Showing posts with label Acadia Hassell. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Acadia Hassell. Show all posts

Tuesday, October 10, 2023

Acadia Hassell and Landon Reeves outrace their rivals at the Tallahassee Open

By 10 October 2023, there were less than three weeks left till the Florida Youth Running Association Middle School Cross-Country Championship. That Tuesday afternoon, though, there was at least one more act left in Tallahassee's middle school cross-country season--Holy Comforter Episcopal School's Tallahassee Open. Acadia Hassell won the girls' 3K by close to 100 meters, running 12:09, while the Holy Comforter girls took the team title with 31 points. Landon Reeves, a Community Christian eighth-grader, won the boys' 3K for the second year in a row, covering the course in 10:12. Maclay had the top boys' team, putting up a winning score of 47.

Acadia Hassell
Acadia Hassell

The middle school girls' 3K started just before 5:15. Earlier, the meet had opened with a mile race for elementary school aged athletes. As a fifth-grader, Acadia Hassell was eligible for the shorter race, but passed on it.


"I prefer longer distances," explained Hassell.

Chloe Molen
Chloe Molen

The early leader in the 3K, though, was Chloe Molen--a Deerlake eighth-grader competing unattached. Half a kilometer into the race, Molen already had a lead of 30 meters. Running more patiently, Hassell was back in seventh place. Molen still led at the halfway point, but Hassell had moved into second and was starting to close.


The second half of the race had barely started when Hassell overtook Molen. By the two-kilometer mark, Hassell had opened a gap, a gap she continued to widen. Molen fell back, ultimately finishing ninth. But Hassell forged on, crossing the finish line in a winning 12:09. Julia Robinson, a Florida State University School eighth-grader, took second in 12:33. Holy Comforter sixth-grader Mackenzie McVay was third in 12:38.

Julia Robinson
Julia Robinson

Holy Comforter put three more Crusaders in the top ten--sixth-grader Madison McVay was sixth in 12:50, sixth-grader Elaine Ungru was seventh in 12:52, and eighth-grader Lillian Anway was eighth in 12:55. When Crusader sixth-grader Eleanor Blalock came home thirteenth in 13:27, the Holy Comforter girls had 31 points, good for first place in the seven-team field.


Julia Robinson and her Florida State teammates were a close second with 38 points. Maclay was third with 73 points; their top finisher was eighth-grader Mallory Van Leuven, eleventh in 13:20.

Mackenzie McVay, Brixton Menendez
Brixton Menendez and Mackenzie McVay

Girls' Team Standings, 2023 Tallahassee Open Middle School XC Championship
  1. Holy Comforter Episcopal, 31
  2. Florida State University, 38
  3. Maclay, 73
  4. Raa, 91
  5. Community Leadership, 150
  6. Trinity Catholic, 159
  7. Tallahassee Classical, 207

Top 10 Girls, 2023 Tallahassee Open Middle School XC Championship
  1. 12:08.90, Acadia Hassell (Unattached) 5
  2. 12:32.50, Julia Robinson (Florida State University) 8
  3. 12:37.40, Mackenzie McVay (Holy Comforter Episcopal) 6
  4. 12:43.10, Brixton Menendez (Raa) 7
  5. 12:45.20, Elin Quisenberry (Florida State University) 7
  6. 12:49.50, Madison McVay (Holy Comforter Episcopal) 6
  7. 12:51.30, Elaine Ungru (Holy Comforter Episcopal) 6
  8. 12:54.20, Lillian Anway (Holy Comforter Episcopal) 8
  9. 12:56.30, Chloe Molen (Unattached) 8
  10. 13:18.20, Vera Vanlandingham (Florida State University) 6

Had this been Acadia Hassell's first time racing on Holy Comforter's home venue, Lawson's Course?

"No, I ran here a couple other times," said Hassell.

Landon Reeves
Landon Reeves
Likewise, Community Christian's Landon Reeves was no stranger to Lawson's Course. "I've probably run here six times," he said.


Two of those prior appearances were wins; one at the 2022 Tallahassee Open and another at the 2023 Crusader Cross-Country Classic. The road to Reeves' third win wasn't without potholes, however. Immediately after the start of the 2023 Tallahassee Open boys' 3K, a Florida State runner went down right in front of Reeves. The field wasn't recalled. Reeves maneuvered around the fallen athlete and resumed racing. Half a kilometer later he was leading. Just behind Reeves was Emari Thomas, a Fairview eighth-grader competing for the Panhandle Express. Five days earlier, Thomas had won the Leon County Schools' 2023 Middle School Cross-Country Championship.

