FPC boys, girls sweep Five Star Conference cross country titles

Flagler Palm Coast's cross country teams are ready for the postseason. The Bulldogs swept the boys' and girls' championships at the Five Star Conference meet Oct. 14 in New Smyrna Beach.

FPC senior Barak Olago won the boys' individual title with a personal record time of 16:39.2 as the Bulldogs claimed five of the top eight places to cruise to the team title with 24 points. New Smyrna Beach finished a distant second with 85 points. Seabreeze was fifth with 135 points, and Mainland was ninth with 246 points.

The girls' standings were much closer as FPC edged Spruce Creek for the title, 73-75. The Bulldogs took seven of the top 25 places.

Seabreeze finished fourth with 105 points and Mainland was seventh with 143 points in the girls standings. Seabreeze sophomores Mackenzie Roy (19:19.6) and Ariana Roy (19.20.8) finished fourth and fifth, respectively. Seabreeze senior Nickole Dane (20:00.4) placed seventh.

Sophomore Cassidy DeYoung (20:24.1) led the FPC girls with a 10th-place finish. Arianna Slaughter (20:47.3) was 13th, followed by Genesis Epstein (21:06.5) in 14th place, Mimi Jeffers (21:43.4) in 17th place and Lexie Shupe (21:43.4) in 19th place.

Kiera Williams (21:46.1) led Mainland with an 18th-place finish, followed by Molly Bronson in 20th place. Bronson had the same time as Shupe at 21:43.4.

In the boys race, FPC runners Justin Gilliam (16:58.5), Hayden Herndon (17:02.9) and Brandon Kalasnik (17:05.4) finished fourth, fifth and sixth, respectively, while Peyton Woodward (17:27.7) placed eighth. FPC's sixth and seventh runners — Jack Gilvary (17:44.5, 16th place) and Jevin Luna (17:58.1, 20th) — also finished in the top 20.

Seabreeze's Tyler Lewis (17:32.5) finished 11th.

The Bulldogs won the Five Star boys championship for the 14th time, which is the most among conference schools. The girls title was FPC's sixth.

Olago joined an elite group of FPC runners to win a Five Star cross country championship. Previous Bulldogs to win the Five Star boys title include Justin Pacifico, Markell Peck, Anthony Morales, Justin Harbor, Sam Vazquez and Matt Ciancuilli, most of whom ran track and cross country in college.