Local Sports

CSP boys, Frewsburg girls vie for team titles at XC states

QUEENSBURY -- It wasn't long ago when the Clymer/Sherman/Panama boys cross country team was just getting started as a program and finishing at the bottom of the Chautauqua-Cattaraugus Athletic Association.

First it was the girls team that found success, but this season the boys returned a group with plenty of potential and this morning at Queensbury High School they could see fulfillment in the New York State Public High School Athletic Association Class D cross country championships.

"This is the first time we've taken the boys varsity team so that part of it is really exciting for us," Clymer/Sherman/Panama boys cross country head coach Ray Shrout said. "The fact that the boys varsity is seeded first in a few of the pre-meet projections really makes it exciting. This week has been about keeping them calm, they've put in the work, just tapering and making sure we're healthy heading into the state meet."

The team of Brody Ellis, Flynn Fadale, Zach Odell, Christopher Phelps, Gabe Reynolds, Ely Smith and Ethan Taylor were dominant in winning the Section VI Class D championship for the Wolfpack posting a low score of 25. Leading the scoring were Phelps taking third (17:07.53), Fadale in fourth (17:09.05), Odell in fifth (17:26.28), Smith in eighth (17:34.08), Ellis in 15th (18:29.30), then joining them at states will be Reynolds, who took 25th (19:27.04), and Taylor placing 26th (19:31.38).

"Over the years it has always been our girls team heading to states," Shrout said. "But our boys team has been young those years and they have really put in the work these past few years to get to this point."

Clymer/Sherman/Panama is not only finishing strong, but the Wolfpack have been one of the top boys teams all season starting with a third-place finish at the Rocket Invitational in Titusville, Pennsylvania. Then, the Wolfpack kept rolling taking second in Division 3 at the Dash in the Dark Relays, won the 2-mile run at the East Aurora Invitational, took second at the John Izzo Cross Country Classic, finished third in the B1 race at the McQuaid Invitational, second at the Alden Bulldog Cross Country Stampede, third at the Sunset Stampede and won the CCAAs.

"It really starts in the summer," Shrout said about the Wolfpack's success. "Those kids put in a lot of work over the summer, they came into the season in good shape and it allowed us to start the season doing some quality workouts. They won a few invitationals this year which we usually haven't done with the boys in the past and I really think it has helped build their confidence throughout the season. They feel confident, they feel strong heading into the state meet and hopefully it ends up well for us."

After winning the last two events as a team, Clymer/Sherman/Panama will look to make it a third in a row to finish off the season.

"Christopher Phelps ran last year as an eighth-grader," Shrout said about preparing for Queensbury. "Flynn Fadale went a couple of years ago when we went to the pre-state invitational. Those two are familiar with the course, but for the rest of them the course is new and unfamiliar to them. We know that there's a pretty good hill around Mile 2 so we've really concentrated on doing a lot of hill work this year. ... Cross country is largely viewed as an individual sport, but it really takes all of the guys putting in all the work for us getting to this point and ideally we come home with a state championship. That's where their mindset is at and that's what they want to accomplish."

Competing against Clymer/Sherman/Panama in the 10 a.m. start time are Beaver River, Delhi-South Kortright, Geneseo, Greenville, Keio Academy of New York, Lake Placid, Norwood-Norfolk, Port Jefferson and Tri-Valley.

"The other two teams at the top in 'D' are Beaver River and Geneseo," Shrout said about the competition. "We've come ahead of Geneseo a couple of times, we saw Beaver River at McQuaid and they actually won the race so they're definitely a team we have our eye on. They have a great history at Beaver River, they have won multiple state championships over the years so they obviously know how to go into the state meet prepared. We know it's going to be a close race and it's going to come down to every place. We've really stressed to our runners the importance of every place matters, even to our sixth runner because if the score is tied through the first five runners that sixth is used as a tiebreaker."

The Wolfpack bested Maple Grove for the team spot in the Class D race for Section VI, but the Red Dragons will still send another two to Queensbury with Jack Sherry and Liam Price. Then Allegany-Limestone will have Nolan Wilczewski and West Valley's Noah Klahn is the top-ranked individual runner in Class D. Jamestown's Thomas Kathman is the only local boy competing at states not in Class D as he will run for the Red & Green in the Class A meet.

While the Clymer/Sherman/Panama boys vie for a team title, Wolfpack eighth-grader Savannah Whitney is currently ranked the fifth best girl in Class C and will hope to bring home a medal herself.

"On the girls side, we have Savannah running in the 'C' race as just an eighth-grader," Shrout added about Whitney. "She is seeded really high in the girls race, we're hoping for a top-10 finish from her and to possibly come home with a medal."

Whitney is the lone representative of the Clymer/Sherman/Panama girls, but Frewsburg will be bringing its whole squad as the Section VI Class D champions.

"We're really excited," Frewsburg head coach Sandy Ruhlman said. "It looks like we're seeded fifth going into states. Just to get here was a big emotional high, because last year we lost to Maple Grove by six and then this year it was close between Maple Grove and Allegany-Limestone. Going into sectionals it wasn't a given, we knew it was going to be a hard fought race and for my girls to run so well on such a hard course it was certainly an emotional high."

Frewsburg has steadily been improving all season and the girls are hitting their stride at the right time with a runnerup finish in the CCAAs followed by first place at sectionals.

"Having the sectional meet move back to Elma Meadows last year for the first time we had never run the course," Ruhlman said. "The kids who had run never had been there before last year and it was my first time seeing the course. Having run it last year and having the three kids who were very successful last year we knew we had to work on strength training and hills. We trained hills a lot this year, we preached doing hard things and embracing hard things and rising to the challenge. The girls did a great job of embracing each other this year and doing a lot of team bonding to make it fun."

The Bears posted the low score of 32 at sectionals with Grace Gilevski taking second overall (20:21.26), Raegan Cheney earning fourth (20:32.83), Skye Carter placing eighth (21:17.71), Alina Whippo taking 10th (21:32.95), Greta Gilevski earning 17th (22:15.43), Olivia Nelson taking 19th (22:22.43) and Alexis Darling placing 20th (22:33.03).

"Queensbury has two tough hills on the course and the rest is kind of a hard pack trail in the woods," Ruhlman said about the course at states. "We know the two hills that are there are hard, but it can be a fast course and having won sectionals we're hoping to take some of that momentum."

The seven girls are looking to fulfill the top-five seeding coming into the meet and past experience of Grace Gilevski and Cheney in Queensbury as individuals gives the squad a boost for the 12:30 p.m. start time.

"I think for Grace and Raegan it would be great if they could reach the under-20 mark," Ruhlman added. "Last year, Grace and Raegan made it to states so that gives them an advantage for sure because they know the course. They know what to expect and how to run it, of course we'll practice when we get there so everybody will see the course. But having run it before gives you an edge."

Maple Grove finished in second for the girls at the Section VI championships, and the Red Dragons' Lily Elliss qualified for the trip to states after taking third at sectionals (20:28.66).

Silver Creek/Dunkirk/Forestville will also sport two runners in the Class B race with Leah Mays and Emma Golembieski.