Saturday, November 6, 2021

Clear skies and clear victories for Patrick Koon and Sofia Bushkell at 3A Region 1

The summer that would never end finally ended in the Florida Panhandle, as Panama City, Florida woke up to temperatures in the 40s on Saturday morning, 6 November 2021. The autumn chill didn't survive the rising sun, though, as the air warmed under clear skies. By late morning Majette Park was seeing the kind of weather that the Chamber of Commerce loves to brag about. In other words, perfect conditions for the 10:00 AM start of the 3A Region 1 High School Cross-Country Championship Meet. Ponte Vedra frosh Sofia Bushkell took advantage of the weather, running a winning 18:24 in the high school girls' 5K and leading her team to a 37-point score and the Region 1 title. Leon frosh Patrick Koon won the boys' 5K in 15:44, while the Fleming Island boys captured the team title with 98 points.


Coming from Florida's east coast and only in her first year of high school cross-country, Sofia Bushkell hadn't had any opportunities to race in the Panhandle, let alone on the Majette Park course. Lack of familiarity was no handicap for the frosh; Bushkell won the Region 1 race by well over a hundred meters. Leon junior Lillee Tang, who had won the Buccaneer Bash at Majette Park back in September, took second in 18:50. Fletcher frosh Tessa Messa placed third in 19:00.


Two Ponte Vedra athletes, senior Ellie Moritz and sophomore Amelia Tackling, tangled for fourth, with Moritz getting the place by inches. Both athletes ran 19:04. Ponte Vedra's remaining two scorers also crossed the finish line within inches of one another; sophomore Lindy White was seventeenth in 19:58 and frosh Daisy Ross was eighteenth in 19:59. With White and Ross home, the Ponte Vedra girls had 37 points and the team title.


Saint Augustine, led by senior Reilly Barber (6th, 19:07), tallied 89 points to take second. Leon and Lillee Tang were third in the team standings with 99 points.


The top eight teams advanced to the State Meet. After Ponte Vedra, Saint Augustine, and Leon, the other qualifiers were Fleming Island (4th, 108 points), Choctawhatchee (5th, 151 points), Wakulla (6th, 170 points), Matanzas (7th, 199 points), and Fort Walton Beach (8th, 226 points).


Team Standings, 2021 FHSAA 3A Region 1 Girls' Cross-Country Championships
  1. Ponte Vedra, 37 *
  2. St. Augustine, 89 *
  3. Leon, 99 *
  4. Fleming Island, 108 *
  5. Choctawhatchee, 151 *
  6. Wakulla, 170 *
  7. Matanzas, 199 *
  8. Fort Walton Beach, 226 *
  9. Gulf Breeze, 246
  10. Gainesville, 269
  11. Clay, 295
  12. Pace, 302
  13. Columbia, 321
  14. Lincoln, 337
  15. Arnold, 353
* Team qualified to race in the State Championship


Top 15 Girls, 2021 FHSAA 3A Region 1 Cross-Country Championships
  1. 18:23.8, Sofia Bushkell (Ponte Vedra) 9
  2. 18:49.7, Lillee Tang (Leon) 11
  3. 18:59.3, Tessa Messa (Fletcher) 9
  4. 19:03.2, Ellie Moritz (Ponte Vedra) 12
  5. 19:03.3, Amelia Tackling (Ponte Vedra) 10
  6. 19:06.9, Reilly Barber (Saint Augustine) 12
  7. 19:24.2, Ani Veltcheva (Gainesville) 12
  8. 19:32.0, Chloe Fernander (Choctawhatchee) 12
  9. 19:36.3, Lily Moore (Leon) 11
  10. 19:38.0, Viola Barquilla (Fletcher) 12
  11. 19:49.5, Stella Lewis (Leon) 11
  12. 19:51.5, Belicia O'Grady (Fort Walton Beach) 9
  13. 19:51.8, Isabella Laughton (Wakulla) 9
  14. 19:54.0, Allie Knotts (Fleming Island) 10
  15. 19:54.6, Elyse Carmichael (Washington) 9


