Honesdale’s girls cross country team lost out on a District Two championship by the narrowest of margins Friday afternoon at Scranton Municipal Golf Course.

At the finish line, the Lady Hornets appeared to be in a 3-way battle with Holy Redeemer and archrival Wallenpaupack Area for the Class AAA crown.

As the minutes ticked by and event officials started the next race, coaches milled around the scoring tent waiting for word.

The tension continued to rise as five minutes turned to 10 and 15 minutes became 20. Finally, after almost half an hour, the official results were posted...and they nearly defied description or belief.

Paupack had finished third with 87 points.

“I’m really happy with what we accomplished today,” rookie Head Coach Dan Nalesnik told TWI Sports. “The girls worked very hard and I’m proud of them. This team is mostly freshmen and sophomores, so the future looks bright. We’ll be back.”

Heartbreaking Loss
Honesdale and Holy Redeemer ended up deadlocked with 71 points each. By rule, that tie is broken by comparing the finish of each team’s sixth runner.

Corina Robbins was #6 for the Lady Hornets. She crossed the line in 44th place. Aly Popson was #6 for the Royals. She came home 40th.

So, the ‘09 District Two Class AAA girls team championship was decided by four places and by a pair of runner who normally wouldn’t even be figured into the final scores.

“What a way to lose!” said an exhausted Coach Joe Macey just moments after receiving the heartbreaking news. “I’m really disappointed for our girls. But, they have nothing to hang their heads about: they ran a really good race.”

Summer Hill and Erin Craig once again led the Red & Black attack. Both will be headed to this year’s PIAA State Championships after Friday’s stellar performance at districts.

Hill, who is just a freshman, finished third in the girls Class AAA race. Summer has only been running competitively for three years now, but she already owns a junior high crown and now she’s headed to States.

Craig covered the Scranton Muni course in a time of 20:26 to earn her varsity medal.

“I just wanted to run my best race and help the team get to States,” Summer said. “I’m sad that it didn’t work out that way, but I’m excited that Erin and I get the chance to go.”

Craig will be making her second trip to Hershey. Erin qualified as a freshman, but missed out last season. On Friday, she stopped the clock at 20:52, good for fifth place and a medal.

“I tried to get out hard and make sure I didn’t get caught up in the pack,” Erin said. “I knew the conditions were going to be messy, so I just prepared for the worst and tried to run the best race I could.”

Kristen Propst, Kaelin Can-field and Megan Davis rounded out Honesdale’s front five. Each runner claimed a spot in the overall Top 25.

Propst, one of three seniors on the 2009 Lady Hornet roster, sprinted her way to 16th place. Kristen clocked in at 21:47.

Canfield, who is still just a sophomore, crossed the line in 22:08. That time was good for a 22nd place finish.

Davis, another member of a talented senior class, ended up in 25th with a time of 22:11.

Robbins (23:07) and Mackenzie Henry (47th, 23:12) closed out Honesdale’s line-up.

“Redeemer’s a good team and you can’t take anything away from them,” said Coach Macey. “What happened today is pretty simple: we ran our best race and just lost by a tiny margin. I’m sure it’s something we’ll all be thinking about for a long time.”

Headed to States
Several other local runners will be joining Hill and Craig at the upcoming PIAA Meet.

Western Wayne’s Abigail Carmody qualified in Class AA. Abby ran a solid race last fall as a freshman, finishing 18th. On Friday, she moved up to 13th, earning another medal and a trip to Hershey.

“I was nervous at first about all the mud and water,” Abby said. “Now, I think it was pretty fun. I actually enjoyed it...and, I’m really excited about going to States.”

Carmody’s time of 22:37 helped Western Wayne’s girls to a sixth place finish in the overall team standings.

Brianna Vinton (27th, 23:41), Stacy Skates (31st, 23:59), Ally Hess (44th, 24:35) and Sarah Lutat (47th, 24:58) rounded out the Lady ‘Cat assault.

Paupack will also be sending a pair of runner to States. Taylor Maxson and Kali Foy each cracked the Top 10 in Class AAA and are headed to Hershey.

Both girls are freshmen and each has played a key role in a resurgent Lady Buck squad. A year after slumping to a 12-10 record, Paupack rebounded to go 20-2 and finish third in the Lackawanna League standings.

“I’m very excited about the direction the program is heading,” said Coach Nalesnik. “The most impressive thing to me is the grils’ ability to rally around one another. They’re able to put their individual goals aside to help the team...and it shows.”

Maxson stopped the clock at 20:55, good for sixth place, her first varsity medal and an invitation to States. Foy finished up eighth in a time of 21:12.

Also turning in solid performances for Paupack were: Erika Maxson (21st, 22:06), Marley Miller (24th, 22:10), Autumn Fasceski (28th, 22:21), Michele Dilella (67th, 24:32) and Brieanna Lis (75th, 25:38).

Local Lads
In boys District Two action, Paupack battled its way to a 9th place finish, while Honesdale wound up 11th.

Corey Schmalzle was the first local lad across the line. Pau-pack’s freshman phenom stopped the clock at 18:36, earning him 27th place.

Other Buckhorn runners to complete the treacherous course included: John Lohman (43rd, 19:21), George Folk (50th, 19:42), Daniel Coutts (64th, 20:04), Cameron Mancuso (69th, 20:17), Jeff Maxson (83rd, 20:46) and Caleb Wehrmann (89th, 21:08).

Tim Jurkowski was the first Hornet across the line Friday. A tough-as-nails junior who battled illness during the second half of the season, Jurkowski covered the 3.1-mile course in a time of 18:52 (35th).

Luke O’Neill was next in for the Red & Black. Another member of that junior class, O’Neill clocked in at 19:43 (51st).

Also turning in solid performances for Honesdale were: James Mayeski (58th, 20:00), John Wenk (60th, 20:01), Ryan O’Keefe (65th, 20:06), Stephen Tolerico (67th, 20:12) and Ethan Chapka (71st, 20:20).

Shawn Leister led all Western Wayne runners to the line. The Wildcat senior finished 60th in the Class AA race with a time of 20:27.

Also competing for Western Wayne were: Cory Leister (73rd, 20:55), Brian Escobar (21:51),

Trevor Kapschull (22:01), Matt Lukeski (22:50), Sean Lehutsky (23:46) and Evan Wylem (25:40). The team ended up 17th.