Green Hope Cross Country

The 2014 NCHSAA 4A State Cross Country Championships meet provided another successful chapter in the storied history of Green Hope cross country.

Boys complete surprising run

Heading into the 4A state meet at Beeson Park in Kernersville, there was little pressure on the boys team. The boys surprised many by qualifying for the state meet as they endured a lot of turnover from last year's sixth-place team. The guys had 4 juniors, 2 sophomores and a freshman toe the line Saturday in extremely tough conditions. After a night and morning of heavy rain and four morning races the course was a mess. Several sections were completely covered in water and other parts of the course had unavoidable heavy mud. Times would be impacted by the course conditions and the 35 degree wind chill temperatures. Top runner Henry Pehr (17:02) was spiked by another runner and lost his shoe, but managed to be the first Falcon across the line. Sophomore Nick Veilleux ran a great race to finish in 17:13 and was followed by Michael Dudash (17:18), Brian Huitt (17:22), and sophomore Cole Hagstrom (17:25).

While the Falcons were seeded 12th out of the 16 teams in the race headed into the state championship, they pulled out an 8th place finish. More than anything, the boys gained valuable big meet experience for next year when all seven runners return.

Historic championship win for girls

As for the second race involving GH runners, most cross country fans in North Carolina expected the Falcon ladies to come home with another state title. The miserable course conditions, however, presented a possible equalizer of sorts. After the first 400 meters, however, it was apparent that the girls were not going to be denied on this day. Elly Henes went right to the front pack, with Katie Tomasi, Morgan Adams, Theresa Enright, Elisa Sargent, Kelly Fitzgerald, and Kayla Hall not far behind. All of the GH girls were in the top 30 for the entire race, and the team dominated from start to finish.

As the fifth Lady Falcon crossed the line, the victory was so certain that the meet announcers called the race at that instant. With a team score of only 45 points (to 83 for second place Myers Park) the girls took home their sixth straight state championship trophy. Accomplishing this feat made Green Hope the first NC high school cross country team to do so. Way to go, ladies!

The most interesting aspect of the girls race was the race for the individual title between Elly and several other girls. Around the two-mile mark, Elly and Kathleen Mansure from Watauga separated from the front pack. With just over 800 meters remaining Elly made a move and Mansure could not respond. Elly cruised to an 11 second victory and earned the first individual title in GH cross country history. This completed a season that saw Elly win SWAC Conference, Mideast Regional, and State crowns. Katie ran a tough race to also earn All-State honors with Elly. Seniors Theresa and Elisa finished just outside the top 10 in their last NC state cross country meet.

Season wraps up

The boys return all of their top 25 runners next season and, while the girls graduate two of the top 5, they will have a strong returning core of runners.

In the meantime, the girls will compete in the Nike Southeast Regional on November 29, as will several of the boys. The girls will be looking to earn one of the two automatic bids to Nike Nationals (NXN) in Portland, Oregon. Best of luck to all of those running on the 29th at Wake Med.

Thanks to everyone for another great season. And remember: the banquet is November 5, at 6:00 PM at Green Hope High School.