Autumn 2020 was Patrick Koon's frosh cross-country season. In that first year competing in a Leon High uniform, Koon won only one cross-country race--the 3A Region 1 boys' 5K. 2021 was a different story--sophomore Koon won nearly every cross-country race he entered. The Region 1 race was his first as a defending champion, and defend he did. Koon crossed the finish line over 60 meters ahead of the next runner, covering the course in 15:44. He wasn't the only athlete under 16:00 that morning. Matanzas junior Zach Spooner also cracked 16:00, finishing runner-up in 15:56. Luke Larkin, a Fort Walton Beach senior, ran sub-16:00 as well, placing third in 15:58.


Neither Fleming Island senior Alex Bendig or Fleming Island sophomore John Keester IV ran under 16:00, but they both broke into the top ten, Bending finishing seventh in 16:17 and Keester eighth in 16:18. Fleming Island junior Danny Sakowski placed fourteenth for the Golden Eagles, running 16:50. Senior Chase Van Ginkel and sophomore Roman Mollicone also scored for Fleming Island, finishing 31st in 17:25 and 48th in 17:44. With a 98-point total, Fleming Island caputred the 3A Region 1 boys' team championship.


The 2020 champs, Ponte Vedra, scored 101 points, placing a close second. Ponte Vedra junior Grant Doherty led the Sharks, finishing fourth in 16:04. Luke Larkin and the Fort Walton Beach Vikings were third with 107 points.


Rounding out the top eight (i.e., the teams that qualified for the State Final) were Leon (4th, 117 points), Pace (5th, 135 points), Matanzas (6th, 176 points), Choctawhatchee (7th, 198 points), and Gulf Breeze (8th, 227 points). Five teams from District 1 and three from District 2 advanced.


The Florida High School Cross-Country State Championship Meet will be Friday morning, 12 November 2021, at Apalachee Regional Park, west of Tallahassee, Florida.


Team Standings, 2021 FHSAA 3A Region 1 Boys' Cross-Country Championships
  1. Fleming Island, 98 *
  2. Ponte Vedra, 101 *
  3. Fort Walton Beach, 107 *
  4. Leon, 117 *
  5. Pace, 135 *
  6. Matanzas, 176 *
  7. Choctawhatchee, 198 *
  8. Gulf Breeze, 220 *
  9. Ridgeview (OP), 231
  10. Lincoln, 252
  11. St. Augustine, 279
  12. Middleburg, 302
  13. Gainesville, 312
  14. Arnold, 326
  15. Wakulla, 356
  16. Stanton, 391
* Team qualified to race in the State Championship


Top 15 Boys, 2021 FHSAA 3A Region 1 Cross-Country Championships
  1. 15:43.4, Patrick Koon (Leon) 10
  2. 15:55.4, Zach Spooner (Matanzas) 11
  3. 15:57.4, Luke Larkin (Fort Walton Beach) 12
  4. 16:03.6, Grant Doherty (Ponte Vedra) 11
  5. 16:14.5, James Snipes (Ridgeview) 12
  6. 16:15.9, Kaleb Hollins (Choctawhatchee) 11
  7. 16:17.0, Alex Bendig (Fleming Island) 12
  8. 16:17.7, John Keester IV (Fleming Island) 10
  9. 16:19.6, Ben Koppman (Saint Augustine) 12
  10. 16:36.8, Davis Brown (Ponte Vedra) 10
  11. 16:37.6, Grant Chastain (Fort Walton Beach) 10
  12. 16:39.5, Eli Holbrook (Mosley) 12
  13. 16:45.6, David Morrison (Lincoln) 12
  14. 16:49.9, Danny Sakowski (Fleming Island) 11
  15. 16:53.7, Luke Endt (Fort Walton Beach) 11

