Defending a title can be harder than winning it the first time.

Connor Hibell entered this year’s District 11 Class 2A cross country championship as the defending champ.

He left with another title.

The Palmerton junior ran the DeSales University course in 16:34.6 Wednesday afternoon to take this year’s title over Central Catholic’s Duke Ebert (17:17.0).

Despite warmer conditions, he dropped 10 seconds from the time he ran at last week’s Colonial League Championships.

“I was expecting to get a time more similar to what I got at leagues,” Hibell said. “It was a pleasant surprise. I prefer the weather like at leagues.”

Hibell was one of six area medalists and among 16 area runners who qualified for the state meet.

The Blue Bomber has now won four straight postseason races as DeSales, as he’s a two-time league champ as well. This year he entered the district race as the clear favorite.

“I feel like I had a bit more pressure than last year,” Hibell said. “I was a bit more anxious beforehand.”

He quickly got to the front of the pack and led from around the 3/4-mile mark until he broke the tape.

Heading into his third state meet, Hibell is looking to improve on the 32nd-place finish he ran to last year, which was just seven places away from earning a state medal.

“Both DeSales and Hershey are tough courses, really hilly,” he said. “If I can run something like this here, then who knows what I can run at Hershey.”

Pagotto finishes strong

for third place

Lehighton’s Elijah Pagotto made a change in strategy after last week’s league meet and it resulted in an improved time and finish.

Last week he went out fast, but then slowed at the end for a fifth-pace finish in 17:31.13. This week the Tribe junior ran more strategically and finished third in 17:21.0, just three seconds behind Ebert.

“Last week I took off way too fast because the hills in mile two, they kill you,” Pagotto said. “I went slower than I usual do on the first and second miles to prepare myself for the third mile. The hill in the third mile, you don’t think it’s that bad until you’re running on it. I conserved my energy for that last mile and went all out and passed as many kids as I could.

“Last mile I felt amazing.”

He was in 11th place after two miles and picked off several runners down the stretch.

“I wanted to beat my time from last week,” he said, “which I did by 10 seconds, so I got that. And I wanted to make top 10 and get to states. So I accomplished both my goals here.”

Pagotto will make his second trip to states, and has learned a little something after running there last year.

“This year I have to get a better start so I don’t get caught in the stampede at the beginning,” he said.

Cornell medals

in girls race

Northwestern Lehigh senior Sophia Cornell had been to states twice before, qualifying individually last year and making it with her team as a freshman.

This year she wanted to finish her high school career in Hershey, and earned the right to do it with an eighth-place finish in the Class 2A girls district championship race.

“I was hoping to run a little bit better, but I can’t complain,” Cornell said. “My goal was just to get to states. That’s done so I’m glad. Conditions were a little rough today.”

Northwestern’s hill training comes in handy on the up and down DeSales course.

“Started off a little quicker than I normally do so I wouldn’t get boxed in and crowded,” Cornell said. “In the woods I was feeling pretty good. Those hills, we run hills a lot and I like those hills back there. The last mile is always a tough one for me. That cornfield gets everyone. Once you come out of that and come around the end there’s only so much left, you just have to get out and do it.”

After finishing around the middle of the pack in last year’s state meet, Cornell is excited to run there one last time.

“That course is hard,” she said of Hershey’s Parkview Course. “After going once and then again, I feel like this year I can really dial in on it and my nerves won’t be as bad.”

Colts Biros earns medal

In her first District 11 Championship race, Marian Catholic’s Teaghan Biros ran to 10th place in Class and earned a medal.

The former soccer player is in her first year on the cross country team and seems to be peaking at the right time. She called her performance at districts her best race ever, which was exactly her hope and expectation heading into the meet.

“I just planned to come out and run my best race, pick off everyone in front of me and just finish,” said Biros. “My first mile I was pacing with the people with me. Second mile I tried to pick them off. Third mile I just went for it.”

She joined the cross country team to help stay in shape for soccer and quickly fell in love with the sport while learning she’s quite good at it.

“I’m ecstatic,” she said. “I never thought first year running I’d be going to Hershey.”

Marchetti, Williams

earn medals

Last week Tamaqua senior Anthony Marchetti finished fourth in the Schuylkill League Championships to lead his team to a league title.

