Division precision

Erlwein, Seidl and Bertholf are champs; SW girls win seventh consecutive Division IV crown;

T-V girls defend Division V title

By RICHARD A. ROSS

ORANGE COUNTY, NY — So much for the tune-ups; now the real races begin. With the spate of OCIAA cross-country division championships on October 14, the gun was sounded to signal the coming whirlwind of meets that will separate the elite runners from the rest of the pack, both on an individual and team basis.

In a preview of who to watch in the upcoming OCIAA league meet on October 24 and the sectional meets that follow one week hence, Sullivan County runners vied against their division rivals in a series of interesting match ups in Division III, IV and V.

For those unfamiliar with the lay of the land in division terms, Monticello is a denizen of Division III; Sullivan West and Liberty compete in Division IV; Tri-Valley, Eldred and Livingston Manor inhabit Division V.

The October 14 races produced a trio of division champions from Sullivan County, including Sullivan West’s Rianne Erlwein, who won the Division IV tilt at Burke with a time of 19:24; Caroline Bertholf, who outran the Division V pack at S.S. Seward with a time of 20:18; and Sullivan West’s Colin Seidl, who finished first in Division IV at Burke with a time of 15:40. Seidl was the defending Division IV champ.

Teamwise, Sullivan West and Tri-Valley’s girls captured their respective Division IV and V crowns. Both were defending champions.

Seven up! Lady Bulldogs win seventh straight Division IV crown and finish undefeated in dual meets

Sullivan West’s Division IV dominance continued as the Lady Bulldogs captured their seventh consecutive division title in a season marked by another milestone. This was the first time that Sullivan West went undefeated in dual meets (9-0).

In the division championship, with Erlwein in first place, Danielle Myer in third (20:43) and Morgan Hawkins in fourth (21:25), the Lady Bulldogs outpointed O’Neill 23 to 40. Sullivan West had six of the top 10 finishers as Jamie Moran (7th) ran 22:00, Kendra Barker (8th) ran 22:19 and Stephany Robison (9th) finished in 22:58. Liberty’s top runner was Kristin Sarno in 10th (23:28). On October 18, the Lady Bulldogs finished 11th at the highly competitive Marathon Invitational seeded race. Erlwein finished 20th with a time of 20:28.9.

As the season heats up, runners begin to assert themselves, hoping to peak at just the right time. One of those runners who has approached this fall with such a plan is Monticello’s Jessica Fingers, the defending Section Nine Class A champion. Fingers has been biding her time and rounding herself into form for the big races to come.

In the Division III tilt, she took second to Cornwall’s Aisling Cuffe, who finished in 18:00. Fingers’ time was 19:24. A year ago, Fingers finished fifth in the OCIAA league meet and was 21st in the state meet. Monticello finished second to Cornwall in team scoring. Fingers is currently ranked 11th in the state among Class A runners. Justine Davis (20:19), Emma Cohen (20:38) and Anna Loor (21:05) took sixth, seventh and 10th respectively. Cornwall outpointed the Lady Panthers 21-37.

Tri-Valley’s Carolyn Bertholf won the Division V race in 20:18, nudging out teammate Rachel Sanborn (20:32). Last year, Bertholf finished fifth in the division race that was won by Courtney Roosa, now at Siena. The Lady Bears got a fourth-place finish from Shannon Hornbeck (20:47) to help secure the 25-55 victory over second-place Chapel Field. Naomi Weise (22:14) finished sixth.

Eldred took third place in the meet with 58 points. Christine Donnelly (22:21) finished seventh, Kristina Brown (22:41) and Annie Babula (22:47) were ninth and 10th respectively.

Boys’ highlights: Seidl defends his Division IV title and goes on to win at Marathon Invitational

Just like a year ago, James I. O’Neill walked off with the Division IV title. This year, the Raiders outpointed the Sullivan West Bulldogs 21-47. Colin Seidl (15:40) outran O’Neill’s Kendall Ward (15:46) to defend his Division IV crown. On October 18, Seidl, the fifth-ranked Class C cross-country runner in the state, won the unseeded race in the Marathon Invitational with a time of 16:58.8.

The Division V meet ended in a 42-all tie between Tri-Valley and Seward and had to be decided by going to the sixth runner as the tiebreaker. That gave S.S. Seward its first Division V title. Livingston Manor’s Greg Lewis (17:47) took second place behind Chapel Field’s Adam St. Germaine. Tri-Valley’s Jeremy Kinney (18:14), Mike Freeman (18:32.56) and Jimmy Bernstein (18:32.98) finished third, five and sixth in the race. Eldred’s Brian Corcoran (18:53) was the Yellow Jackets’ top runner. He took ninth.

In Division III, Goshen beat out Monticello 33-45. Monties Tom Gonzalez (17:31) and Dave Wilbur (17:43) took third and fourth respectively. James Dzurica (17:54) took sixth.