WOODSTOCK, P.E.I. - A total of 644 runners and approximately 1,400 spectators attended the P.E.I. School Athletic Association’s cross-country running championships Saturday at Mill River Resort. Despite the cool and windy conditions, participant attendance was down just 17 runners from last year.
This was the seventeenth consecutive year for the Westisle family of schools to host the provincial championship for runners in the Pre-Novice to Intermediate age groups. Another 139 runners participated in the senior high category races last Tuesday at Charlottetown Rural.
PEISAA cross country commissioner, Paul Goguen offered praise for the Leadership class students from M.E. Callaghan and Hernewood Intermediate schools for their contributions to the success of the championships. “From parking cars to recording runners at the finish line, these students over exceeded our expectations,” he commented.
“Once the races started, the meet ran like clockwork, it stated on time and finished on time,” Goguen noted. While one group of runners was out on the trails, the award presentation to the previous group of runners was carried out.
“We are so thankful to the Mill River Resort and their staff for allowing us to use their facility. It gives us an opportunity to offer a safe environment for students to run and lots of areas to make each course different and difficult for all the different age levels,” Goguen acknowledged.
The temperature was just eight degrees when the Intermediate Boys took to the course for the first race of the day, and it climbed to 11 degrees by the time the Pre-Novice runners finished the day. The wind gusts were so strong at times that fallen leaves took flight throughout the campground where most of the spectators congregated.
Fifty-four Island schools had runners entered in Saturday’s races. There were as many as 16 school teams entered in some races. Queen Charlotte Intermediate won provincial team banners in both the Intermediate Boys and Intermediate Girls categories while Summerside Intermediate Girls and Grace Christian Boys took the provincial Bantam team titles.
At the elementary level, the Novice team titles went to Stratford Elementary Girls and Spring Park Elementary Boys and the Pre-Novice titles were awarded to Eliot River Elementary Boys and Donagh Elementary Girls.
Mill River Resort’s park and campground was the venue for the P.E.I. School Athletic Association’s Provincial Cross-Country Running championships for students in the Pre-Novice to Intermediate Age categories. Six hundred forty-four students from 54 schools took part. The Following are the top-10 individual standings and top five team standings for each age group:
Pre-Novice Girls (114 participants, 1.5 km course): 1. Mia Gallant, Ecole Francois Buote, 6:39; 2. Lucy Fraser, Donagh, 6:41; 3. Gaby Noye, Ellerslie, 6:47; 4. Darcy Flick, Westwood; 5. Annika Saulnier, Ecole Francois Buote; 6. Brennan Simpson, Elm Street; 7. Kate Campbell, Grace Christian; 8. Cameron MacKinnon, Souris; 9. Reese Fall, Eliot River; 10. Sophia Chandler, Sherwood.
Team standings: 1. Donagh Elementary (Lucy Fraser, Grace Wood, Cadence Player, Stella Myers and Emily Wood), 88 points; 2. Eliot River, 109; 3. Lucy Maud, 123; 4. Stratford, 142; 5. Greenfield, 203.
Pre-Novice Boys (133 participants, 1.5 km course) – 1. Thomas MacPhee, Souris, 5:54 2. Logan Schofield, Somerset, 6:00; 3. Quaid Affleck, Lucy Maud, 6:02; 4. Tim Vermunt, Eliot River, 6:07; 5. Cohen Fraser, Eliot River, 6:12; 6. Dawson Heath, Souris; 7. Nate Silvaggio, West Royalty; 8. Noah Wyand, West Royalty; 9. Nathan Rist, Eliot River; 10. Liam Handrahan, Bloomfield.
Team standings: 1. Eliot River (Tim Vermunt, Cohen Fraser, Nathan Rist, Evan MacCormac and Jake Kelly), 47; 2. Lucy Maud, 113; 3. West Royalty, 127; 4. Souris, 193; 5. Elm Street, 201.
Novice Boys (111 participants, 2.0 Km course) – 1. Yasu Hojo, Spring Park, 7:13; 2. Cryus Cormier, Elm Street, 7:22; 3. Christian Cameron, Greenfield, 7:29; 4. Carson MacKenzie, Souris, 7:34; 5. Kaleb Vos, Central Queens, 7:36; 6. Alex Nicholson, West Kent; 7. Jared Kenny, Tignish; 8. Austin Walker, Montague; 9. Bill Townshend, Souris; 10. Micael Taylor, Gulf Shore.