He took eighth place at districts in Class 2A, running a 17:43.3, to earn a district medal.

Weatherly’s Sebastian Williams finished 14th in his league meet last week. Running in the Class A field at districts, the Wrecker senior finished ninth overall to earn a medal and a place at states.

Next Exit Hershey

Northwestern Lehigh’s Xander Giandomenico finished one place short of earning a medal, but his 11th-place finish was enough to qualify for states, along with Tamaqua’s Levi Kunkel, who finished 12th.

The top 10 runners who are not part of state-qualifying teams earn a trip to the state championship meet, which is scheduled for Nov. 2. The top two teams in each class also qualify.

A pack of Times News area girls runners earned state-qualifying places in Class 2A as Jim Thorpe’s Stacy Bos (11th), Lehighton’s Claudia Pagotto (14th), Northern Lehigh Emma Heil (15th) and Lehighton’s Brielle Frable (16th) will all make the trip to Hershey.

In Class A boys, Marian Catholic’s Wade Eroh (11th) and Achilles Fitzpatrick (13th) both punched tickets to Hershey on Wednesday, while the Fillies’ Adalyn Marek finished 19th to qualify for states in girls Class A.

In the Class 3A race, Pleasant Valley’s Danielle Boland qualified for states with an 11th-place finish.

Other winners

Two-time defending Class A state champ Virginia Kraus won the District 11 girls Class 2A title this year after winning it the past two seasons as a Moravian Academy student. She ran 18:01.4 to finish 1:28 ahead of the runner up, Wilson’s Avery Errico (19:29.6).

Notre Dame (Green Pond) won the girls team title over second-place Wilson. Central Catholic took the boys team title over second-place Wilson.

In Class A, Minersville’s Kolin Long won the boys race in 17:11 with Shenandoah Valley’s Robert Espinal (17:14.3) in second place. Schuylkill Haven’s Anna Schaeffer won the girls race in 20:37.5 with Mahanoy Area’s Felicia Bro (22:44.1) in second place.

The Blue Devils won the boys and girls Class A team titles over Moravian Academy (girls) and Minersville (boys) in second place.

Class 3A team titles went to Nazareth boys with Emmaus in second place, and the Emmaus girls, with Easton in second place.

Freedom’s Dylan Boyle won the boys 3A rae in 16:39.1 with Emmaus’ Conor Fisher (17:10.3) in second place. The Hornets’ Mady McCartney repeated as girls 3A champ with Liberty Katie Drabouski (19:29.8) in second place.

DISTRICT 11 CROSS COUNTRY

CHAMPIONSHIPS

RESULTS

BOYS

CLASS 1A

(Top two teams plus 10 individuals not on those teams advance to states)

TEAM SCORES (AND LEGEND)

1. Shenandoah Valley (SV) 69, 2. Minersville (Min) 73, 3. Marian Catholic (MC) 77, 4. Moravian Academy (Mor) 87, 5. Mahanoy Area (Mah) 96, 6. Schuylkill Haven (SH) 121, 7. Notre Dame of East Stroudsburg (NDES) 126.

INDIVIDUAL RESULTS

(Top-10 plus other locals in top-50 and all state qualifiers)

1. Kolin Long (Min) 17:11.8, 2. Robert Espinal (SV) 17:14.3, 3. Matteo Antonucci (NDES) 17:51.4, 4. Carter Daniel (SH) 18:23.6, 5. Ayden Zamudio (SV) 18:30.9, 6. William Mayberry (Mah) 18:35.7, 7. Johnny Burgess (Min) 18:45.1, 8. Percy Fowler (Mor) 18:52.6, 9. Sebastian Williams (Wea) 18:57.5, 10. Nash Stehr (N) 19:02.5, 11. Wade Eroh (MC) 19:15.1, 13. Achilles Fitzpatrick (MC) 19:25.7, 20. Jacob Berlanda (MC) 20:21.5, 21. Alex Best (Wea) 20:29.6, 26. James Gelatko (MC) 20:56.8, 30. Raymond Montz (Wea) 21:36.6, 35. Gavin Zola (MC) 22:09.1, 37. Isiah Williams (Wea) 22:15.0.

