Hempfield's Ella Wolfe goes out strong en route to L-L League girls cross country title

LEBANON — Hempfield’s Ella Wolfe knew South Hills Park, having run most of the course during a dual meet earlier this month. Then it was about resting an ankle issue and strategy, pacing her teammates.

Tuesday afternoon at the Lancaster-Lebanon League cross country championships, there was no holding back. Wolfe’s finish was one of the most impressive by not only a Hempfield runner, but one from the L-L in recent memory. She went out fast and continued the torrid pace through the finish with her 18:12.7.

To put that in perspective, while the course was different than Ephrata — where the meet was last year — McCaskey’s Isabella Shertzer won then with a 19:48.

“It is extremely hard for your body to run all out so many times during the season and have a good end of the season,” Wolfe said. “With that first race, I paced my teammates. Today, I wanted to practice something I am uncomfortable doing, which is going hard from the start. I usually like to build into the first mile a bit and sit behind some people. My legs were fresher and I knew where my training was at. So I wasn’t really surprised.”

Wolfe led the race from start to finish, extending her lead at each mile.

“I never actually knew where anyone was, but you can’t ever count anyone out,” Wolfe said. “Anyone can have a good finish, so I just stayed on the gas the whole time.”

Manheim Township’s Elena Barrall, who finished second (18:37.1), also went out fast, saying she kept an eye on Wolfe the entire race.

“My strategy was to keep my head up because if I let her get out of my sight, I might slow down,” Barrall said. “That second mile was brutal. I just wanted to get out of there. But I kept pumping my arms and it felt really good. I really liked this course.”

McCaskey’s Gabrielle Thiry (third in 18:46.9) and Cedar Crest’s Eliana Schneider (fourth, 18:48.4) fought for the next two places with a nice sprint to the finish. Schneider ran just behind Wolfe and Barrall for most of the race before Thiry made a push at the end.

“I take the invitationals and postseason seriously,” Thiry said. “I pushed myself really hard, did what I wanted to do and this was a great effort. I am proud of myself. I’m very excited for districts and states. They are going to be a really fun time.”

“It was one of my better races this season,” Schneider, who ran a personal best, said. “I was able to get good distance on people in the flats. It was nice knowing the course since we run here nearly every day.”

McCaskey’s Ruby Garner-Valle was next to cross the line (fifth, 19:09.1) before another Blue Streak, Ava Shirk (sixth, 19:11.1), and Donegal’s Molly Myers (seventh, 19:11.7) crossed the line.

It got crowded for the final three in the top 10 as Pequea Valley’s Aubrey Ressler (eighth, 19:16), Warwick’s Ella Hartel (ninth, 19:17.7) and Elizabethtown’s Ali Fink (10th, 19:19.5) also sprinted for position. Shertzer placed 11th, clocking in at 19:20.5.

Team-wise, the Blue Streaks defended, doing what they do best: running as a pack. In addition to Barrall and Shirk, Lexi Kauffman (12th, 19:24.9), Kaila Atteberry (13th, 19:24.9) and Marina Papadimitri (20th, 20:01.1) were all in the top 20. Teammate Piper Fogelman was 25th (20:19.9).

McCaskey was second (123) with Warwick coming in third (131).

High School Cross Country

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