Lake Braddock sophomore and VA top ranked Sophie Chase opened her 2010 cross country season on Thursday at the Potomac River Running Kick-off Relays leading from the gun with a 5:25 hard first mile to break the Bull Run Regional Park 2 mile course record in a time of 11:36. She ran 12:25 to win the freshmen race last year. Chase looked fit and strong in her first race back since missing the state outdoor meet due to injury after a sensational freshmen season running times of 4:52 for 1600 meters, 10:39 for 3200 meters, and 18:19 for 5K.
Thomas Edison's Myah Hicks and West Potomac's Sarah Jane Underwood followed in for second and third place with times of 11:42 and 11:46 respectively as Underwood's West Potomac girls won the team title with 39 points against a solid challenge from a Chase-led Lake Braddock squad (45 pts). West Potomac inserted three girls among the top 10 with Underwood (3rd), Dale Lescher (5th), and Sophia Passacantando (6th). The Lake Braddock girls were a close second by a few points and had two freshmen run really strong up finish in the freshmen race earlier, which could have made the team outcome even closer if they had run in the varsity race later.
While it was almost impossible to the tell the two teams apart running in virtually identical light blue Nike jerseys, it was similarly too tough to call who was the boys team champion between West Potomac and South Lakes. South Lakes scored an upset in their 50-51 win over Group AAA #2 ranked West Potomac as they were led by a 1-3 finish from Will Sickenberger and Nicholas Guarnaccia. In an early season meet with an abnormal format and distance at 2 miles, the favorite within the Northern Region is far from being known, but both teams certainly looked fast and running like state meet podium caliber squads averaging 10:17 (South Lakes) and 10:19 (West Potomac) on the two mile course.
Last year as a junior, Will Sickenberger split a 10:45 2 mile at the =PR= Kickoff Relays. While a key member of a resurgent South Lakes program, few could have picked Sickenberger to pull out the win as he did by closing strong in the final half mile to go from fourth place to first to cross the line in a time of 9:55. Lake Braddock's Sam Rubenking ran a strong race to make the first breakaway in the final mile and finished second in 9:58 to propel his team to a solid third place showing and 10:27 team average.
RESULTS: VARSITY/OPEN BOYS - VARSITY/OPEN GIRLS - FRESHMEN BOYS - FRESHMEN GIRLS
RACE VIDEOS: VARSITY BOYS - VARSITY GIRLS - FRESHMEN BOYS - FRESHMEN GIRLS
VIDEO INTERVIEWS: SOPHIE CHASE (Lake Braddock) - WILL SICKENBERGER (South Lakes) - MYAH HICKS (Thomas Edison) - SAM RUBENKING (Lake Braddock)
PHOTO GALLERY - 999 total photos from the 4 races.