Skyview Invitational

Web posted Sunday, August 28, 2005

South, Service harriers win at Skyview

By Alan Wooten
Special to the Clarion

  Runners stir up dust at the start of the girls race Saturday afternoon at the Skyview Invitational cross country meet. Photo by M. Scott Moon
Service High’s Jackie Holt and South Anchorage’s David Bondi spent a good deal of Saturday’s 5-kilometer Skyview Cross Country Invitational trying to break away from the lead pack.

Bondi finally did in the final 2,000 meters, winning the boys race in 17 minutes, 14.4 seconds, less than five seconds ahead of Kodiak’s Steven Gauna. Holt won a sprint to the finish line with Anchorage Christian’s Nychele Fischetti by a single stride, finishing in 20:11.9.

Each runner led their respective teams to victory, with Bondi’s Wolverines scoring 54 points. Kodiak, with three of the top five finishers, was second with 68 points and Dimond a distant third with 148.

Two of Holt’s teammates added top-10 finishes, helping Service to 55 points. West Anchorage was second with 81 points and East third with 97.

More than 700 junior varsity and varsity runners enjoyed splendid sunshine and temperatures geared for excellent times in the 27-team invitational on Tsalteshi Trails.

  Soldotna's Caleb Chase (734) runs near the start of the Skyview Invitational Saturday afternoon at Tsalteshi Trails. Photo by M. Scott Moon
Soldotna’s Patrick Lybrand, one of four seniors on the team, led the Stars to a 15th-place finish (398 points) in the boys standings with a 17th-place showing (17:57.0). Kenai Central, led by Levi Sutton (35th, 18:34.5), was 18th (459) and Skyview, led by Mike Moerlein (71st, 19:21.5), was 20th (487).

Kenai Central senior Alee Rowley had the best finish of area girls runners, taking 24th in 21:49.5. None of the area girls team had enough scoring runners for a team score.

Bondi, a senior, remembers the Tsalteshi Trails course well from last year’s regular season meet here and the state championship meet. And what he remembered did not encourage him too much.

“I was kind of nervous,” Bondi said. “In the past, it really hurt to run this course. But I just gutted it out today.”

Bondi was pacing himself within a group of about 20 runners through the first kilometer, then emerged with a group of about five runners through the second kilometer. At the 3-kilometer mark, he was stride for stride with West’s Steven Buklis, trailed closely by Palmer’s Jake Parisien and the Kodiak trio of Jared Sundberg, Lucas Fried and Gauna.

Bondi and Buklis led the lead group into the final kilometer, with Bondi beginning to distance himself in the last 2,000 meters. Gauna nipped Buklis for second at the finish line by tenths of a second, and Sundberg and Fried rounded out the top five.

“There’s a big hill before the 4-kilometer mark that twists,” Bondi said. “That hill hurts a lot. I tried to push up and stay in front there. This is probably the toughest course we run with the hills, the dust and the narrow trail.”

Holt didn’t have quite the number of runners up front throughout the girls race, but she did have company throughout — and good company at that. She credited the push that senior teammate Kendra Kennedy provided her as a big reason for the victory.

“Last year, I didn’t do as good and this year I’ve had no real expectations,” Holt said. “Today, I just wanted to stay with the front pack. The last couple of times, I’ve been close to them. I figured if I just stayed up there, I’d have a chance. Kendra really helped me a lot this race. I’m learning from her.”

Holt and Kennedy were running 1-2 when passing the 3-kilometer mark. By the fourth kilometer, Holt, Fischetti, Grace Christian’s Casey Martinez and Kennedy were just ahead of East Anchorage’s Jaime Bronga, setting up the sprints to the finish.

Holt’s winning time was less than half a second ahead of Fischetti, with Bronga in third just over five seconds behind. Then came Kennedy in 20:22.2, followed by West Anchorage’s Shoshana Keegan rounding out the top five.