Emari Thomas
Emari Thomas

Reeves and Thomas were still the first two runners at the halfway point of the race, but Reeves was 50 meters ahead of Thomas by then. That gap grew during the second half of the 3K. Reeves finished the race with a lead of nearly 150 meters, winning in 10:12. Thomas was runner-up in 10:42. James Mogg, a Trinity Catholic eighth-grader, took third in 11:01, and Raa eighth-grader Carson Weiss was fourth in 11:12.


Raa had one more athlete in the top ten; seventh-grader Emerson Gandy placed sixth in 11:20. But Maclay also had two athletes in the top ten--eighth-grader Andrew Campbell was seventh in 11:33 and eighth-grader Henry Proctor was ninth in 11:48. Maclay's next three Marauders were seventh-graders Mirko Usina (13th, 11:57), Grant Ulrich (16th, 12:01), and Wesley Seise (18th, 12:04). With Seise across the finish line, Maclay had 47 points and first place in an eleven-team field.

James Mogg
James Mogg

With 57 points, Raa had to settle for second. Holy Comforter was third with 69 points; the first Crusader in the race was seventh-grader Matthew Nowels, tenth in 11:52.


Boys' Team Standings, 2023 Tallahassee Open Middle School XC Championship
  1. Maclay, 47
  2. Raa, 57
  3. Holy Comforter Episcopal, 69
  4. Community Christian, 115
  5. Trinity Catholic, 146
  6. Christ Classical, 177
  7. Wakulla, 187
  8. Tallahassee Classical, 222
  9. Community Leadership, 242
  10. Cornerstone, 263
  11. Riversprings, 267

Top 10 Boys, 2023 Tallahassee Open Middle School XC Championship
  1. 10:11.70, Landon Reeves (Community Christian) 8
  2. 10:42.00, Emari Thomas (Panhandle Express) 8
  3. 11:00.60, James Mogg (Trinity Catholic) 8
  4. 11:11.10, Carson Weiss (Raa) 8
  5. 11:15.40, Lawson Phillips (Florida State University) 7
  6. 11:19.10, Emerson Gandy (Raa) 7
  7. 11:32.50, Andrew Campbell (Maclay) 8
  8. 11:35.10, Lincoln Eisenberg (Community Christian) 8
  9. 11:47.10, Henry Proctor (Maclay) 8
  10. 11:51.90, Matthew Nowels (Holy Comforter Episcopal) 7

Tallahassee Open winners, 2014 - 2023
Boys
DateTeam ChampIndividual Champ
23 October 2014Maclay, 189:42, Clayburn Milford (Maclay) 8
15 October 2015Holy Comforter, 2710:25, Jacob D'Aleo (Emerald Coast) 8
13 October 2016Holy Comforter, 1711:05, Jackson Yarbrough (Holy Comforter) 7
12 October 2017Holy Comforter, 3510:45, Thomas Ashby (Burns) 7
17 October 2018Fairview, 5311:11, Patrick Koon (Fairview) 7
8 October 2019Holy Comforter, 2111:10, William Springer (Holy Comforter) 8
6 October 2020Holy Comforter, 4510:50, Noah Deem (Community Leadership) 8
12 October 2021Community Christian, 4811:08, Luke Meli (Community Christian) 8
11 October 2022Red Hills, 2810:32, Landon Reeves (Community Christian) 7
10 October 2023Maclay, 4710:12, Landon Reeves (Community Christian) 8
Girls
DateTeam ChampIndividual Champ
23 October 2014Holy Comforter, 2711:28, Katherine Resavage (Holy Comforter) 8
15 October 2015Holy Comforter, 2111:23, Emily Molen (Deerlake) 8
13 October 2016Maclay, 1711:35, Lindsay James (Maclay) 8
12 October 2017Holy Comforter, 2212:36, Mary Clayton Soto (Holy Comforter) 6
17 October 2018Maclay, 3112:10, Ella Porcher (Maclay) 8
17 October 2018Maclay, 1912:02, Susan Gracie Koeppel (Maclay) 8
6 October 2020Maclay, 1511:35, Clifton Lewis (Unattached) 7
12 October 2021Maclay, 1711:40, Lillian Koeppel (Maclay) 8
11 October 2022Red Hills, 1512:03, Charlotte Sikes (Red Hills) 6
10 October 2023Holy Comforter, 3112:09, Acadia Hassell (Unattached) 6