FHSAA 3A Region 1 Cross-Country Champions, 2005 - 2021
Boys
DateTeam ChampsIndividual Champs
5 November 2005Chiles, 3515:53, Jonathan Blocker (Chiles) 12
4 November 2006Chiles, 5015:40, Eric Larson (Washington) 11
10 November 2007Leon, 3715:19, Eric Larson (Washington) 12
15 November 2008Leon, 2615:45, Matt Mizereck (Leon) 11
14 November 2009Leon, 6215:27, Matt Mizereck (Leon) 12
13 November 2010Washington, 4815:26, William Clark (Creekside) 12
12 November 2011Fort Walton Beach, 9015:30, Thomas Howell (Niceville) 10
10 November 2012Fort Walton Beach, 4915:26, Thomas Howell (Niceville) 11
2 November 2013Chiles, 7815:39, Sukhi Khosla (Leon) 11
8 November 2014Leon, 3514:53, Sukhi Khosla (Leon) 12
31 October 2015Creekside, 4516:07, Matthew Cashin (Leon) 11
29 October 2016Chiles, 6115:51, Michael Phillips (Chiles) 11
4 November 2017Chiles, 4515:49, Michael Phillips (Chiles) 12
3 November 2018Chiles, 6915:43, Connor Phillips (Chiles) 12
2 November 2019Leon, 4816:10, Lewis Benitez-Chaparro (Vanguard) 12
7 November 2020Ponte Vedra, 5416:19, Patrick Koon (Leon) 9
6 November 2021Fleming Island, 9815:44, Patrick Koon (Leon) 10
Girls
DateTeam ChampsIndividual Champs
5 November 2005Chiles, 4719:09, Julia Bryant (Chiles) 11
4 November 2006Chiles, 4019:11, Julia Bryant (Chiles) 12
10 November 2007Chiles, 4219:29, Lauren Day (Crestview) 10
15 November 2008Chiles, 1519:02, Carly Thomas (Chiles) 9
14 November 2009Chiles, 3418:30, Lilly Williams (Chiles) 10
13 November 2010Chiles, 4518:07, Lily Williams (Chiles) 11
12 November 2011Chiles, 4317:50, Lilly Williams (Chiles) 12
10 November 2012Fort Walton Beach, 7018:33, Susan Givens (Chiles) 12
2 November 2013Pace, 8718:45, Emma Rudman (Fort Walton Beach) 10
8 November 2014Creekside, 4018:18, Kelly Aponte (Saint Augustine) 11
31 October 2015Niceville, 6318:45, Claire Mortiz (Ponte Vedra) 10
29 October 2016Niceville, 4017:56, Alyson Churchill (Lincoln) 9
4 November 2017Chiles, 3218:08, Ana Wallace (Chiles) 12
3 November 2018Chiles, 4317:53, Claire Openshaw (Creekside) 11
2 November 2019Saint Augustine, 4018:45, Emily Culley (Chiles) 12
7 November 2020Leon, 7018:45, Kambry Smith (Fort Walton Beach) 12
6 November 2021Ponte Vedra, 3718:24, Sofia Bushkell (Ponte Vedra) 9
The 3A Region 1 meet was run at Ridgeview High in Orange Park in 2005.
The meet was run at the Miccosukee Greenway in Tallahassee in 2006, 2007, and 2008.
The meet was run at Sunnyhill Farms near Tallahassee in 2009, 2010, 2012, 
and 2014.
The meet was run at Alligator Lake in Lake City in 2011, 2013, 2015, and 2020.
The meet was run at Sante Fe College in Gainesville in 2016.
The meet was run at New World Golf in Jacksonville in 2018.
The meet was held at The Oaks Equestrian Park in Lake City in 2017 and 2019.
The meet was at Bay Dunes Golf Course in Panama City in 2021.


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Posted by Herb Wills at 4:42 PM
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