Sheldon leads Swift Creek to title at Fort Braden

The Swift Creek Middle School girls' cross-country team totaled 47 points to win the Fort Braden Middle School Cross Country meet on Wednesday, 14 September 2011. Led by Zoe Sheldon's 14:45 winning performance in the two-mile race, Swift Creek put three girls in the top ten in winning their second team title in two outings so far this season. In the boys' race, Evan Francis of Raa Middle School pushed his record for the season to 2-0 with a 12:16 win, but Montford Middle School took the team title, tallying 55 points to pick up their first win of the season.


The day's competition opened with the girls' race at 6:00pm. At the end of the first quarter mile Jianni McDole of Deer Lake was leading the field on their way out of Fort Braden Community Park, but she was already fading, and soon Swift Creek's Cheyenne Hildinger was in front. Hildinger had won the previous week at the Swift Creek meet in Tom Brown Park, but just past the mile mark of the Fort Braden race, Zoe Sheldon took over, and proceeded to run home first in 14:45. Behind Sheldon, Fairview's Bridget Isenberg made a late move to advance from fourth up to second with a hundred meters to go. But Isenberg hadn't left Deer Lake's Alex Wallace far behind, and on the final straight Wallace outkicked Isenberg for the runner-up spot, both clocked in 14:57. Hildinger held on to finish fourth in 15:10.


Evan Francis, representing the defending state champions of Raa Middle School, was in first place in the boys' race before the runners finished the first quarter mile. Francis not only stayed in first, but extended his lead throughout the two-mile race, finishing the race in 12:16 with a 70-meter lead on the runner up. Shawn Nerney of Deer Lake outkicked his teammate Austin Dodson for second, 12:32 to 12:33. It was another dogfight for fourth, with Montford runners Adam Wallenfelsz and Aiden Sailer both clocked in 13:04. Wallenfelsz and Sailer were joined in the top ten by their teammate, Jackson McKnight (10th, 13:21), setting up Montford's winning total of 55 points. Swift Creek, a winner the previous week in the meet at Tom Brown Park, was only eight points back with 63 points, with Raa right behind them at 67.


The Fort Braden meet was the second competition in Leon County Schools' four-meet middle school cross-country season. The season opened on 7 September 2011 with the Swift Creek Middle School Battle at Tom Brown, continues on 22 September 2011 with the Gretchen Everhart Invitational, and concludes on 28 September 2011 at the County Championship on the Apalachee Regional Park Trail.


Girls' Team Standings

1. Swift Creek Middle School, 47
2. Deer Lake Middle School, 67
3. Montford Middle School, 82
4. Raa Middle School, 87
5. Fairview Middle School, 94
6. Cobb Middle School, 132
7. Fort Braden Middle School, 194
8. Griffin Middle School, 233

Top Ten Girls

1. 14:45 ~ Zoe Sheldon (Swift Creek Middle School)
2. 14:57 ~ Alexandra Wallace (Deer Lake Middle School)
3. 14:57 ~ Bridget Isenberg (Fairview Middle School)
4. 15:10 ~ Cheyenne Hildinger (Swift Creek Middle School)
5. 15:18 ~ Ana Wallace (Deer Lake Middle School)
6. 15:43 ~ Audrey Dogan (Raa Middle School)
7. 15:44 ~ Olivia Cone (Raa Middle School)
8. 15:55 ~ Jewels Krueger (Montford Middle School)
9. 15:56 ~ Katherine Dixon (Cobb Middle School)
10. 16:09 ~ Sydney Aparicio (Swift Creek Middle School)

Boys' Team Standings

1. Montford Middle School, 55
2. Swift Creek Middle School, 63
3. Raa Middle School, 67
4. Deer Lake Middle School, 79
5. Griffin Middle School, 129
6. Cobb Middle School, 134
7. Fairview Middle School, 151

Top Ten Boys

1. 12:16 ~ Evan Francis (Raa Middle School)
2. 12:32 ~ Shawn Nerney (Deer Lake Middle School)
3. 12:33 ~ Austin Dodson (Deer Lake Middle School)
4. 13:04 ~ Adam Wallenfelsz (Montford Middle School)
5. 13:04 ~ Aiden Sailor (Montford Middle School)
6. 13:12 ~ Alex Holm (Cobb Middle School)
7. 13:15 ~ Irfan Kovankaya (Swift Creek Middle School)
8. 13:16 ~ Troy Monroe (Swift Creek Middle School)
9. 13:17 ~ Emanuel Godrey (Griffin Middle School)
10. 13:21 ~ Jackson McKnight (Montford Middle School)

Links:

• Complete results of the 2011 Fort Braden Middle School X-Country Meet at flrunners.com
  http://fl.milesplit.com/meets/100820-ft-braden-run
  
  
• More pictures of the girls' race
  https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10101012813520433.3205743.5215641&l=be3cd2747f
  
  
• More pictures of the boys' race
  https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10101012858460373.3205751.5215641&l=a9f193d640
  
  
• 2010 story, "Clendinen and Khosla first at Fort Braden"
  http://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2010/09/ft-braden-xc-2010.html
  
  
• Want to run a race yourself in the Tallahassee region? Find one here!
  http://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/search/label/calendar?max-results=1