Skyview Invitational

Saturday at Tsalteshi Trails

GIRLS

Team standings — 1, Service 55; 2, West 81; 3, East 97; 4, Grace 148; 5, South 156; 6, Eagle River 163; 7, Kodiak 172; 8, Dimond 216; 9, Lathrop 228; 10, Anchorage Christian 241; 11, Seward 274; 12, Wasilla 302; 13, Chugiak 355; 14, Palmer 388; 15, Su Valley 425; 16, Colony 444; 17, Nome 450; 18, Kotzebue 501; 19, Bartlett 524.

Individual results — 1, Jackie Holt, Service, 20:11.9; 2, Nychele Fischetti, ACS, 20:12.3; 3, Jaime Bronga, East, 20:17.3; 4, Kendra Kennedy, 20:22.2; 5, Shoshana Keegan, 20:24.4; 6, Casey Martinez, 20:27.7; 7, Katelyn Stearns, East, 20:43.7; 8, Ariel Roelle, West, 20:55.1; 9, Hanna Johnson, Service, 20:57.2; 10, Maggie Embick, Valdez, 20:58.2.

Peninsula finishers — 24, Alee Rowley, Kenai Central, 21:49.5; 64, Brittany Osland, Soldotna, 23:01.8; 66, Laura Rooper, Nikiski, 23:06.0; 73, Michaela Hutchison, Skyview, 23:15.4; 76, Ariel Barker, Skyview, 23:19.4; 91, Lauren Baldwin, Kenai Central, 23:48.3; 107, Eliza Chadwick, Kenai Central, 24:34.7; 113, Mallory Millay, Skyview, 24:59.4; 125, Sarah Walton, Soldotna, 25:47.2; 126, Amanda Millay, Skyview 25:51.9; 141, Hannah Chase, Soldotna, 27:37.0; 142, Freida Ware, Nikiski, 27:40.8; 147, Donica Severson, Soldotna, 30:47.7.

BOYS

Team standings — 1, South 54; 2, Kodiak 68; 3, Dimond 148; 4, East 187; 5, Grace 195; 6, Chugiak 205; 7, Lathrop 220; 8, Wasilla 247; 9, Colony 265; 10, West 277; 11, Service 288; 12, ACS 294; 13, Bartlett 362; 14, Palmer 384; 15, Soldotna 398; 16, Seward 411; 17, Su Valley 447; 18, Kenai Central 459; 19, Valdez 486; 20, Skyview 487; 21, Eagle River 514; 22, Homer 543; 23, Kotzebue 598.

Individual results — 1, David Bondi, South, 17:14.4; 2, Steven Gauna, Kodiak, 17:19.0; 3, Steven Buklis, West, 17:189.3; 4, Jared Sundberg, Kodiak, 17:23.6; 5, Lucas Fried, Kodiak, 17:25.9; 6, Jake Parisien, Palmer, 17:30.3; 7, Alex Knapp, East, 17:30.6; 8, William Jarrett, South, 17:32.3; 9, Brian Kirchner, South, 17:44.0; 10, David Norris, Lathrop, 17:44.3.

Peninsula finishers — 17, Patrick Lybrand, Soldotna, 17:57.0; 35, Levi Sutton, Kenai Central, 18:34.5; 62, Trent Semmens, Kenai Central, 19:15.1; 63, Caleb Chase, Soldotna, 19:16.5; 68, Rob Navarro, Soldotna, 19:19.8; 70, Mike Wicker, Nikiski, 19:21.1; 71, Mike Moerlein, Skyview, 19:21.5; 89, Kris Larson, Kenai Central, 19:49.9; 105, Scott Begins, Skyview, 20:16.2; 109, Anton Weissenberg, Soldotna, 20:27.8; 120, Lucas Thein, Skyview, 20:43.7; 121, Tommy Honer, Skyview, 20:44.1; 127, Jordan Merkes, Skyview, 20:50.6; 142, Brad Denesen, Kenai Central, 21:29.5; 143, Robert Burns, Nikiski, 21:29.9; 147, Triston Delaney, Kenai Central, 21:44.8; 154, Max Milliron, Soldotna, 22:07.6.

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