Late Surge in Heat Boosts Girls to 6th Place Finish at Nopone


GAINESVILLE, GA - Every year we wonder what the course conditions will be at the North Hall Community Center course, or "Nopone" as the runners call it.  Nestled in the midst of a swamp, the marsh has a tendency to elevate the humidity in the air when the sun is out.  While our runners have enjoyed well over 2 weeks of low temperatures and low humidity, the typical hot and humid Georgia weather returned just in time for the North Hall Invitational this past Thursday.  Race conditions were 87 degrees and sunny which equated into some very dusty trails.

Coming off some slower than anticipated performances at Pickens, the Varsity Girls rallied late in the race to take 6th place out of a loaded field of 23 teams.  Despite some illnesses amongst the girls, Emma Dobson finished 8th overall, Kayleigh McBride finished 41st, Izzy Wintermantel finished 53rd, Bella McClenathen finished 71st, and Crystal Vaca finished 73rd to record a total of 238 team points.

Senior Reyna Palacios ran in her first race this season finishing in 24th place in the JV race.

The Varsity Boys coming off a last place finish at Pickens were looking to make some improvements. Despite the total team time increasing slightly, the Varsity Boys improved slightly to finish 19th of 22 total teams with a total of 509 points.  Jonathan Smith was the first to cross the finish in 85th place, followed by Jefferson Sibrian in 91st, Ramiro Lopez in 119th, Easton Chaffin in 136th, and Romeo Vasquez in 154th.

Junior Zac Benna ran in his first race of the season in the JV Boys race and finished in 8th place.

Next, the War Eagles look forward to the Farm Course at Tallulah Falls School coming up on Thursday afternoon on September 11th.




INDIVIDUAL CXC FINISHERS (TOP 7 RUNNERS)

Medalists in Bold


VARSITY BOYS (Team: 19th Place, 509 points)
  1. Jonathan Smith, 85th (75)
  2. Jefferson Sibrian, 91st (81)
  3. Ramiro Lopez, 119th (106)
  4. Easton Chaffin, 136th (117)
  5. Romeo Vasquez, 154th (130)
  6. Pedro Pedro-Martin, 155th
  7. Colton Blackburn, 161st


VARSITY GIRLS (Team: 6th Place, 238 points)

  1. Emma Dobson, 8th (8)
  2. Kayleigh McBride, 41st (41)
  3. Izzy Wintermantel, 53rd (53)
  4. Bella McClenathen, 71st (67)
  5. Crystal Vaca, 73rd (69)
  6. Kylor Stewart, 81st
  7. Leilani Moreno, 87th

JV BOYS (Team: 10th Place, 266 points)
  1. Zac Benna, 8th (8)
  2. Alex Lopez-Romero, 47th (39)
  3. Jose Romero, 119th (67)
  4. Roger Vasquez, 144th (75)
  5. Israel Alcantar, 155th (77)
  6. Zack Smith, 174th

JV GIRLS (Team: 6th Place, 204 points)
  1. Reyna Palacios, 24th (22)
  2. Harper Irvin, 36th (33)
  3. Briana Aguilar, 42nd (38)
  4. Abilene Sanchez, 62nd (48)
  5. Melanie Ceballos, 99th (63)
  6. Beberly Domingo, 111st
  7. Alexa Rodriguez, 131st
PERSONAL RECORDS (PR)
  • Miguel Valdez
  • Jose Romero
  • Reyna Palacios
  • Abilene Sanchez
  • Alexa Rodriguez
  • Paola Salazar
  • Mia Meija

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