- April 30, 2024
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Father Lopez's Anna Nugent won the Volusia-Flagler Freshman/Sophomore Girls Cross Championship with a time of 22:01 at Matanzas High School. Photo by Brent Woronoff
DeLand's Connor York leads New Smyrna Beach's Sam McDuffie as they approach the finish line in the boys race at the Volusa-Flagler Freshman/Sophomore Cross Country Championships. Photo by Brent Woronoff
Seabreeze's Hunter Shuler leads New Smyrna Beach's Sam McDuffie and DeLand's Connor York at the Volusia-Flagler Freshman/Sophomore Cross Country Championships. Photo by Brent Woronoff
Noemi Malinowski (right) placed second and Sara Van Buren finished sixth to lead Matanzas to the girls team title at the Volusia-Flagler Freshman/Sophomore Cross Country Championships. Photo by Brent Woronoff
DeLand's Solomon Lorenzo, right, passed Deltona's Lowell Cummings in the final meters to place sixth in the boys race at the Volusia-Flagler Freshman/Sophomore Championships. Photo by Brent Woronoff
Father Lopez sophomore Anna Nugent won the Volusia-Flagler Freshman/Sophomore Girls Cross Country Championship on Oct. 18 at Matanzas High School Photo by Brent Woronoff
On Sept. 30, Anna Nugent completed the Run Matanzas Cross Country Invitational in 23 minutes, 25.8 seconds. Less than three weeks later on the same course, the Father Lopez sophomore improved her time by nearly a minute and a half and won her first race.
Nugent ran a 22:01.4 to collect the first-place medal at the Volusia-Flagler Freshman/Sophomore Championships on Wednesday, Oct. 18, at Matanzas High School. Freshman Connor York of DeLand won the boys race.
“I’ve never placed first,” said Nugent, who is lives in Ormond Beach. “It feels great. My hard work paid off.”
The course wasn’t exactly the same as it was for Run Matanzas due to the construction of a new multipurpose building next to the football stadium. The new route takes runners onto the baseball field. The course also wasn’t as wet and muddy as it had been for Run Matanzas.
And Nugent ran faster at last year’s Run Matanzas, with a time of 21:53.5. But she has been steadily improving since joining Green Wave’s cross country team as a freshman. She ran a personal record 21:09.3 at the Bale-N-Trail meet on Sept. 23 at Bartram Trail High School.
“I always liked running, but my elementary and middle schools didn’t have any sports,” she said.
After passing Spruce Creek’s Sophia Medina at around the one-mile mark, Nugent led the rest of the way. Matanzas freshman Noemi Malinowksi placed second with a time of 22:09.1.
“I was trying hard to catch (Nugent),” said Malinowski, who led the Matanzas girls to a first-place team finish.
Four other Matanzas runners finished in the top 15. Sara Van Buren (23:17.4) was sixth, Lupita Galeano (23:36.8) eighth, Megan Rhee (23:53.6) 10th and Gabrielle Duncan (24:43.9) 13th.
Flagler Palm Coast freshman Audrey Bowman placed fourth behind New Smyrna Beach’s Mya Erwin with a time of 22:21.1.
Other locals who finished among the top 15 were Father Lopez sophomore Jessica Gazzoli (seventh place, 23:26.6), Mainland sophomore Hope Bronson (ninth, 23:49.3), Seabreeze freshman Madison Wilson (14th, 24:55.3) and First Baptist sophomore Rylin Goff (15th, 24:55.5).
York won the boys race with a time of 17:06.7. New Smyrna Beach’s Sam McDuffie was second in 17:10.3, while Seabreeze sophomore Hunter Shuler was third in 17:57.4.
Shuler led for more than half the race, but he felt he could have run out faster at the start.
“I should have taken the opportunity to separate from the pack immediately,” he said. “The most important lesson is I need to be less nervous. I need to have no fear getting off the line.”
Seabreeze finished third in the boys standings, with Steven Martinez placing 11th in 18:58.9.
Flagler Palm Coast sophomore Brant Tarsitano was ninth with a time of 18:50.6. Matanzas sophomore Matt Ciardi was 10th in 18:58.7. And FPC’s Evan Johnson finished 13th with a time of 19:28.0.
