Herbert Hoover distance runner Maysen Fletcher channeled her inner Road Runner from Looney Tunes on Wednesday.
Fletcher stretched a large lead at the Coal River Classic at Meadowood Park in Tornado and didn’t look back.
The freshman runner crossed the finish line with a time of 19:27.5, which was 1:09 better than second place.
“I was just trying to go out, stick to my pace and see what I could do,†Fletcher said.
Fletcher was one of two Huskies to finish in the top three, with Jenna Brown finishing third.
Hoover coach Luke Teel was happy to see his freshman runner compete at a high level.
“When she has a lead like that, she’s able to push through and be herself,†Teel said. “When she was out there and got comfortable, it was comfortable to me to know that she was in her element and zone. She pushed through, and it paid off for her today.â€
Herbert Hoover finished first in the team competition with 43 points.
St. Albans checked in at second place with 54 points.
George Washington, Nitro, Ripley and Chapmanville rounded out the top six.
The Red Dragons had two runners finish in the top six, with Abigail Torman finishing second and Ava Templeton checking in at sixth.
“We were super happy with how we finished last week at Coonskin Park,†St. Albans coach Josh McClung said of a race hosted by ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä Catholic. “We have been battling some things, with people being sick and tweaks and injuries. We wanted to use this meet as a bounceback meet.
“We wanted to use this to get our footing back before we head into the postseason.â€
Torman finished in 20:36.5, while Templeton posted 22:55.4.
“This gives us a confidence boost,†McClung said. “We battled with Hoover today, and that was one of our goals coming into this. We wanted to close that gap before the county meet because we wanted to challenge them.
“We felt shorted in the county championship last year and tied with GW. We’ve been using it as motivation all year.â€
George Washington’s Ava Mitias (21:26.5), ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä Catholic’s Hannah Fisher (22:19.4), Nitro’s Tessa Aulenbacher (23:05.8), Ripley’s Lanie Knopp (23:17.0), Nitro’s Cora Kozen (23:20.4) and ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä Catholic’s Bailee King (23:24.4) all finished in the top 10.
Boys
ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä Catholic saw four runners finish in the top eight during Thursday’s meet, with Will Barton finishing first in 16:55.6.
Peter Basdekis (third, 17:14.6), Isaac Collins (sixth, 17:43.1) and Charlie Barton (eighth, 17:48.6) were the other Irish runners in the top eight.
The Irish team finished atop the team rankings with 27 points.
“The guys are really starting to lock in here midseason,†Irish coach Hilton Ingraham said. “They are trusting the training. They push each other together during practice. Those guys link up with each other during the races and hold each other accountable.
“They don’t want to let each other down, and race for each other.â€
Barton’s time was seven seconds better than second place.
“I feel that’s the second run he’s gotten stronger as the race has gone on,†Ingraham said. “That’s a credit to his training. Will is more self-aware after being hurt last year by listening to his body on when to go and rest.â€
George Washington saw two finish in the top four. Kirklen Hinamon (17:02.3) and Gavin Baldwin (17:21.2) finished second and fourth, respectively.
“When you look at Kirklen and Gavin, they’ve had a good training block the last 14 days,†GW coach Chris Morris said. “They have been quick and light on their feet, which showed today.â€
Nitro, Wayne, St. Albans, Herbert Hoover, Poca, Princeton and Scott all finished in the top nine.
Nitro’s Sam Aulenbacher (fifth, 17:25.3), Capital’s Micah Hale (seventh, 17:43.8), Nitro’s Lance Busse (ninth, 18:00.9) and Point Pleasant’s Wyatt Kirkpatrick (10th, 18:05.7) were the others that finished in the top 10.
