Highlands cross country teams capture Region 4 crowns

By G. MICHAEL GRAHAM

Fort Thomas Matters Sports Reporter

The Highlands Bluebirds and Ladybirds cross country teams claimed Class AA, Region 4 crowns Saturday at Ryle.

The Ladybirds expected to win it this year while the Bluebirds hoped to place in the top three facing Covington Catholic and Lexington Catholic. The Ladybirds placed all seven runners in the top 10 out of 47 runners while the Bluebirds saw all six runner place in the top 32.

“I don’t know when the last time was when we won both,” said Brian Alessandro, Highlands head coach. “I would say it’s been several years so we’re pretty pleased about that.”

The Ladybirds captured the top three places en route to scoring 20 points. Lloyd Memorial took second with a distant 63 points and Lexington Catholic third with 79 points.

“I was more shocked with how fast they ran than the places they finished in,” Alessandro said. “Everyone ran so well. The training seems to be working. That’s what it comes down to.”

The top five runners make up the points and the top score for the 3.1-mile race is 15.The amazing thing about that feat is five of the Ladybirds are either freshmen, seventh or eighth graders including the top three placers.

Freshman Molly Mearns won the race in 18 minutes, 36.9 seconds. Sisters Lauren Ossege, a freshman, took second in 18:40.4 and Sydney Ossege, an eighth-grader, took third in 19:10.7. Junior Paige Dauer followed in sixth in 20:33.9.

Highlands finished off the race capturing the eighth, ninth and 10th spots. Those runners were junior Alyssa Farley in 20:37.7, seventh-grader Karsen Hunter in 20:40 flat, and eighth-grader Chloe Gastright in 20:42.5.

The Bluebirds did not capture the top individual spot. Nicholas Laureano took that in 16:44. But freshman Ethan Shuley took second in 16:50.3.

The second runners for Covington Catholic and Lexington Catholic finished higher than Highlands’ second runner. But the third, fourth and fifth runners finished higher than the next runners for the Knights and Colonels.

Junior John Michael Griffith and freshman Matt Gray finished right behind each other at seventh in 17:10.1 and eighth in 17:10.9.

Senior Cam Kruse and sophomore James Smith rounded out the scoring for Highlands. Kruse took 14th in 17:39.7 and Smith scored 22 points to score 21 points for Highlands in 17:59. The sixth runner for the Bluebirds in freshman Paul Jackson took 34th in 18:35.5.

Covington Holmes had two runners compete. One finished one place ahead of Smith. But that did not count in the overall points because the Bulldogs did not have a complete team. Five runners are needed for that.

The state meet is Nov. 10 at Horse Park in Lexington. The Ladybirds run at 11:30 a.m. and the Bluebirds run at 12:15 p.m.

The Ladybirds are looking for their seventh state title. They’ve won three in a row twice between 2002 and 2004 with three titles coming from 1978 to 1980.

The Bluebirds have won three titles. They came in 1979, 1983 and 1985.