All three of Monroe County’s varsity cross country teams met at Larry & Penny Thompson Park in Miami for the FNU Invitational Sept. 3. Despite multiple lightning delays, racers were able to compete, and Keys athletes did not disappoint.
Marathon’s Lucian Burns finished the race in 17:10, 48 seconds faster than his closest competitor, to claim the overall top spot in the boys race. Teammate Antonin Bursa was next, cruising to an 18:43 seventh-place finish. Allan Taylor clocked in at 19:25, breaking the 20-minute mark and helping boost the Dolphins to third place overall as a team. Landon Anderson (21:54), Anthony Vargas (21:59) and Brayden Anderson (22:41) rounded out the Fins’ top six runners.
Coral Shores finished 10th overall, with Victor Lopez crossing the line first for the Hurricanes. Lopez ran a 19:49 race, followed by Garret Gomila (20:55), Tristan Sanchez (21:11), Wyatt Meyers (21:36), Will Theis (22:01) and Dylan Matthews (23:14) in the top six for Coral Shores.
The Conchs’ Sawyer Hill was first across the line for Key West’s boys. Hill’s 20:14 placed him 24th in the field of nearly 200 competitors. Close behind was Alejandro Caridad (20:41), followed by Everett Ward (22:36), Cruz Matarazzo (22:47), Noah Taylor (22:54) and Colin Palomino (22:56). The Conchs finished 13th overall as a team.
In the girls race, Coral Shores’ Ali Wheatley broke the ribbon, finishing first overall in 21:27. Wheatley was nearly a minute in front of the rest of the pack, with a pair of familiar faces chasing her down. Key West’s Lynn Noah finished second in 22:12 and Marathon’s Molly Joly was third in 22:24, giving the Keys a sweep of the top three spots.
Despite Wheatley’s strong finish, the Conchs ended up with the best team finish among the local competition. Key West was third overall, with Violet Jangraw (23:54) finishing seventh individually to give the Lady Conchs two runners in the top 10. Hazel Matarazzo (24:51), Ryah Bushey (26:37) and Emma Bradshaw (26:41) completed Key West’s five scoring positions, while Svetlana Snipes (31:18) finished sixth for the team, serving as a potential tiebreaker for scoring purposes.
Coral Shores was sixth overall as a team. Behind Wheatley was Kate King (25:20), followed by Aria Boonton (27:47), Hayden Teal (28:15), Isabelle Jacobs (29:49) and Kiri Crockett (29:58).
The Lady Dolphins team was composed mainly of middle school runners, including Joly. Rebecca Merryman (25:16) and Ariella Dworniczak (27:04), the team’s only high school athletes, were next. June McKnight (28:58), Sophia Roberts (34:29) and Casey Torres (35:53) completed Marathon’s top six competitors.
With such a strong start, Keys runners may be crowned royalty this week. Up next for local racers is the annual King of the Hill event at Tropical Park in Miami.
