Staff
It will be business as usual over the next two weeks for a group of Muskie cross-country runners.
Four practices a week. Same intensity. But with a new motivation.
A trip to the OFSAA championships Nov. 4 in Petawawa.
Both the Midget and Junior girls’ squads captured first place in the team competition at the NWOSSAA championships last Wednesday in Thunder Bay to qualify for the all-Ontarios.
The Midget girls were led by Greta Fedoruk, who raced to the bronze medal individually with a time of 16:11 over the 4K course.
Fellow Muskie Ashlyn Beck finished in fourth place (16:39), followed by teammates Jaida Norris in seventh (17:19) and Grace Kowal in eighth (17:52).
Tori Toriseva, meanwhile, captured the bronze medal individually in the 5K junior girls’ event with a time of 23:54.
Kamryn Sandelovich wound up in seventh place overall, followed by Star Martin in 12th and Alacea Yerxa in 17th.
“As their coach, I am very excited to be taking this group of athletes to OFSAA in Petawawa next month,” John Dutton said in an e-mailed response to the Times.
“It is the largest contingent Fort High has ever sent to the [provincials].
“But more than that, I am very proud of the entire team and their accomplishments this season,” Dutton added.
“All of our runners have made huge improvements in their results this year; many achieving personal best times every time they have competed.
“So with that kind of season, we approached [the] NWOSSAA championships last week knowing that we had a good chance of having some OFSAA qualifiers.”
Held at the Kamview Ski Trails south of the city, a course that features a number of challenging hills and lots of muddy, wet conditions, Dutton said the Muskies’ best bet to place well at NWOSSAA was the Midget girls’ team, which he noted has been dominant in its age group all season.
“They did not disappoint, as all of the girls met or exceeded their pace goals and final results,” he remarked.
The Junior girls, while not having their fastest start of the season, still were strong enough to win their division, Dutton added.
“A little inexperience showed here as all of the girls went out a little too fast over the first couple of kilometres, and then had some trouble holding pace in the second half of the race,” he explained.
Dutton said the same was true for the Muskie Junior boys, who entered the day with a real possibility of grabbing an OFSAA spot.
“But up against some tough competition, they were drawn into a fast pace early in the race and came up a little flat-footed at the finish,” he remarked.
Romeo Deafy took 17th spot in the 5K race (22:59) while Ben Olsen (24:14) and Stephen Dueck (25:15) finished 23rd and 24th, respectively.
As for the Senior girls’ division, Dutton said both Muskie runners had strong races–improving on their previous times posted on the same course earlier in the season.
Tori Beaudry (34:58) finished 22nd over the 6K distance, with Shaelyn Tuesday coming in 45th (45:05).
“The team will sadly be saying good-bye to veteran Tory Beaudry, who has been with the team for five years now and has made the trek to OFSAA in the past as a member of the Senior girls’ team in 2015,” noted Dutton.
As a team, Fort High placed third overall among the 19 secondary schools competing at NWOSSAA.
“The girls all know the level of competition they are likely to encounter at OFSAA is beyond anything they have seen before,” said Dutton.
“Where we will place in this elite field is anyone’s guess.
“But until then, we will continue to focus on pace and race strategy–two aspects of the race that we can control,” he stressed.
“But whatever the outcome, I am confident that the girls will represent Fort Frances High School and NWOSSAA well, and continue to make us proud.”
