WVC GIRLS CROSS COUNTRY: Building on two top-10 team finishes at states

KINGSTON — The top of the Wyoming Valley Conference in girls cross country features two programs that account for two returning state medalists, two 2023 District 2 championships and two teams that finished among the top 10 in the state in Class 2A.

Crestwood finished sixth and Dallas 10th at last year’s PIAA Championships in Hershey.

Katie Kozich is back after leading that Crestwood effort with a 22nd-place finish in the meet where the top 25 earn state medals.

Sarah Williams, the WVC’s top state finisher last year when she was 17th, and district champion Madison Hedglin return to lead Dallas.

The conference is split into three divisions this season for standings and championship purposes, but the schedule will remain the same with everyone running against all 16 of the other WVC opponents.

Wednesday is scheduled as opening day.

Hazleton Area, Wilkes-Barre Area, Wyoming Valley West, Pittston Area, Crestwood and Dallas are in Division 1; is Berwick, Nanticoke, Wyoming Area, Tunkhannock, Lake-Lehman and Holy Redeemer make up Division 2; and Hanover Area, Wyoming Seminary, MMI Prep, Northwest and Columbia-Montour Vo-Tech are the Division 3 teams.

The six Division 1 teams combined for 58 WVC wins last season. Division 2 teams produced 48 wins and Division 3 teams had 29.

A look at each team, with last year’s WVC record listed in parentheses:

Katie was one of four Kozich sisters who were among the five girls who created the team score that left (Crestwood 16-0) sixth in the state.

Two have graduated. Maggie now runs for the Coast Guard Academy while Ellie runs at DeSales.

“I got to run with Maggie at the beginning of the summer and with Ellie until (early August),” Katie Kozich said during at interview at the first WVC Cross Country Media Night. “ … It will be different without them.”

Katie Kozich finished second to Hedglin in District 2 Class 2A last season and again Saturday in the season-opening Cliff Robbins Sr. Memorial Invitational.

Seniors Ella Novelli and Kaelyn Barker, junior Mollie Kozich and sophomore Adrienne Shebelock also return from Crestwood’s district championship lineup of a year ago.

Barker was fifth and Shebelock 11th to earn Robbins medals.

In a conference where some teams are handicapped by the scoring of last-place “ghost” runners when they don’t have at least five runners and others lack the seven runners needed to displace opponents, Crestwood showed extreme depth last season. In WVC cluster meets, teams are not required to declare the seven runners who will be part of their score and the Comets had more candidates to get into the scoring than any of their opponents.

That should continue.

Sophomore Alyssa Leicht, junior Maddie Danko and freshmen Riley Ruch and Lily Dorshefski were all among the team’s top seven Saturday.

Dallas (15-1) has three strong seniors at the top of the lineup in Hedglin, Williams and Erika Dorin. They were first, third and ninth at the Robbins Meet.

“We definitely lost a lot of good girls last year, our seniors,” Hedglin said. “But, he girls we have now, we’ve been working with them and we’ve built them up really well.”

Williams acknowledges that last year’s state performance was a pleasant surprise.

“That was definitely a big confidence boost,” she said. “I had a goal just to medal. During the race, I just kept trying to stay competitive … I was just expecting that 25th and aiming for it. The race was going very well and I started being able to pick people off. I got a little ambitious and got up to 15th but got passed at the end, but I still ended up further up that I expected.

“It was good to set a goal, then surpass it.”

With the rest of the team’s 2023 postseason lineup gone, junior Lexi Gauntlett appears ready to move up into the fourth spot.

Sophomore Mayah Kolinovsky was the team’s fifth runner Saturday.

Isabella Dessoye, a Class 3A state qualifier as a freshman last season, and Olivea Scalese, who accomplished the same feat in 2022, are back to help make Pittston Area (14-2) another potential contender.

Dessoye was fourth in District 2 last season when the Patriots finished one point out of second in the team standings.

The Lady Patriots return five of their top six runners from a year ago. Sophomore Addison Ramirez, junior Elinor Schardien and sophomore Elizabeth Howells all finished within six places of each other at the district meet.

“We have a lot coming back,” said Lady Patriots coach Joe Struckus, who expects to take an 11-runner lineup into the season. “We had a big sophomore class last year that’s been running since freshman year. They came out this year and they worked hard over the summer getting their mileage in.

