Vernon runners battled the rain and mud to post some stellar top-25 results in the B.C. School Sports junior boys cross country championships Saturday at Beban Park in Nanaimo.
There was a field of 277 with four Vernon athletes earning ribbons.
VSS Panther runners Carter Leahy (14th) and Brody Wright (20th) were in tough races with cross-town rivals and training partners Torin Andrews (12th) and Jack Screen (21st), both of the Seaton Sonics.
The fifth Vernon runner, Grade 8 Matt Acob of the Kalamalka Lakers, recovered from a tumble on the muddy trails to crack the top-100 with a 90th-place finish.
“All five of these outstanding results attest to the excellent training program run by Vernon Track & Field, and UBC-O coach John Machuga,” said VSS coach Mark Bendall.
RELATED: Sonics first in Valley run
RELATED: Seaton Sonics runners sizzle
Andrews covered the two-lap course in 14 minutes and 47 seconds, while Leahy ran a 14:51, Wright finished in 14:56 and Screen had a 14:58.
The John Barsby Bulldogs of Nanaimo won the junior boys team title.
In the senior boys race, two more Machuga trained runners competed for Vernon schools. North Okanagan champion, Seaton’s Braden Kersey, hampered by a poor start line position, fought his way up to finish 32nd in the 266-strong field. Henrik Rudert of the Panthers, starting even further back on the line, battled the elements to finish 191st.
Results from the B.C. cross-country provincial championships:
Senior boys – Josh Woolgar, Richmond Christian School, 20:32; Liam Dwyer, Mt. Douglas, 20:37; Alexander Farlinger, West Van, 20:41.
Senior girls – Kendra Lewis, Van Tech, 23:12; Ceili McCabe, Little Flower Academy, 23:42; Baneet Bains, Princess Margaret, 24:01.
Junior boys – Matti Erickson, L.V. Rogers, 13:42; Jonathan Hofer, South Delta, 13:42; Gage Zanette, John Barsby, 14:07.
Junior girls – Madelyn Bonikowsky, South Delta, 15:30; Iris Tinmouth, Mark Isfeld, 15:48; Christina Peet Williams, Chilliwack, 15:59.
@VernonNewssports@vernonmorningstar.comLike us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.
