Freshman standout Clara Wincheski ran her second-fastest time of the season to help Bruton’s girls place third at the 2A East Region cross-country meet held at Panorama Farms in Earlysville on Wednesday.
Bruton head coach Mark Tompkins said it was easily the best race his girls have run all season. With it, the Panthers earned their first trip to states since 2005.
“The team works so hard, and they have all been wonderful to work with,” Tompkins said. “What is so fun about this group is that the top five are new and they are being led by two veteran captains who are my sixth and seventh (fastest) runners. They bring enthusiasm, hard work and fun to cross-country.”
Wincheski crossed the finish line third in 19 minutes, 59 seconds to lead the Panthers’ top individual finishers. Rachel Brotherton (21:25) was the next fastest in 21st as Bruton scattered five runners in the top half of the race that featured 120 runners.
Cameron Wojcieszcak placed 15th in 17:27 to earn all-region honors and lead Bruton’s boys to an eighth-place finish. Fellow senior captain Andrew Caldwell capped his high-school career with a personal-best time of 18:04 to finish 31st.
Click here for complete results of Tuesday’s region meet, courtesy of milestat.com.
Next Friday’s state meets will be held at Great Meadow in The Plains. The 2A races are scheduled to begin at 10:30 a.m.
