In a major CT cross country rivalry, it’s Vlieks’ turn to win at Wickham this time

MANCHESTER – Annecy Vlieks and Sarah Roberts have been running against each other since middle school.

With Vlieks at Hand High and Roberts at Mercy, they’ve faced each other in regular- season meets, conference meets and at the state championships. Last year, Roberts beat Vlieks for the Class M state cross country championship at Wickham Park, winning in 20:10; Vlieks was second in 20:30.

The two, who are now juniors, went at it again at Wickham Park Saturday in the medium school race at the Wickham Invitational. The Invitational is usually in October but the race was moved to September due to the Jewish holidays.

This time, it was Vlieks who won in 19:17. Roberts, who has been battling an injury, finished third (20:01) but her team won the medium school title with 55 points.

The two were together early in the 5,000-meter race but Vlieks pulled away midway through on the hill.

“I was kind of excited to be next to her,” Vlieks said. “We’re friends. It was nice to be with her. It really helped.”

Roberts has been coming back from a stress reaction in her shin so she was happy with her time.

“I felt good,” she said. “I’m coming back from a little injury. I just tried to stay with Anna as long as I could.

“We’ve been racing each other since middle school. She’s always the person I’ve tried to beat. It’s back and forth.”

Roberts’ goal was to run under 20 minutes, so she was close.

Vlieks was just happy to be running. She dropped out of a race at Winding Trails in Farmington last weekend, two kilometers in, after suffering what she thought was a pulled abdominal muscle.

She wasn’t sure if she was going to be able to run until Wednesday when she did a workout and felt OK.

“I was really hoping for a good race today,” she said.

Hale-Ray girls, boys win: The Hale-Ray girls won the small school title with 75 points, edging out East Hampton (94). … The E.O. Smith boys won the medium school team title with senior teammates Brendan Cook finishing second (16:23) and Spencer Slayton third (16:29) behind Portsmouth (R.I.)’s Sean Gray (15:47). … Hale-Ray also won the small school boys title with 61 points, beating runner-up Bolton (86 points). Bolton’s Shepard Livingston finished second (16:45) to Peyton Joslyn of Monadnock (N.H.) Regional (16:41) after Joslyn took the lead on the hill to the finish.