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Sunday, August 27, 2023

Patrick Koon wrecks the Dueling Summits 5K course record with a 15:40

You can find a cross-country race at any time of year, and there are pre-season cross-country meets, but in Tallahassee, Florida the high school cross-country season really doesn't begin until the Dueling Summits Meet is run in Phipps Park. That annual season opener happened for the sixteenth time on Saturday morning, 25 August 2023, with Chiles and Leon divvying up the team titles--Chiles taking first in the girls' race with 28 points, and Leon winning the boys' 5K with 30 points. Wakulla junior Isabella Laughton won the girls' 5K for the second year in a row, covering the hilly course in 20:21. Leon senior and two-time state champion Patrick Koon set a new course record in the boys' race with a winning 15:40.

Race Start
The start of the 2022 Dueling Summits high school girls' 5K

Isabella Laughton has raced at Dueling Summits each of her first three years as a Wakulla War Eagle, placing fourth in the high school girls' race in 2021 and first in 2022. Laughton had to outkick two other athletes for that 2022 win. That wasn't part of the plot the next year. In the 2023 race, Laughton won by more than 200 meters, and her winning time of 20:21 was almost two minutes faster than she had run the previous year. Leon sophomore Clifton Lewis took the runner-up spot with a 21:15. At 21:27, Chiles frosh Kaia Ables came in third.


Ables was joined in the top ten by four other Chiles Timberwolves--frosh Haley Heitmeyer was seventh in 22:07, junior Sophia Youngberg eighth in 22:32, sophomore Maddy Morris ninth in 22:42, and frosh Savannah Stanley took tenth in 23:07. That gave the Chiles girls 28 points and the top spot in the team standings, the fifth Dueling Summits girls' title for the Timberwolves in the past seven meets.


Laughton and the Wakulla girls placed second in the twelve-team field with 50 points. Lincoln, led by junior NyAshia Wright (24th, 24:42) edged Community Christian for third, 139 to 143. Community Christians top athlete was Sarah Kate Costello, 23rd in 24:30.


Team Standings, High School Girls, 2023 Dueling Summits Cross-Country Meet
  1. Chiles, 28
  2. Wakulla, 50
  3. Lincoln, 139
  4. Community Christian, 143
  5. Tift County, 154
  6. Saint John Paul Catholic, 160
  7. Thomas County Central, 172
  8. Westover, 207
  9. Fort White, 221
  10. Altha, 235
  11. Seminole County, 248
  12. Blountstown, 347

Top Ten High School Girls, 2023 Dueling Summits Cross-Country Meet
  1. 20:20.20, Isabella Laughton (Wakulla) 11
  2. 21:14.90, Clifton Lewis (Leon) 10
  3. 21:26.80, Kaia Ables (Chiles) 9
  4. 21:35.80, Cadence Curnalia (Thomas County Central) 11
  5. 21:47.20, Liliana Lewis (Wakulla) 12
  6. 21:53.70, Madi Sims (Leon) 11
  7. 22:06.50, Haley Heitmeyer (Chiles) 9
  8. 22:31.90, Sophia Youngberg (Chiles) 11
  9. 22:41.30, Maddy Morris (Chiles) 10
  10. 23:06.60, Savannah Stanley (Chiles) 9

Let's be clear. Cross-country is not about time. It never has been. I understand that, but please indulge me for a moment. Prior to 2023, more than a few state cross-country champions have won the boys' race at Dueling Summits--Joseph Franklin, Patrick Swain, Sukhi Khosla, and Michael Phillips. Two of those had run sub-9:00 in the 3200--Sukhi Khosla (8:59.57) and Michael Phillips (8:54.62). None of those athletes ever broke 16:00 at Dueling Summits.


Patrick Koon, though, left the 16:00 minute mark far behind in the 2023 race. A hypothetical 16:00 runner wouldn't have been able to see Koon when he crossed the finish line in 15:40, winning his first and only Dueling Summits appearance. He wasn't exactly pushed, either. The next runner was about 450 meters back, still trudging up the hill from Lake Jackson, when Koon finished.


