JEFFREY REINHART jreinhart@LNPnews.com
Here is my story about the L-L League cross country championships from Friday’s New Era:
Conestoga Valley senior Vince McNally was chatting with a visitor about how happy he was to defend his Lancaster-Lebanon League cross country championship on Thursday afternoon.
And suddenly a boys’ runner from Lebanon High School happened upon the scene.
“You’re a beast,” he said, sticking out his right hand to get a high-five from McNally. “I hope you win States.”
If McNally runs like he did on Thursday, that’s a distinct possibility.
The Buckskins’ distance specialist crushed the course and league championship records at Ephrata Middle School, finishing in a blazing 15:02.02 — 1:18 ahead of Hempfield junior Kevin Hull, who finished second in 16:20.02.
“It wasn’t really a race,” Hull said, smiling. “Vince just sort of went out on his own. He’s a great runner.”
McNally shattered the previous course and league meet mark of 15:19.06, set by Manheim Township’s Craig Miller in 2005.
McNally won last year’s race in 15:48.2.
He took it to a completely different level on Thursday, covering the first mile in an eye-popping 4:44.
“It’s the start of the finish,” McNally said. “This is the kickoff to the end of the season, and now things really get fun. I hope this prepares me for the rest of the season.”
McNally will try and defend his District 3 Triple-A title next Saturday at Parkview Golf Course in Hershey. And he’ll go for the PIAA title on Nov. 3, also at Parkview.
McNally finished fifth in the state last year. After a perfect regular season, and now his second league title in a row, he’d love to cap his high school career with a PIAA gold.
“I want to be on my game for States,” said McNally, who has made official visits to Penn State, Syracuse, Virginia and Iona, and he’ll choose one of those colleges in the near future.
“It’s nice to win the league title,” he continued. “Seeing all of these people out here cheering for me and getting to run in my own backyard — so to speak — one last time … it’s very sentimental. I hope I’ve made a good impression on the league in the time I’ve been here.”
Cocalico’s John Wallace (16:37.06) finished third, Manheim Township’s Mike Mousetis (16:38.0) was fourth and Cedar Crest’s Jared Feinstein (16:41.09) rounded out the top five.
Wallace, who finished second behind McNally in scoring average this season, took a spill a few feet from the finish line and crawled to the end, slapping the yellow stripe with his hand to claim the bronze.
The boys’ league team title went to Cedar Crest, which finished with 46 points.
Meanwhile, in the girls’ race, a star was born.
Garden Spot freshman Emily Martin, who lost just once in the regular season, broke away from Penn Manor senior Megan Ecker and Elco sophomore Kayleigh Perry in the second mile and cruised to the victory in 18:37.08.
“Feels good,” Martin said. “I’m happy it’s over, because I was really nervous. I was trying to keep this off my mind all day.”
Ecker, whose lone loss in the regular season was to Martin, finished second in 18:45.77, and Perry, who was the only runner to defeat Martin in the regular season, was third in 19:00.04.
Hempfield senior Sydney Clark, the defending champ, finished 42nd overall. She’s been battling injuries this season. And Lancaster Mennonite senior Katie Ruth, the 2004 champ, finished 10th in 19:49.83 in her final league meet.
Warwick sophomore Allison Mannon (19:02.86) finished fourth and Cedar Crest junior Becca Brandt (19:29.91) rounded out the top five.
But Martin stole the show, breaking away from the pack and sprinting to the finish.
“I knew who I could stick with because I’d raced against pretty much everyone here,” Martin said. “So I wanted to stick just behind them and then see what felt right.”
Martin felt like setting the pace in the second mile — which she did. Nobody caught her, and she hit the line first in her first L-L League championship.
“Incredible,” Martin said. “A great feeling.”
Manheim Township successfully defended its girls’ team title with 80 points.