Team standings 1. Spring Park (Yasu Hojo, Seth Lawless, William Mossey, Ethan Mayne and Connor Rowell), 66; 2. Gulf Shore, 105; 3. Eliot River, 168; 4. Greenfield, 203; 5. Tignish, 216.
Novice Girls (126 participants, 2.0 km course) – 1. Madison Powell, Mount Stewart, 8:07; 2. Lilly MacVicar, West Kent, 8:08; 3. Lauryn Monkley, Greenfield, 8:13; 4. Alivia Johnston, Greenfield, 8:14; 5. Samantha Ostridge, Spring Park, 8:17; 6. Paige MacDonald, Stratford; 7. Saidbh Mahar, Englewood; 8. Bella Fitzpatrick, Lucy Maud; 9. Mava Gauthier, Eliot River; 10. Maiya Chaudhary, Stratford.
Team standings: 1. Stratford (Paige MacDonald, Maiya Chaudhary, Alex Newson, Lucy Power and Petra Klimes), 82; 2. Greenfield, 120; 3. Englewood, 127; 4. Eliot River, 140; 5. Lucy Maud, 170.
Bantam Boys (48 participants, 3.0 km course) – 1. Eric McCushion, Stonepark, 10:54; 2. Colby Munroe, East Wiltshire, 10:58; 3. Will Landry, Birchwood, 11:49; 4. Liam Chatfield, Queen Charlotte, 12:06; 5. Desmond Cunniffe, Grace Christian, 12:08; 6. Juan Balderas, Grace Christian; 7. Luke MacKenzie, Birchwood; 8. Charlie Lewis, Hernewood; 9. Riley Gallant, Hernewood; 10. Alex Rogers, Queen Charlotte.
Team standings: 1. Grace Christian (Desmond Cunniffe, Juan Balderas, Jonathan Baglole, Kirill Ledovskik and Simon McGonnell), 54; Queen Charlotte, 58; 3. East Wiltshire, 103; 4. Summerside, 140.
Bantam Girls (61 participants, 3. 0 km course) – 1. Bree McAlduff, Summerside, 12:45; 2. Madison Brown, Summerside, 12:49; 3. Savannah Perry, Hernewood, 12:52; 4. Brooke Walsh, Birchwood, 13:06; 5. Lucy Francis, Evangeline, 13:12; 6. Sophie Crabbe, East Wiltshire; 7. Annie-Pier Morency, Evangeline; 8. Carys Jelly, Grace Christian; 9. Juliette Bader, Queen Charlotte; 10. Claudia McCardle, Queen Charlotte.
Team standings: Summerside (Bree McAlduff, Madison Brown, Marleigh-Jayne Smallwood, Brooke Baglole and Rachel Purdy), 98; 2. Birchwood, 101; 3. Stonepark, 117; 4. Hernewood, 130 and 5. Grace Christian, 199.
Intermediate Boys (29 participants, 3.0 km course) – 1. Caleb Gagne, Ecole Franccois Buote 11:16; 2. Luc Doucette, Queen Charlotte, 11:30; 3. Diviym Khubar Birchwood, 11:47; 4. Thomas Whalen, Vernon River, 11:49; 5. Yassim Elbahh, Stonepark, 11:56; 6. Will Cogswell, Queen Charlotte; 7. Carter David, Stonepark; 8. Andrew Levy, East Wiltshire; 9. Myles Grant, East Wiltshire; 10. Aiden Gaudet, M.E. Callaghan.
Team standing: 1. Queen Charlotte (Luc Doucette, Will Cogswell, Paul Kingston, John Hyndman and Ben Plourde), 53.
Intermediate Girls (22 participants, 3.0 km course) – 1. Claire Bowie, Queen Charlotte, 12:57; 2. Maya Simmonds, home schooled, 13:05; 3. Abbey Gordon Montague, 13:12; 4. Lydia Hammill, Kinkora, 13:42; 5. Aleea Kirkham, Birchwood, 13:44; 6. Gracie McQuaid, Queen Charlotte; 7. Evelyn Champion, Montague; 8. Julie VandeWeil Vernon River; 9. Christianne Riveroll, Grace Christian; 10. Lily O’Reilly, Queen Charlotte.
Team standings: 1. Queen Charlotte (Claire Bowie, Gracie McQuaid, Lily O’Reilly, Sophie Linton and Rayan Farag), 58; 2. Grace Christian, 73.