Lincoln's Matthew Hauser had run 19:59 at the 2022 Dueling Summits, his debut performance in the meet. Returning as a sophomore, Hauser threw down a 17:14 in the 2023 race, good for second place. Quinn Carrasquilla, a Leon sophomore, took third with a 17:28, just ahead of his teammate, junior Cadden Maxwell, fourth in 17:32.


Walt Haber, a senior, gave Leon another runner in the top ten, placing tenth in 18:27. The Lions' two remaining scorers were frosh Theo McDonald (12th, 18:33) and senior Yi'en Liu (15th, 18:40), giving the Leon boys 30 points and the top spot in a field of seventeen boys' teams. It was the fifth time a Leon boys team had won Dueling Summits.


The Chiles boys, led by senior Kasey Mick (5th, 17:34) and junior Gabriel Edwards (6th, 17:35), scored 48 points for second in the team standings. Lincoln was third with 95 points.


Team Standings, High School Boys, 2023 Dueling Summits Cross-Country Meet
  1. Leon, 30
  2. Chiles, 48
  3. Lincoln, 95
  4. Community Christian, 124
  5. Tift County, 138
  6. Bainbridge, 226
  7. Wakulla, 226
  8. Rickards, 248
  9. Thomas County Central, 252
  10. Westover, 320
  11. Saint John Paul Catholic, 336
  12. Blountstown, 337
  13. Cairo, 353
  14. Seminole County, 360
  15. Grace Christian, 431
  16. North Florida Christian, 469
  17. Altha, 507

Top Ten High School Boys, 2023 Dueling Summits Cross-Country Meet
  1. 15:39.10, Patrick Koon (Leon) 12
  2. 17:13.60, Matthew Hauser (Lincoln) 10
  3. 17:27.50, Quinn Carrasquilla (Leon) 12
  4. 17:31.10, Cadden Maxwell (Leon) 11
  5. 17:34.00, Kasey Mick (Chiles) 12
  6. 17:34.40, Gabriel Edwards (Chiles) 11
  7. 17:44.50, Josh Hicks (Chiles) 10
  8. 18:10.80, Jahlae Sapp (Bainbridge) 12
  9. 18:18.80, Blair Golden (Tift County) 12
  10. 18:27.00, Walt Haber (Leon) 12


Dueling Summits Cross-Country Meet High School Winners
2006 - 2023

Girls
DateTeam ChampIndividual Champ
16 September 2006Maclay, 2320:44, Laura Hempel (Rickards)
10 September 2007Maclay, 1820:36, Jana Stolting (Maclay)
15 September 2008Maclay, 3920:18, Jana Stolting (Maclay)
14 September 2009Maclay, 4321:05, Stefanie Kurgatt (Maclay)
2 October 2010West Florida Tech, 2719:23, Stefanie Kurgatt (Maclay)
8 October 2011Lincoln, 4921:16, Savana Osterbye (FSUS)
2012No meet held in 2012
31 August 2013Leon, 2720:35, Madison Harris (Wakulla)
6 September 2014Leon, 4421:09, Haleigh Martin (Wakulla)
29 August 2015Fort Walton Beach, 2421:16, Caroline Willis (Maclay)
27 August 2016Chiles, 4018:47, Alyson Churchill (Lincoln)
26 August 2017Chiles, 8018:29, Elizabeth Funderburk (Colquitt County)
25 August 2018Chiles, 2719:42, Abigail Schrobilgen (Chiles) 12
24 August 2019Chiles, 3918:52, Alyson Churchill (Chiles) 12
28 August 2021Wakulla, 2521:23, Kelly Davis (Chiles) 12
27 August 2022
Wakulla, 3522:17, Isabella Laughton (Wakulla) 10
26 August 2023
Chiles, 2820:21, Isabella Laughton (Wakulla) 11
Boys
DateTeam ChampIndividual Champ
16 September 2006Lincoln, 4216:56, Joseph Franklin (Godby)
10 September 2007Maclay, 2317:18, Whitney Strickland (NFCS)
15 September 2008Niceville, 3617:02, Whitney Strickland (NFCS)
14 September 2009Maclay, 4717:27, Patrick Swain (Maclay)
2 October 2010Lincoln, 5216:10, Jacob Slupecki (Lincoln)
8 October 2011Lincoln, 6316:55, Stanley Linton (Wakulla)
2012No meet held in 2012
31 August 2013Leon, 3416:47, Sukhi Khosla (Leon)
6 September 2014Leon, 1516:42, Sukhi Khosla (Leon)
29 August 2015Leon, 5216:38, Adam Wallenfelsz (Leon)
27 August 2016Chiles, 3216:44, Michael Phillips (Chiles)
26 August 2017Chiles, 2316:42, Michael Phillips (Chiles)
25 August 2018Chiles, 3217:01, Connor Phillips (Chiles) 12
24 August 2019Leon, 2817:11, Jackson Yarbrough (Leon) 10
28 August 2021Chiles, 2016:32, Wyatt Townsend (Chiles) 11
27 August 2022
Lowndes, 4218:10, Isaac Chambers (Lowndes) 11
26 August 2023
Leon, 3015:40, Patrick Koon (Leon) 12