CLASS 2A

(Top two teams plus 10 individuals not on those teams advance to states)

TEAM SCORES (AND LEGEND)

1. Allentown Central Catholic (ACC) 49, 2. Wilson (W) 86, 3. Notre Dame of Green Pond (NDGP) 97, 4. Tamaqua (T) 97, 5. Lehighton (L) 132, 6. Blue Mountain (BM) 166, 7. Northwestern Lehigh (NW) 170, 8. Bethlehem Catholic (BC) 227, 9. Palmerton (Palm.) 263, 10. Lehigh Valley Academy (LVA) 271, 11. Jim Thorpe (JT) 277, 12. Palisades (Pali.) 344, 13. Catasauqua (C) 357, 14. Salisbury (S) 361.

INDIVIDUAL RESULTS

(Top-10 plus other locals in top-50 and all state qualifiers)

1. Connor Hibell (Palm.) 16:34.6, 2. Duke Ebert (ACC) 17:17, 3. Elijah Pagotto (L) 17:21. 4. Jeffrey Sunderlin (W) 17:25.1, 5. Francesco Carr (BM) 17:28.1, 6. Will Haring (ACC) 17:33.6, 7. Mekhi Britt (BC) 17:40.0, 8. Anthony Marchetti (T) 17:43.3, 9. Emmett Rieland (NDGP) 17:48.2, 10. Thomas Grubb (ACC) 17:50.8, 11. Xander Giadomenico (NW) 17:52.6, 12. Levi Kunkel (T) 17:57.7, 20. Kyle Kuznicki (L) 18:1.4, 23. Adam Schock (T) 18:35.7, 24. Aidan Elston (T) 18:43.6, 28. Abraham Cabrera (PV) 18:55.7, 29. Kai Watto Salles (L) 19:02.0, 31. Brody Boyce (T) 19:04.8, 32. Bowden Chicarelli (JT) 19:10.1, 33. Greyson Wellings (NW) 19:10.4, 35. Sebestian Warner (L) 19:17.1, 37. Noah Griffith (NW) 19:25.9, 40. Chase Ader (Palm.) 19:36.3, 43. Brady Furman (NW) 19:50.7, 45. Gabriel Wirth (JT) 20:01.9, 48. Edward Benedict (NL) 20:05.5, 49. Evan Rosenbrook (JT) 20:07.3, 50. Aiden Eckhart (L) 20:07.9.

CLASS 3A

(Top two teams plus 10 individuals not on those teams advance to states)

TEAM SCORES (AND LEGEND)

1. Nazareth (Naz) 62, 2. Emmaus (Emm) 72, 3. Parkland (Park) 74, 4. Southern Lehigh (SL) 109, 5. Freedom (Free) 112, 6. Easton (Eas) 141, 7. ES North (ESN) 233, 8. Stroudsburg (Str) 236, 9. Liberty (Lib) 269, 10. Pleasant Valley (PV) 344, 11. Pottsville (Potts) 347, 12. Bangor (B) 356, 13. Whitehall (W) 359, 14. PM East (PME) 359, 15. ES South (ESS) 364, 16. Dieruff (D) 419.

INDIVIDUAL RESULTS

(Top-10 plus other locals in top-50 and all state qualifiers)

1. Dylan Boyle (Free) 16:39.1, 2. Conor Fisher (Emm) 17:10.3, 3. Jacob Casey (Naz) 17:11.1, 4. Luke McEvoy (Park) 17:18.5, 5. Evan Guydish (Eas) 17:19.7, 6. Brayden Boyle (Free) 17:27.1, 7. Ryan Wack (Naz) 17:30.3, 8. Alden Twist (B) 17:32.3, 9. Miles Etters (SL) 17:34.1, 10. Ryan Fach (Emm) 17:38.5, 28. Martin Green (PV) 18:25.1.

GIRLS

CLASS 1A

(Top two teams plus 10 individuals not on those teams advance to states)

TEAM SCORES (AND LEGEND)

1. Shenandoah Valley (SV) 41, 2. Moravian Academy (Mor) 48, 3. Schuylkill Haven (SH) 63, 4. Marian Catholic (MC) 84, 5. Mahanoy Area (Mah) 121.

