The Pirate were bolstered by a pair of All-Ohio runs en route to scoring 285 points and placing 11th in a field of 20 teams in the DII boys race. In the DI girls competition, River placed 17th with a tally of 345 points.
Sophomore Ryan Stirm and senior Henry Lange placed 19th and 21st, respectively, in leading the boys to their 11th-place finish. Stirm crossed the wire in the 178-man race at Fortress Obetz and Memorial Park with a time of 15:42.78; Lange was just a tick back at 15:43.42. Both times marked personal bests. Stirm's effort registered as a new program record. Both placements earned Ohio Association of Track and Cross Country Coaches All-Ohio recognition (top-30 finishes at the state meet).
Joining Stirm and Lange on the Rocky River scorecard were Jackson Rood (117th place), Simon Baum (124P), and Vincent Valente (125P). Fairfield Union tallied 88 points to edge Lexington (123) for the DII title.
In the DI girls' championships, River's 345 points were culled together by (in order of finish) Jane Rathbun (59P), Jane McCann (85P), Anna Buehrle (121P), Lauren Lavelle (127P), and Katie Stirm (135P). Lancaster boasted three top-20 finishes in winning a tightly-packed competition. The Gales' 114-point total was best in a group of four teams filing sub-150 scores.
by Skip Snow
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