Richmond Area Recap: Regions/VISAA States
This week was regionals week for VHSL classes 1-6, as well as the state competition for Virginia Independent Schools Athletic Association (VISAA) schools. Maggie Walker remained dominant on both sides, and Colby Burcham continued his reign as both Deep Run teams qualified out. Patrick Henry (Ashland), Glen Allen, and Cosby all had very strong overall showings as well, also qualifying both teams.
5B Regional Meet: This is the most prevalent region among Richmond teams, with 15 teams from the area attending. Deep Run, as usual, proved to be strong on both sides, fending off a fast L.C. Bird squad by six points (44-50) on the guys' side.
The boys were led by the defending 5A state champion, senior Colby Burcham, who cruised to a 20 second victory over Bird's Brendan Taylor, with a time of 15:29.9. Senior Jordan Bendura was fourth overall (16:07.9) and sophomore Michael Tull was fifth (16:17.7). Junior Kenneth Concepcion (16:40.3) and senior Connor Zebrowski (16:58.7) finished up the top five at places 14 and 20, respectively.
As mentioned above, L.C. Bird finished in a strong second behind senior Brendan Taylor (15:48.7) and third place junior Jacob Plummer (16:00.7). Junior Luke Affolder (16:25.6), sophomore El-Amir Hanafi (16:40.3), and senior Corey Pisa (17:02.2) finished in 8th, 15th, and 22nd respectively.
The final male team qualifying for states was Glen Allen, led by sophomore Ben Hagerich in sixth place (16:18.7) and senior Devin Johnson in ninth (16:29.6). Junior Jackson Morvan and senior Wade Carter were 11th and 12th, with times of 16:31.2 and 16:33.1. Senior Yves Uwimana rounded out the top five in 21st (17:01.2).
On the girls' side, it was Midlothian winning the region. Sophomore Gabriella Garcia led the way in first, with a time of 18:23.8, beating second place by over 30 seconds. Freshman Kylie Bonser followed up in third with a time of 19:05.2. Junior Caroline Bowe finished ninth with a time of 19:31.3, and senior Annabel Schepker was 11th in 19:34.6. Junior Chole Martin finished up the top five in 19th (20:25.7)
Claiming the title of runner-up was Deep Run, only six points behind. Freshman-sophomore duo Sidney Walters and Janie Sanborn were fifth and sixth, with times of 19:20.1 and 19:21.8. Seniors Eva Brooks and Paula Preda followed up in 10th and 12th (19:32.0/19:55.3), and sophomore Claire Nowak was 16th (20:07.4).
The last team out on the girls' side was, as on the guys' side, Glen Allen. Despite only having one runner on the All-Region team (senior Sasha Abielmona, 15th, 20:02.9), Glen Allen ran as a team and qualified for states anyway. Sophomore Sofi Varon placed 18th (20:21.5), but the big story was the next three: sophomore Megan Cash (20:40.2), senior Lauren Massey (20:40.7), and sophomore Aaliyah Kinsler (20:45.3) in places 23-25. That tight final grouping really made the difference in the overall scoring, as they beat fourth place by only nine points.
Additional All-Region team runners: Boys: Luke Neely (Douglas Freeman), seventh-16:19; George Henning (Atlee), 10th-16:31; Brett Bishop (Douglas Freeman), 13th-16:40. Girls: Rachel Mudd (Atlee), second-18:57; Karson Girvin (Douglas Freeman), fourth-19:08; Liza Neely (Douglas Freeman), seventh-19:24; Mackenzie Young (Manchester), eighth-19:29; Shenandoah Worrel (Clover Hill), 13th-19:55; Blake Henderson (Mills Godwin), 14th-20:00.
6A Regional Meet: The top Richmond team in the 6A region was Cosby, qualifying both teams. The boys were second, spearheaded by senior Garrett Schultz in third (16:12.67). Freshman Jonathan Ryan and senior Robbie Siegfried were 10th and 11th with times of 16:55.44 and 16:56.03, respectively. Junior Tre Jackson and sophomore Joseph Negron were 23rd and 27th with times of 17:34.66 and 17:38.07.
The girls placed third and were led by sophomore Erin Kerr in eighth with a time of 19:37.55, and senior Avery Hairfield followed up in 15th with a time 19:59.91. Finishing up the top 5 was sophomore trio Morgan Scudder, Olivia Lawson, and Sophia Lawson with times of 20:09.92, 20:16.99, and 20:18.71 (places 18-20).
Additional All-Region team runners: Boys: Luke Lamberson (James River Midlothian), fifth-16:45.73. Girls: Lindsey Hester (James River Midlothian), second-18:53.59; Megan Covington (James River Midlothian), 13th-19:55.17.
4B Regional Meet: Patrick Henry (Ashland) performed well on both sides, qualifying both teams for states. The guys were led by a swift trio: senior Carter Burcham (16:36.1), sophomore Luke Taylor (16:45.3), and sophomore Trevor Mason (16:49.5) in places 4-6. Junior Michael Leff was 15th with a time of 17:07.3, and sophomore Alex Davis was 44th with a time of 18:28.1.
The girls also did well, pulling a second-place overall finish. They were led by regional runner-up Emily Morris with a time of 18:34.4, followed by junior Emmy Joyce (20:29.3) in fifth place. Juniors Kali Dennehy and Melanie McAdoo placed 10th and 16th with times of 20:54.1 and 21:13.9. Freshman Olivia Joyce was 28th with a time of 22:06.3
Additional All-Region team runners: Boys: Gavin Timmons (Powhatan), 12th-17:04. Girls: Rebecca Ray (Powhatan), seventh, 20:46.
3B Regional Meet: Maggie Walker was not only the lone Richmond team in 3B, they were also the most dominant team in 3B by a mile, winning both sides by a combined 85 points. No, that is not a typo; boys: Maggie Walker-64, second place-84 (20 points); girls: Maggie Walker-22, second place-87 (65 points).
The boys were led by senior Ben Neuwirth who finished in third (15:55.4) and sophomore Ben Blanchard who finished in eighth (16:19.0). Senior Miles Nardi placed 14th (16:42.2), sophomore Everette Flora placed 16th (16:48.1), and sophomore Quinn Neary placed 23rd (17:06.1).
The girls won by an even wider margin, and were led by senior Mary Caroline Heinen in first, winning by over a minute (17:25.9). Freshmen Brenna Luczak and Grace Pershing followed up in third and fifth place, with times of 18:57.0 and 19:15.9. Close behind were sophomore Alexis Bartee (19:16.6) and senior Josie Greer (19:18.5).
VISAA D1 State Meet: Trinity Episcopal's girls had a good showing, finishing sixth overall. They were led by two all-state performers, sophomore Kayla Quigley in 10th (20:22.3) and junior Ashley Dobzyniak in 14th (20:41).
While St. Gertrude failed to make any noise team-wise, junior Mary Kehoe placed second overall with a time of 19:32.1. She looks poised to make a bid for the title in 2020.