Seven days earlier, in a different Tallahassee park, Acadia Hassell had won the women's division in the Cadillac Trail 9K. The fifth grader was back on the trails at Dueling Summits, winning the middle school girls' 3K in 12:46. Mackenzie McVay, a Holy Comforter sixth-grader, was a close second in 12:51. Another Holy Comforter sixth-grader, Madison McVay, took third in 13:29.

Acadia Hassell
Acadia Hassell

Holy Comforter had four more Crusaders in the top ten--sixth-grader Elaine Ungru was fifth in 13:49, eighth-grader Lillian Anway was eighth in 14:21, eighth-grader Allie Winsor was ninth in 14:34, and eighth-grader Kynley Cheesborough finished tenth in 14:44. All those top ten performances gave the Crusader girls a mathematically unbeatable score of 22 points, placing them first out of nine middle school girls' teams.


Tift eighth-grader Jovia Burke took fourth in 13:41, leading the Tift girls to a second-place showing with 68 points. The Bainbridge girls edged Maclay for fourth, 99 to 103. Bainbridge's first finisher was eighth-grader Jada Anderson, sixth in 13:44, while the first Maclay Marauder was third-grader Tessa Beaven, fifteenth in 15:15.


Team Standings, Middle School Girls, 2023 Dueling Summits Cross-Country Meet
  1. Holy Comforter Episcopal, 22
  2. Tift, 68
  3. Bainbridge, 99
  4. Maclay, 103
  5. Thomas County, 117
  6. Trinity Catholic, 155
  7. Cornerstone, 182
  8. Whigham, 216
  9. Spring Creek Charter, 230

Top Ten Middle School Girls, 2023 Dueling Summits Cross-Country Meet
  1. 12:45.20, Acadia Hassell (Unattached) 5
  2. 12:50.60, Mackenzie McVay (Holy Comforter Episcopal) 6
  3. 13:28.70, Madison McVay (Holy Comforter Episcopal) 6
  4. 13:40.80, Jovia Burke (Tift) 8
  5. 13:48.10, Elaine Ungru (Holy Comforter Episcopal) 6
  6. 13:54.30, Jada Anderson (Bainbridge) 8
  7. 14:14.50, Katherine Currie (Tift) 7
  8. 14:20.80, Lillian Anway (Holy Comforter Episcopal) 8
  9. 14:33.80, Allie Winsor (Holy Comforter Episcopal) 8
  10. 14:43.70, Kynley Cheesborough (Holy Comforter Episcopal) 8

On a Saturday morning exactly two weeks before the Dueling Summits, James Mogg had raced the Miller Landing Madness 3K in Phipps Park, placing third. At Dueling Summits, on a different 3000-meter course, Mogg was second to no one. The Trinity Catholic eighth-grader took first in 11:000. Fairview eighth-grader Emari Thomas was second in 11:06. Three days earlier, Thomas had won the boys' 3K at the ARPXC Middle School Cross-Country Invitational.


Four runners scrambled for third place, but Landon Heitmeyer, a fourth-grader racing for Red Hills Running Club, grabbed the spot with an 11:32. Raa seventh grader Emerson Gandy was right behind him, fourth in 11:33, followed by Thomas County seventh-grader Holten Dennard (5th, 11:34) and Holy Comforter eighth-grader Joshua Butera (6th, 11:34).


