Cross Country: Lady Hornets Nearly Upset Pioneers at Jamboree

The Saline girls cross country team nearly upset host Pioneer in the second SEC Jamboree of the season Tuesday.

Running without all-state junior Jessi Larson, the Hornets placed three runners in the top five and six in the top 12. Saline finished with 33 points, just two more than Pioneer.

Pioneer junior Anne Forsyth continued her dominance, running the 5K course in 18:11 – more than a minute faster than anyone else. Jacalyn Overdier, also of Pioneer, was second in 19:17.2.

The Hornets got back in the race when sophomore Kayla Fortino (3rd, 19:39.34), senior Regan Barsch (4th, 19:40.4) and sophomore Emma Cummings (5th, 19:41.4) crossed the finish line in succession. Senior Sydney Dawes crossed next for Pioneer. Monroe’s KC Thornton and Huron’s Callie Hastle finished and then Pioneer freshman Anna Vogel placed ninth in 20:17.

Saline freshman Ella Woehlke (10th, 20:17.68) nearly stole the meet from Pioneer. She was behind about 10 yards with 120 to go and she nearly caught Vogel and Hastle. Had she caught Vogel, the Hornets and Pioneers would have tied with 32 points. Sophomore Alexa Stern finished 11th in 20:30 to account for Saline’s scoring. Also running for Saline were Rebecca Cantrell (12th, 20:32), Juliana Romero (15th, 20:54), senior Gillian Hartley (20:59), Nicole Dillmann (22nd, 21:47) and Katelyn Szafranski (28th, 22:48).

Assistant coach Matt Hagood praised the team’s efforts.

“I couldn’t be prouder of the way this team ran today. Pioneer has a great team and we gave them about all they could handle,” Hagood said.

Fortino and Barsch continued their strong season for Saline. Cummings has stepped up in recent weeks after struggling through the first SEC meet.

Fortino and Cummings are two of the young runners leading Saline through a rebuilding season. Hagood also commended the performances of freshmen like Woehlke, Dillmann and Szafranski. Stern, too, is only a sophomore.

The Lady Hornets also won the junior varsity race with 25 points, seven fewer than Pioneer.

Junior Leah Hyne won the race in 21:09. Kat Weeden, Cynthia Grammatico, Jenny Cantrell and Abigail Wilson accounted for Saline’s scoring.

Ann Arbor Running Co 3 Stars:

1. Kayla Fortino – There were only two sophomores in the top 5 and Saline had both of them. Fortino has been Saline’s fastest runner at both jamborees.
2. Regan Barsch – After three years of running mostly with the JV team, Barsch has blossomed into one of the SEC’s fastest girls. She seems intent on staying near the top of the pack.
3. Emma Cummings – Cummings was 32nd in the first Jamboree. She went down to the JV team for a race and won it. She returned to varsity and set a PR at Jackson and Tuesday she was fifth at the SEC Jamboree. That’s how you respond to a challenge.

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