“You can tell. They’re in shape. In every workout, we’re seeing a lot of positive.”

Sophomore Olivia Pantucci was the team’s top newcomer at the Robbins Meet.

Milana Daiute was sixth in District 2 Class 3A last season and opened this year with a fourth-place Robbins finish to lead the way for Hazleton Area (12-4) .

Sophomores Kaylee Casagrande and Kimberly Ramirez, junior Krista Cepil and senior Mickenzie Maguschak also return.

Freshman Zoe Pollock was the team’s third Robbins finisher.

Lake-Lehman (12-4) is led by the return of a strong top three – seniors Alana Palmaioli and Betsy Digiovanni and junior Olivia Corcoran.

Those three and freshman Kinley Purdy made the Black Knights the only WVC team with four Robbins medalists.

Lake-Lehman returns its top seven and has some additions who should figure in the scoring. Senior Autumn Hassett and juniors Brianna Wright, Karissa Legaspi and Kayla Barnard are the others who are back. Kate Stogoski, a sophomore, and Gabby Braunstein, a senior who ran at her Staten Island school before transferring this summer, are the top additions.

Holy Redeemer (10-8) returns four veterans from a balanced team, seniors Emily McGowan and Sakinah Bhatti and sophomores Emma Kane and Ruth Young.

Freshmen Elise Lawrence and Isabelle Barletta are ready to contribute after finishing as the team’s second and fourth runners at the Robbins Meet.

All four runners return from a Wyoming Area (9-7) team that managed to post a winning record despite running shorthanded last season.

District medalist and state qualifier Hannah Stoss returns to lead the team. She opened the season with a 12th-place medal at Robbins.

Stoss and fellow senior Arianna Gaylord have each been in the program since seventh grade.

Junior Kierstyn Orlandini and sophomore Addison Gaylord also return.

Three-time state qualifier Mary Kate Kupsky returns for MMI Prep (9-7) which brings back its entire seven-runner district lineup from last year.

Isabelle Wells, Winni Zheng and Diane Kim are the other seniors. They are joined by sophomores Amanda Stoffa, Delilah Yatsko and Katelyn Gera.

Juniors Grace Rushmer, a Robbins medalist, and Maya Gross lead the way at Wyoming Seminary (8-8) where more than half the team is made up of freshmen.

Sophomore Dylan Harrison also returns.

Cali Gardner led the freshmen group at the Robbins Meet.

Nanticoke (8-8) has an experienced lineup, led by junior Nevaeh Baran and sophomore Matilda Serrano.

The Trojanettes also return seniors Ailey Chrisman and Mackenzie Pliska, juniors Marli Donahue and Kate Reed and sophomore Emersyn Brown.

Northwest (7-9) has a competitive trio of runners, which could allow it to find success against other small-roster teams.

The Rangers feature juniors Ashlyn Hermanofski, Savannah Cronauer and Kayana Krall.

Berwick (5-10) has just two runners, but they managed to finish in succession in 29th and 30rd out of 141 Robbins finishers.

Freshman Abby Calarco made the impressive debut and junior Sophia Tripp is back after being hurt last season.

Seniors Aliyah Tuttle and Eliza Talcott return for Tunkhannock (4-12) along with sophomore Eva Molina.

Freshmen Madelyn Graves and Laura Francola have joined the lineup.

Hanover Area (3-13) has three returning runners, its top two of sophomore Kaylee Barancho and junior Amelia Gawronkiewicz as well as senior Vanessa Murray.

Columbia-Montour Vo-Tech (2-13) , a District 4 school from Bloomsburg, continues its cross country-only membership in the WVC.

The Rams have three girls running, including two returnees, senior Kaeleigh Swank and sophomore Serenity Welch.

At Wyoming Valley West (1-15) , seniors Kali Piczon and Lily Romanowski, the team’s only members last season, are back. They are being joined by freshman Lauren Bealla.

Wilkes-Barre Area (0-16) never had a girls runner prior to last season and now it will have a full team for the first time.

Senior Mariely Sosa is back.

Sophomore Breanna Jean and freshman Abigail Mellas led the six Wolfpack runners at the Robbins Meet.