Butera was joined in the top ten by his fellow Crusader, seventh-grader Matthew Nowels (7th, 11:52). Holy Comforter's other three scorers were eighth-grader Andrew Norby (15th, 12:14), sixth-grader Hudson Cheesborough (18th, 12:19), and eighth-grader Gavin McVay (26th, 12:34), totaling a winning 48 points for the Crusader boys.


The Maclay boys were second out of twelve teams, scoring 56 points behind the eleventh-place, 12:03 showing of eighth-grader Henry Proctor. Led by Mogg, Trinity Catholic placed third with 78 points.


Team Standings, Middle School Boys, 2023 Dueling Summits Cross-Country Meet
  1. Holy Comforter Episcopal, 48
  2. Maclay, 56
  3. Trinity Catholic, 78
  4. Tift, 131
  5. Thomas County, 146
  6. Grace Christian, 151
  7. Christ Classical, 189
  8. Whigham, 212
  9. Bainbridge, 244
  10. Cornerstone, 268
  11. Spring Creek Charter, 314
  12. Community Leadership, 332

Top Ten Middle School Boys, 2023 Dueling Summits Cross-Country Meet
  1. 10:59.70, James Mogg (Trinity Catholic) 8
  2. 11:06.00, Emari Thomas (Unattached) 8
  3. 11:31.40, Landon Heitmeyer (Red Hills Running Club) 4
  4. 11:32.70, Emerson Gandy (Unattached) 7
  5. 11:33.90, Holten Dennard (Thomas County Central) 7
  6. 11:34.00, Joshua Butera (Holy Comforter Episcopal) 8
  7. 11:52.00, Matthew Nowels (Holy Comforter Episcopal) 7
  8. 11:55.40, Lincoln Eisenberg (Community Christian) 8
  9. 12:00.70, Connor Stephens (Thomas County Central) 8
  10. 12:01.20, Owen Hunt (Southwest Georgia) 8

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Sunday, August 20, 2023

Leonardo Canete and Acadia Hassell race like Maseratis on the Cadillac Trail

Since 2013, when Bobby York established Gulf Winds Track Club's annual Summer Trail Race Series, there have been years when the Cadillac Trail Race has been the opening event of the series. Other years it has been the final event. Still other years, Cadillac Trail isn't on the circuit at all. On Saturday morning, 19 August 2023, Cadillac was the closing act of the Series, and the stage was Tallahassee, Florida's Tom Brown Park. Leonardo Canete was the lead actor in that performance, winning the nine-kilometer race in 38:27. Acadia Hassell took first in the women's standings, placing seventeenth overall in 48:20.

Leonardo Canete
Leonardo Canete

For once, I had arrived at the race with my camera a good fifteen minutes before the 8:00 AM starting time. Bill Lott was setting up cones near the finish line.


"There's a half hour delay," said Lott.


Half an hour? Was the course mismarked? Had EMS been called away? Was there a tree down across the trail?


"Bobby overslept," said Lott.


Bobby York, director and founder of the Summer Trail Series, had just phoned saying he would be late. More importantly, the race bibs with the timing chips would also be late, because they were with him. No less vitally, be also had the post-race beer and mimosa fixings.

Mike Tercyak
Mike Tercyak

But at 8:37, the race did get underway. Master runner Leonardo Canete, who had won the three previous events in the Summer Trail Series, immediately jumped out ahead of the field. He was still well ahead ten minutes later, running through Heritage Park. He was followed by another master runner, Mike Tercyak.


"How far ahead is he?" called out Tercyak.


Far enough to be out of sight. And Canete was about half a kilometer ahead when he crossed the finish line in a winning 38:27. Tercyak was second in 40:43. Master runner Hans Hassell took third in 43:49.

Hans Hassell
Hans Hassell

For Canete, it was his eight win in a Trail Series race--more than any other runner. It was also his sixth win in a row in Trail Series racing, a streak that goes back to the summer of 2022. Canete was also the overall Series winner for 2023, repeating his victory in 2021 and 2022. He's not about to rest on his laurels, though.


"I'm thinking of racing the Corporal Andy Lavender 5K in Jacksonville next week," said Canete. "The week after that is the Blue Bird 5K here in town. I'm going to be there."


