Conference 21A Girls’ Cross Country

Posted: October 29, 2015
By ROBERT STOCKS
The Winchester Star

PURCELLVILLE — As Millbrook’s Carolina blue jerseys lined up just past the finish line at Wednesday’s Conference 21A girls’ cross country championship, Pioneers coach Kevin Shirk almost couldn’t believe his eyes.

The Pioneers, led by senior Nadia Dahimene’s runner-up performance, placed four runners in the top eight overall to run away with conference championship.

Dahimene clocked a time of 20 minutes flat, crossing the finish line four seconds behind Harrisonburg freshman and overall winner Hannah Miller, to lead the Pioneers’ blue-clad pack that delivered Millbrook’s first team title since it won the Northwestern District championship on the Third Battle of Winchester Battlefield course in 2011.

Dahimene, freshman Kaycee Cox-Philyaw (fourth, 20:17), sophomore Mellany Groll (sixth, 20:30) and senior Hannah Croyle (eighth, 20:31) all finished within 31 seconds of each other. Add in No. 5 runner Emily Muldowney — a freshman — and the Pioneers won the team title with 39 points, finishing 28 points ahead of runner-up and host Woodgrove. Sherando followed in third place with 75 points to take the final regional-qualifying berth.

“We came in thinking Sherando was the big favorites on both sides,” Shirk said. “I’m doing the pre-race stuff thinking if our girls scored under 70 points we’d probably be good for second and that would be a good day. As the race unfolded, I’m kind of adding it up in my head and watching where we stand next to other people and it’s just unbelievable. It was an exciting race to watch.”

For Dahimene, it marked a return to the all-state form she showed as a sophomore.

She missed her junior cross country and indoor track seasons last year after she was diagnosed with thyroid cancer but returned for the spring outdoor track season and placed fifth in the 3,200 meters.

Dahimene placed third in the Northwestern District in 2012 and third at the Conference 21 meet in 2013 (and went on to earn all-state honors by finishing 12th in Group 4A that season).

She topped both of those performances with her effort on Wednesday.

Dahimene said she tried to stay with the early race leaders Miller, Sherando freshman Camryn Ubert and Woodgrove sophomore Emma-Jane Kimmett and let them block some of the wind.

“I tried to push myself to catch up to them and in the last 800 I really pushed myself to get the best place I could,” Dahimene said. “I definitely didn’t think I’d be anywhere near the top three. It really means a lot to come back from not running a whole season to get runner-up.”

The Pioneers’ depth — with two former state qualifiers from a season ago in Croyle and Groll — proved to be too much for the rest of the field.

“I was so excited with the whole way we pulled through as a team,” Croyle said. “I think we all ran really well and worked together and keyed off each other. It’s a great way to finish my senior year and continue [on in the postseason as a team]. We were shooting for top three but I was happily surprised that we won.”

“It’s huge,” added Dahimene. “I’m so proud of them and we’ve worked all season for this. It’s been such an amazing season and we’re so supportive of each other. It’s great.”

Woodgrove, led by Kimmett in third (20:06), was second with 67 — eight points ahead of Sherando (75).

Warriors freshman Olivia Couillard paced Sherando in seventh place (20:31) and Ubert, who ran with the early-race leaders, followed in 11th (20:34).

“I’m pleased to get out,” Sherando coach Jamie McCarty said. “I don’t think we were where we needed to be and I take responsibility for that. I don’t know if I had us fully ready, but I’m really proud of the girls — to get back to regionals again is really important. For us, we’re still building with three freshmen and a sophomore in that top seven.”

Sherando finished 20 points ahead of fourth-place Harrisonburg (95).

James Wood, led by junior Sophia Dorsey (fifth, 20:23) and teammate Autumn Hottle (12th, 20:35) as its lone regional qualifiers, took fifth with 101 points.

Handley, led by Sydney Aschenbrenner (15th, 20:49), followed in sixth place with 120 points.

With James Wood’s Dorsey and Hottle and Handley’s Aschenbrenner, area runners claimed nine of the 15 regional-qualifying spots. The top three teams and top 15 individuals advance to next Thursday’s 4A West Regional at the Smith River Sports Complex in Martinsville.

Shirk said it was impressive for area teams to take two of the three regional team berths.

“Even though Sherando girls finished third they’re a great team,” Shirk said. “We looked at them as the team to beat. I said beforehand for us to win it, we’d have to have a phenomenal day and they’d have to have a little bit of a bad day. I think they had a little bit of a bad day but they’re still a really great team. They’ll be someone we’ll be watching out for at regionals. We raced hard and wanted to see where the chips would fall and it was in our favor today.”

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