Longerbeam Finishes 9th at Regionals, Advances to States

James Wood senior Darin Longerbeam, who won the district title a week ago, took ninth with a time of 16:47.

Longerbeam said Oatlands can be a difficult course.

“The times are always slow and it’s rolling non-stop,” Longerbeam said. “My main goal was just to move on. We weren’t really going to go out and do anything spectacular today.”

Northwestern District runners claimed 17 of the 30 all-region and state qualifying spots.

Longerbeam expects Region II runners will perform well at next week’s Group AA state meet, and he’s hoping to rebound with a stronger race at Great Meadow.

“I’ll lay it all on the line and hopefully get all-state,” Longerbeam said. “I think the winner at state will come from this region.”