The Blue Bird 5K is on the trails of the J. R. Alford Greenway. Trail runners gotta trail run.

Acadia Hassell
Acadia Hassell

Canete was a master runner who had won eight previous Summer Trail Series races. In contrast, the women's field at the Cadillac Trail Race was led by two schoolgirls who had never won a women's title in the Trail Series--eighth-grader Alexis Mayfield and fifth-grader Acadia Hassell. Two kilometers into the Cadillac Trail Run, her first Summer Trail Series race, Mayfield was setting the pace for the women's field. Did she expect to be leading?


"No!" insisted Mayfield.


Most of the women were well behind Mayfield at that point, but Acadia Hassell was only a few seconds back.


"I was like two steps behind her on the third mile," recalled Hassell. "Then I caught her on the last mile."

Alexis Mayfield
Alexis Mayfield

The two continued close all the way to the finish line, with Hassell crossing first in 48:20 and Mayfield following in 48:22, seventeenth and eighteenth overall. Averi Lewis, the first woman in the previous three Summer Trail Series races, placed third in the women's standings and 21st overall in 50:21. In the race for the top woman master's spot, Laura Sellati overtook Mary Fran Rowe just before the finish line, where Sellati narrowly prevailed 54:48 to 54:51. Sellati and Rowe were sixth and seventh in the women's division and 33rd and 34th overall.


Both Hassell and Mayfield have more racing planned. "I'm racing at the Duelling Summits Cross-Country Meet next week," said Hassell.


Mayfield, who runs cross-country for the Swift Creek Middle School girls' team, competes again even sooner. "We race on Wednesday at Apalachee Regional Park."


Trail runners gotta trail run.

Melissa Sullivan
Melissa Sullivan

108 athletes finished the 2023 Cadillac Trail 9K Trail Race. Gulf Winds Track Club chip-timed the event. It was the final event in Gulf Winds Track Club's 2023 Summer Trail Race Series, but the circuit should be back in 2024. Till then, GWTC offers several races where runners can get their trail fix--the Salute To Prefontaine 5K on 23 September 2023, the Pine Run 20K on 14 October 2023, the Tannenbaum Trail 6K on 16 December 2023, and Bobby York's own Swamp Forest Trail Half Marathon in January.


Top Ten Men, Gulf Winds Track Club's 2023 Cadillac Trail 9K Trail Race
  1. 38:27, Leonardo Canete (M, 44)
  2. 40:43, Mike Tercyak (M, 40)
  3. 43:49, Hans Hassell (M, 40)
  4. 44:25, Daniel Korecky (M, 38)
  5. 44:52, Jeremy Floyd (M, 46)
  6. 45:02, Benjamin Goldsberry (M, 50)
  7. 45:12, Gavin Dunn (M, 33)
  8. 45:23, Kevin Ethridge (M, 46)
  9. 45:32, Barry Drenkhahn (M, 39)
  10. 45:37, Hayden Fravel (M, 15)

Top Ten Women, Gulf Winds Track Club's 2023 2023 Cadillac Trail 9K Trail Race
  1. 48:20, Acadia Hassell (F, 10)
  2. 48:22, Alexis Mayfield (F, 11)
  3. 50:21, Averi Lewis (F, 26)
  4. 52:26, Melissa Sullivan (F, 32)
  5. 54:33, Alyssa Terry (F, 29)
  6. 54:48, Laura Sellati (F, 44)
  7. 54:51, Mary Fran Rowe (F, 42)
  8. 55:23, Kendall Meikenhous (F, 35)
  9. 55:25, Meredith Strange (F, 43)
  10. 56:42, Martha Guyas (F, 38)

