Elphinstone Secondary qualified 12 runners for the Nov. 7 provincials - five as individuals, and seven on the senior girls team at the cross-country North Shore Zone final held in Brackendale on Oct. 28.
More than 100 competitors lined up on the start line for each of the boys' and girls' races. Grades 8 to 12 competed in the same race, boys running 6.5 km and girls running 4.5 km. There are two ways to qualify for the provincial championships: the top 20 individuals advance, and the top three school teams advance. A cross country team consists of seven runners; the top five runners' place positions are added together to make the team score. The three teams with the lowest score advance to the provincials.
For the first time in many years, the Elphi boys' side failed to qualify a team. However, Mason Gregory and Clay Brown earned individual provincial berths. Clay had his best race of the season, moving from the chase pack to the lead pack, finishing 13th.
Mason, an experienced provincial championship runner, maintained his traditional front runner position, finishing fifth.
The Elphi girls' side, led by Grade 11 Alex Cloherty, surged to a third place overall finish. This is the first time the Elphinstone girls' team has qualified for provincials in almost a decade.
Helping the team was Grade 12 Jennifer Mauel, who has steadily knocked off competitors throughout the season and moved up to the lead pack.
And what is really remarkable is that three of Elphi's top five female runners are in grades 8 and 9. Holly Perrier, already a sports star in soccer and a member of the Whitecaps Super Y team, is Elphi's second fastest female cross country runner. At 15 years old, the Grade 9 runner brings a competitive edge to the team.
Jemma Newton-Mason is new to cross country this year, but enjoyed a season of track last spring. The zone finals were definitely her best race this season. She used surging tactics to psych out, target and pass competitors. Besides budding running fame, Jemma is also one of the top Grade 9 students academically.
Grade 8 Sophie Gar-mulewicz is the youngest qualifier of the team. She has track and cross country experience from elementary school, and she is also a rep soccer team member. The athletic and running genes must be in the family, as both older brothers Sam (Grade 11) and Jon (2009 grad) have been provincial team members in both cross country and track. Sophie brings dedication to the team, both in practices and at meets. She is not afraid of going the distance, figuratively and literally. She has run several 10km runs, including the Squamish Days 10km and the James Cunningham Race, 9.5 km.
There is tremendous potential in these runners. Stay tuned for provincial results next week.
- Submitted
