The Girls competition, 600 m into the hilly 5k course. Photo by Blake Wood/ladailypost.com
By BLAKE WOOD
Assistant Coach
LAHS Track and Field
It was a beautiful afternoon for a cross-country meet last Friday when the Hilltoppers hosted the Class 4A District 2 Championship at the Los Alamos Golf Course.
Although there are several outstanding athletes running for the other schools in our district—Moriarty, Pojoaque, Espanola Valley, and Taos—none of them has the depth of the ‘Topper teams. Thus, with the State Championship only a week away, the instructions to our athletes can be summarized as “Run as a pack, and only as fast as you need to to ensure you win”. This they executed well, the Girls winning 27-66 over Espanola Valley, and the Boys winning 25-40 over Taos.
The Girls race was won by Carmen Dorsey-Spitz of Moriarty in a spectacular time of 17:41. She was followed by Elaina Cisneros of Taos in 20:04. But the Hilltoppers took 5 of the next 6 places, and 7 of the next 9, led by the trio of Ensley Jorgenson, Elisabeth McNiff, and Grace Montoya, finishing nearly together in places 3, 4, and 5, between 20:18 and 20:21. Emmeline Keller-Moore and Mila Moseley completed the scoring quintet in places 7 and 8, with Amelia Hill and Abigail Swigert not far back in places 10 and 11, and Cara Gauss and Elizabeth Buck rounding out the team in places 14 and 15.
Taos runners Judah Daffron and Billy Romero went 1-2 in the Boys race in times of 15:54 and 16:41, respectively, but Hilltoppers took the next 7 places, led by the trio of Kaj Maupin, Koen Christensen, and Gus Ovaska, finishing together in a time of 17:32. Next were the trio of William Hudlemeyer, Cole Luscher, and Emmitt Tibbetts, finishing together in a time of 17:44. Not far behind them was Oliver Mosby in 9th place. Hiro Mertes and Sam Prada completed the team in places 13 and 15.
The season concludes with the State Championship, run at Albuquerque Academy next Saturday, Nov. 8. The Boys run at 10:50 a.m., followed by the Girls at 11:35 a.m. Go ‘Toppers!
Koen Christensen, Gus Ovaska, and Kaj Maupin at the 2 mile point. They finished together in places 3-4-5 in a time of 17:32. Photo by Blake Wood/ladailypost.com
Emmitt Tibbetts, Cole Luscher, and William Hudlemeyer take a turn together a half mile from the finish. They finished nearly together in places 6-7-8 in a time of 17:44. Photo by Blake Wood/ladailypost.com
The Hilltopper Girls run as a pack early in the race. From left are Abigail Swigert, Ensley Jorgenson, Amelia Hill, Grace Montoya, Elisabeth McNiff, Emmeline Keller-Moore, and Mila Moseley. Photo by Blake Wood/ladailypost.com