Gulf Winds Track Club's Summer Trail Series race winners, 2013 - 2023
YearDateRaceTop MaleTop FemaleFinishers
2013June 22Cadillac Trail 5½M37:38, Kevin Sullivan45:07, Stephanie Liles-Weyant121
July 13Swamp Forest Trail 4½M30:19, Kevin Sullivan34:12, Micah Adriani124
July 27Magnolia Trail 3½M21:44, Kevin Sullivan24:45, Stephanie Liles-Weyant114
August 3Red Bug Trail 4½M33:31, Bryce Van Dam43:46, Stephanie Liles-Weyant92
2014June 21Red Bug Trail 4½M38:30, Charn McAllister42:02, Brook Pace114
July 12Swamp Forest Trail 4½M29:06, Charn McAllister33:13, Brook Pace109
July 26Magnolia Trail 3½M26:03, Charn McAllister30:16, Emily Molen108
August 2Cadillac Trail 5½M41:38, Brian Molen48:25, Emily Molen88
2015May 30Cadillac Trail 5½M39:15, Zach Deveau42:51, Alyson Churchill158
June 13Oak Hammock Trail 5M32:59, Zach Deveau35:10, Alyson Churchill129
July 18Coon Bottom Trail 4M28:42, Zach Deveau29:14, Alyson Churchill112
August 1Red Bug Trail 4½M35:14, Greg Bargo35:24, Alyson Churchill112
2016May 21Magnolia Trail 3½M25:18, Dan Baur27:05, Katie Gorman133
June 4Oak Hammock Trail 5½M42:53, Eric Godin45:24, Katie Gorman123
July 9Red Bug Trail 4½M33:14, Dan Baur35:04, Katie Gorman130
July 30Cadillac Trail 5½M43:06, Paul Guyas42:29, Alyson Churchill95
2017June 10Munson Hills 6M36:45, Chris O'Kelley46:34, Emily Molen87
July 1Red Bug Trail 4½M37:34, Chris O'Kelley48:24, Emily Molen90
July 15Oak Hammock/Swamp Forest 5M33:35, Charles Biberg39:36, Kat Sack89
August 5Tom Brown Park 4½M32:40, Chris O'Kelley36:36, Jennifer Bayliss71
2018June 23Munson Hills 6M38:02, Vince Molosky45:10, Emily Molen124
July 7Phipps Park 4M30:49, Jim Schafer33:39, Kat Sack127
July 21Maclay Gardens 5M38:26, Brad Busboom44:39, Kat Sack110
August 4Tom Brown Park 4½M28:39, Brad Busboom32:29, Kat Sack109
2019June 22Red Bug Trail 4½M35:27, Zach DeVeau38:53, Rachel Durbin125
July 6Munson Hills 6M38:24, Zach DeVeau43:56, Rachel Durbin86
July 27Tom Brown Park 5M37:13, Bryan Gensits44:47, Rachel Durbin108
August 24Maclay Gardens 4½M39:00, Zach DeVeau43:00, Rachel Durbin91
2021June 12Cadillac Trail 5½M40:26, Daniel Wurgler46:21, Clifton Lewis107
July 10Swamp Forest Trail 5M29:07, Leonardo Canete34:24, Amelia Bryant104
July 24Maclay Gardens 5M37:48, Jonathan Stern44:06, Clifton Lewis111
August 28Red Bug Trail 4½M34:23, Leonardo Canete38:10, Clifton Lewis72
2022May 28Swamp Forest Trail 4½M28:08, Jonathan Stern38:29, Andi Vilardo141
June 19Red Bug Trail 4½M32:19, Jonathan Stern44:01, Andi Vilardo111
July 16Maclay Gardens 5½M38:28, Leonardo Canete52:14, Andi Vilardo120
August 20Cadillac Trail 5½M37:18, Leonardo Canete48:39, Alyssa Terry98
2023May 20Red Bug Trail 4½M33:26, Leonardo Canete40:05, Averi Lewis124
June 19Maclay Gardens 5½M38:39, Leonardo Canete47:18, Averi Lewis126
July 16Swamp Forest Trail 4½M29:39, Leonardo Canete36:27, Averi Lewis106
August 19Cadillac Trail 5½M38:27, Leonardo Canete48:20, Acadia Hassell108
Multiple wins by men: Leonardo Canete (8), Zach DeVeau (6), Kevin Sullivan (3), Charn McAllister (3), Chris O'Kelley (3),
       Jonathan Stern (3), Dan Baur (2), Brad Busboom (2)
Multiple wins by women: Alyson Churchill (5), Emily Molen (5), Kat Sack (4), Rachel Durbin (4),
      Stephanie Liles-Weyant (3), Katie Gorman (3), Clifton Lewis (3), Andi Vilardo (3), Averi Lewis (3),
      Brook Pace (2)


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Posted by Herb Wills at 11:55 PM 0 comments
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