.
The 1-2 punch of Hannah Murphy and Kylie Millner finished in the 9-10 position to lead the Sussex Tech girls to a fourth-place finish in the team standings.
Junior Kurt Rushing of Tech was fifth in the boys’ race in 17:41, while teammate Michael Wesolowski was seventh in 17:46 and Ryan Morrow was 10th overall in 18:10. Tech finished in a fourth-place tie with Cape.
Seashore Striders Cross Country
The 27th season of the Seashore Striders cross country team is off and running with young runners from 6-14 practicing twice a week at Cape Henlopen State Park.
The team kicked off its season last weekend at the Lake Forest Invitational at Killens Pond in Felton, competing in the open race for eighth grade and below.
Faith Mitchell, 11, led the Striders with a third-place finish on the girls’ side of the action by completing the 2.1-mile course in 15:27. Katie Kuhlman was fifth in 15:39 and Devin Hundley was sixth in 16:03, while first-year runner Mia Gordan, 9, was 11th in 18:01.
On the boys’ side for the Striders, Caughnery Freese, running in the meet for his school team Holy Cross, ran 14:13 to win the boys’ race, while Matthew Friscia was second in 14:20. Alexander Arnold was 10th in 16:23, Stephen Hart was 11th in 16:27 and Jacob Hayes was 16th in 17:53.
The Striders will head north to Camden Saturday, Sept. 16, for the running of the Holy Cross Invitational, hosted by Holy Cross School. The meet begins at 9 a.m. To see the full Striders schedule, go to www.seashorestriders.com.
Mike Sewell heading to Boston
Mike Sewell of Camden traveled to the Lehigh Marathon this past weekend with a goal of qualifying for the big one - the Boston Marathon. Sewell finished in 3:11:52 to qualify, finishing 106th overall of 764 runners. Sewell was eighth of 62 in the 45-49 age group. Congratulations, Mike, and enjoy Beantown.
SAS XC grabs double win
Sussex Academy kicked off its dual-meet season with a boys’ win 24-34 over Delmar and the girls’ win 19-41. Austen Cave, coming off a sub-16:30 at the Lake Forest Invitational, ran a 17:07 to win by over three minutes. Lindsey Guida ran 25:02 to win the girls’ race. Emily Trout was second in 25:27, while Lindsey’s sister Natalie Guida was fourth in 26:05. Sussex Academy will visit Cape Henlopen Wednesday, Sept. 20, at the College of Earth, Ocean and Environment campus.
Tri tri again
For the next two weeks, the Cape area will be filled with multi-sport athletes, expensive gear and high goals as the Dewey Beach and Bethany Beach triathlons are upon us. This weekend will be the Dewey Beach event, set for Saturday, Sept. 16, at 7:30 a.m.
The first Dewey Beach Sprint Triathlon was held in 1996, in the back of what was then called Gary’s Surf Spray Café on New Orleans Street in Dewey Beach. The after-party was held on the roof of the building. The following year, it was also held on the same street, but it quickly outgrew the venue and has been held in Delaware Seashore State Park ever since. It’s a no-frills, grassroots community event and a Dewey Beach tradition that brings athletes and their families from near and far to the resort area. We have simply strived for a safe, enjoyable and fun triathlon with a fast and scenic course while keeping the money within our community. Good luck to all the locals competing in Dewey.
Tri Note: Mark your calendar for June 10, 2018, as the Cape Henlopen Triathlon will be held at Cape Henlopen State Park in Lewes. More on this event in the upcoming months.
Kids Fitness Beach Workout Challenge
A new addition to Saturday’s Dewey Beach Triathlon will be the Kids Fitness Beach Workout Challenge that will be held for kids 8 to 15 years old at the Big Chill Beach Club beachfront. CrossFit Unlocked certified trainers will lead all workouts, which will consist of burpees, sit-ups, squats, push-ups, sprints, mountain climbers and planks. It is expected to be a 30- to 45-minute workout. Sounds like a great time and a positive addition to the event.
