Many of the area’s cross country teams would face traditional late-season conditions – rain, mud, cold temperatures – during their various races last week.
Skaneateles and Marcellus went head-to-head last Saturday, and the boys Lakers finished a nearly flawless season at 7-0, routing the Mustangs 15-50 while also defeating Weedsport 15-46.
During these seven races, Skaneateles recorded 108 points, just one from the minimum 107, which meant it swept the top five in every event except one.
Caleb Bender, in 15 minutes, 55 seconds, beat the field as Matt Persampieri was second in 16:14. Behind them, Joe Norris took third in 17:28, edging Will Girzadas (17:32) as Seamus Fogerty was fifth in 18:12.
It continued with Josh Reed posting 18:44 and Will Swarts finishing in exactly 19 minutes. Nolan Gryzlo (19:02), Ryan Persampieri (19:06) beat the 19:29 from Marcellus’ top runner, Jaiden Capozzi.
The Skaneateles girls also beat Marcellus 24-31, avenging its lone defeat of the season to the Mustangs while also topping Weedsport 21-35.
Though the Mustangs’ Anella Bolster won the individual honors with her time of 21:05, the Lakers got the next three spots head-to-head as Hope Cross-Jaya, second in 21;40, was ahead of Lily Coleman (22:09) and Lily Yengo (22:23).
Clare Keady, sixth in 22:48, fended off a Marcellus charge that included Heidi Steigerwald fifth in 22:38, with Virgnia Lucchetti seventh (23:06) and Sophia Maum eighth (23:39). The Lakers had Sophia Auredan, in 23:41, ahead of the 23:54 posted by Ellie McSwain.
West Genesee would run twice against league rivals, starting last Wednesday with a home meet against Baldwinsville where the girls Wildcats had a 1-2 individual finish from Lauren Puchta and Claire Griffin.
Puchta pulled away from the field, covering the Camillus Middle School course in 20 minutes, 58 seconds, a full minute ahead of Griffin’s 20:58.
Still, WG lost 25-31 because B’ville claimed the next five individual spots, led by McKenzie Schmidt (22:01), before Faith Knox got eighth place in 23:47 as Payton Long finished ninth in 24:09.
The boys race was a lot closer on the individual side, with the Wildcats’ Peter McMahon right behind the Bees’ Colin Delaney, McMahon finishing in 17:01 and Delaney prevailing in 16:59.
B’ville still prevailed 22-35, with WG getting Aiden Walsh to fourth place in 17:53, five seconds behind Solomon Holden-Betts (17:48), while Justin Malinowski was eighth in 19:45 and Casey Cominy ninth in 19:48.
When WG faced Cicero-North Syracuse on Saturday, McMahon won the boys race in 16:45, nearly half a minute ahead of the Northstars’ Matt LeClair (17:10).
Even with that, though, the Wildcats still lost 23-37 as Walsh was fourth in 17:33 to C-NS’s Evan Romano (17:23) and Cominy (19:04) was WG’s only other top-10 finisher.
And it wasn’t as close in the girls race, the Wildcats falling 17-43 to C-NS. Griffin, fifth in 20:49, was ahead of Puchta’s 21:34, but the Northstars swept the podium, led again by Kate Putman, who won in 18:32.
Westhill faced Weedsport last Tuesday and swept both sides of the event, including a tight boys race where Brandon Mulholland, in 16:26, finished a close second to the 16:23 from Weedsport’s Landon Kepple.
But Westhill still prevailed 23-34 as Justin Nowicki got third place in 16:52 and Landon Carr was fourth in 17:05. Alex Dacko was sixth in 17:39, just ahead of Carter Buckman and Aidan Rogers, each of whom finished in 19:29.
Westhill’s girls beat Weedsport 19-41, with Addie Lowery at the forefront as she finished in 20:41 to claim individual honors over Weedsport’s Allison House in 20:54.
Kylie Nowicki, in 21:01, edged Ellie Thornton (21:03) for third place as Angie Mesa posted 21:11. Caitlyn Knohl was sixth in 21:35, with Bella Sampo (21:53) and Mandy Wiezalis (22:34) also in the top 10.