INDIVIDUAL RESULTS

(Top-10 plus other locals in top-50 and all state qualifiers)

1. Anna Schaeffer (SH) 20:37.5, 2. Felicia Bro (Mah) 22:44.1, 3. Rio Stoudt (BC) 22:50.1, 4. Anna Cook (TV) 23:37.0, 5. Seymour Olivia (Mor) 23:47.3, 6. Remiah Rivera (BC) 24:07.5, 7. Luna Lopez (Mor) 24:09.4, 8. Brianna Gulden (SV) 24:13.9, 9. Catherine Marinchak (N) 24:15.7, 10. Teaghan Biros (MC) 24:17.0, 19. Adalyn Marek (MC) 25:44.3, 23. Olivia Serfass (MC) 26:15.5, 28. Anna Keer (MC) 26:47.0, 31. Addison Fritz (MC) 27:08.9, 32. Deanna Pugh (MC) 27:10.3, 33. Ava Fritz (MC) 27:24.4.

CLASS 2A

(Top two teams plus 10 individuals not on those teams advance to states)

TEAM SCORES (AND LEGEND)

1. Notre Dame of Green Pond (NDGP) 64, 2. Wilson (W) 83, 3. Allentown Central Catholic (ACC) 106, 4. Pen Argyl (PA) 115, 5. Northwestern Lehigh (NW) 143, 6. Blue Mountain (BM) 156, 7. Saucon Valley (SV) 164, 8. Bangor (B) 205, 9. Tamaqua (T) 216, 10. Lehighton (L) 241, 11. Lehigh Valley Academy (LVA) 247, 12. Jim Thorpe (JT) 321, 13. Catasauqua (C) 371.

INDIVIDUAL RESULTS

(Top-10 plus other locals in top-50 and all state qualifiers)

1. Virginia Krauss (SV) 18:01.4, 2. Avery Errico (W) 19:29.6, 3. Brenna Hammerstone (NDGP) 20:29.1, 4. Julie Bonham (W) 20:39.5, 5. Madison Dietz (PA) 20:48.3, 6. Addison Priestaf (B) 20:50.2, 7. Ainsley Tighe (ACC) 20:54.6, 8. Sophia Cornell (NW) 21:13.3, 9. Ella Schweitzer (NDGP) 21:18.5, 10. Samantha Karwacki (NDGP) 21:23.1, 11. Stacy Bos (JT) 21:29.1, 14. Claudia Pagotto (L) 21:39.5, 15. Emma Heil (NL) 21:43.9, 16. Brielle Frable (L) 21:52.3, 18. Rosalia Nestor (NW) 21:56.7, 21. Megan Fornwalt (NW) 22:19.7, 28. Ava Jones (T) 22:44.0, 32. Madelyn Schaefer (T) 23:11.8, 35. Emily Gad (NL) 23:21.5, 43. Kellcey Pedron (NW) 23:58.2.

CLASS 3A

(Top two teams plus 10 individuals not on those teams advance to states)

TEAM SCORES (AND LEGEND)

1. Emmaus (Emm) 54, 2. Easton (Eas) 59, 3. Southern Lehigh (SL) 84, 4. Liberty (Lib) 112, 5. Parkland (Park) 113, 6. Nazareth (Naz) 154, 7. Stroudsburg (Str) 180, 8. Freedom (Free) 202, 9. Northampton (Nor) 239, 10. Whitehall (Whi) 276, 11. ES North (ESN) 286.

INDIVIDUAL RESULTS

(Top-10 plus other locals in top-50 and all state qualifiers)

1. Madelyn McCartney (Emm) 18:56.4, 2. Katie Drabouski (Lib) 19:29.8, 3. Payton Campbell (Emm) 19:57.6, 4. Elizabeth McClarin (Lib) 20:18.3, 5. Harshita Keerthi (Park) 20:18.4, 6. Faith Belote (Eas) 20:21.4, 7. Vivian Clark (Eas) 20:23.6, 8. Liv Jusinski (Nor) 20:44.5, 9. Delaney Schoeneberger (Naz) 20:47.6, 10. Temiloluwa Adebayo (Eas) 20:55.7, 11. Danielle Boland (PV) 20:59.8, 40. Keeley Lawrence (PV) 23:36.8.