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SPORTS
University girls upset Hurricane
Letitia Propst of Fairmont crosses the finish line in first place during the state high school cross country meet on Saturday, Nov. 1, 2008, at Cabell Midland High School.
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ONA — Finishing behind Hurricane three times during the regular season gave University incentive for the West Virginia High School Cross Country Championships on Saturday.
The Hawks got even more motivated when they saw a headline in a local newspaper projected Hurricane would win the Class AAA championship.
“Tons of inspiration,” University’s Sarah Martinelli said of the setup for the 5K race at Cabell Midland High School.
Martinelli finished 10th overall, making her the only University runner to make all-state. However, the Hawks got strong efforts from the remaining four competitors to finish with 81 points and make a successful title defense and bring a disappointing end for No. 1 Hurricane’s season.
“We knew they’d be tough,” Martinelli said. “We saw them three times and they beat us. We knew a lot would depend on our fourth and fifth runners. They stepped up. Give them tons of credit.”
The Class AAA girls race was the fourth of the day. Runners, coaches and fans had some anxious moments before officials revealed the Hawks had won.
“Oh my God. It was nerve wracking,” Martinelli said of the wait. “I was doubtful for a while. This speaks volumes for our team.”
Hurricane had two all-staters in Alex Dent (fourth) and Josie Crouch (ninth). Back in the pack is where University got the edge.
“They’ll be harder on themselves than I could ever be,” Redskins coach Bill Posey said. “We put ourselves in position to grab it, but we couldn’t do it at the end.”
Letitia Propst of Elkins won with a course-record time 18:29. That makes it two straight individual titles for the sophomore, who won the GEICO Classic here in September in record time.
In Class AAA boys, Wheeling Park also defended its title. The Patriots edged Jefferson, 67-71, with Cabell Midland third (93). Morgantown’s Cody Pelliccioni was the top individual (15:57).
In Class AA, Ravenswood’s boys made it nine straight titles. The Red Devils had 77 points to 81 for No. 2 Berkeley Springs. Lenny Roach of Berkeley Springs finished No. 1 (16:16).
For the girls, Shady Spring, ranked No. 1 all season, answered the challenge and won with 61 points. Wheeling Central (81) was second. Rebekah McBride of Frankfort led the individuals (19:32).
Wheeling Park had three of the top six finishers led by Kyle Gramlich in fourth.
“We had a good plan and the kids stuck to it,” Patriots coach Michael Jebbia said. “We knew it would be close. Jefferson and Cabell Midland, we respect their programs.”
“We ran a good race, but the other two teams were better today,” Cabell Midland coach Chris Parsons said. “The pack was solid, but we were further back than we wanted. We had a shot, but came up a little short.”
Pelliccioni took the lead at the second mile and stayed in front the rest of the way.
“The first mile I wasn’t too fast,” he said. “When I got the lead I said to myself how great it would feel to finish first and kept pushing.”
When Ravenswood’s Ben Schindler came in 35th, that was enough for the Red Devils to make up the deficit on Berkeley Springs and keep the streak alive. Nathan Rees, who placed second overall for Ravenswood, was in the third grade when the Red Devils started this amazing run.
“I didn’t know what cross country was,” Rees said. “When I got to middle school, I started running. I wanted to be a part of this.”
Rees also had some anxious moments until No. 5 spots were decided.
“Honestly I thought we’d lost,” he said. “Ben passed 13 people. We had a lot of people lined up (along the course). I’m sure he heard them.”
On Saturday, the Red Devils wore black. The state meet is the only time black comes out.
In a way, Rees said he’s glad the season/career is over. Each meet, opponents gave the Red Devils their best shot.
“It’s a pride thing,” Rees said. “For the seniors, there wasn’t pressure coming in. We expected to win. That takes a lot of pride, a lot of fire.
“I’m glad it’s over and sad it’s over. I do go out relieved we did it.
