Linsly’s Weiss Claims XC Crown at John Marshall Invitational at Grand View Park
Shadyside Girls, South Boys Win JM?Invitational
MOUNDSVILLE — Going into the third mile of the John Marshall Invitational, Linsly’s Andrew Weiss was in second place behind Shadyside sophomore Chase Stewart. With 1,600 meters to go, Stewart separated himself from the pack a little, but Weiss used a hill to his advantage.
Hill rested up and passed Stewart on that and used the final 800 meters to stay ahead to claim the overall boys’ title with at time of 17:47.17 on Saturday at Grand Vue Park. Stewart got second place as he cracked the 18-minute barrier with a time of 17:59.75 on the hilly course.
“There was a lot of good competition out there,” Weiss said. “Chase is a phenomenal runner and I have a lot of respect for him. I think my team, we’ll see how we do. We seem to put our top 5 in a reasonable area to possibly win the meet. We’ll see what happens with the results. But great race, great weather.”
Linsly finished second as a team, getting three runners in the Top 20. Sam Fuller came in 17th with a time of 19:12.04, followed by Austin Sims (19th, 19:21.45).
Parkersburg South won the boys’ team title with 36 points and had its five scorers cross the finish line in the Top 15. Kerwyn Marshall led the Patriots with a time of 18:04.52 for a third-place finish, while Landon Lawrentz claimed sixth in 18:23.54. Brandon Hardman timed in at 18:27.39 good enough for eighth followed by Alex White (10th, 18:55.84) and Josh Lynn (14th, 19:06.78).
“We train on a really hilly course, so we love to come up here,” Parkersburg South coach Jason Evans said. “There’s a hill in the first mile, hill in the second mile and hill in the third mile. The kids really run well here. We always have, always do. I challenge them beforehand to try to get six or seven in the top 20. I can’t argue. There are no complaints. They ran well.”
John Marshall’s Anthony Siler ran his home course to a fourth-place finish timing in at 18:14.96, followed by Cameron’s Ben Hart (18:20.86). First-year Wheeling Central runner Quintin Thomas claimed seventh in a time of 18:27.09 while teammate Conner Calmbacher got 13th (19:06.49).
Brooke’s Matthew Harvey came in ninth with a time of 18:34.42, while Zane Clutter of Cameron got 11th (18.57.22) and Oak Glen’s Gorby Hunter came in 12th (18:57.72). David Wiselka of Bridgeport was 15th in 19:14, while Brenden Sands was the first Wheeling Park runner to cross the line in 19:11.53. Sands’ teammate, Arkady Seidowitz, rounded out the top 20 in a time of 19:21.72.
Weiss has been battling shin splints and this was his first fast race in three weeks.
“I want to break 17,” Weiss said about the rest of his season. “I’m a senior, so this is my last year. I just want to compete in the OVAC with the team.”
On the girls’ side, Parkersburg South’s Abby Herring was the first to clock in as she blew away the competition, winning by 56 seconds in a time of 20:47.58. Shadyside had the next two runners cross in Sophia Ferrelli (21:43.81) and Ashley Visnic (21:59.98). The Tigers won the overall girls’ title with a combined 25 points.
Parkersburg South got second while Linsly was third.
Finishing in the Top 20 for Shadyside were Katie James (fifth, 22:27.86), Sydnie Destifanes (10th, 22:54.58), Cali Weber (17th , 23;39.03) and Lauren Hoffman (19th, 23:54.35).
For Parkersburg South, Amber Flinn got seventh in 22:43.66, Shannon Ruble clocked in at 11th (22:57.77), Hannah Dennis got 16th (23:28.05) and Madison Wright finished 18th (23:41.21).
Linsly’s Maddie Campay got 14th in 23:06.23. Also in the Top 20 were Union Local’s Megan Bateman (fourth, 22:17.31) and Hannah Kemp (sixth, 22:28.14); Tyler Consolidated’s Katie Pratt (eighth, 22:47.90) and Jahnvi Duncan (ninth, 22:51.22); River’s Olivia Beard (12th, 22:58.38); Oak Glen’s Olivia Arneault (13th, 23:04.39) and Kennedy Qunilan (20th, 23:58.81) and Cameron’s Courtney Walker (15th, 23:20.47).
“This is a tough course, so we’re proud of them,” Shadyside coach Jenna Coyne said. “They did a great job. We had a lot of groups run together. Each meet is just a stepping stone for the important meets at the end of the year. So this a great meet and I’m glad we came to it. We are excited about the outcome.”
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