District Cross Country: Avon girls, Keystone's Jamie Yuronich, Black River's Connor Rhein finish second

ELYRIA — Seconds, anyone? Three runner-up finishes Saturday were the top highlights for local runners at the Northeast District cross country meet hosted by Lorain County Community College. The Avon girls were second in Division II, Keystone junior Jamie Yuronich second among Division III boys and Black River senior Connor Rhein second in the Division IV boys race. Avon finished behind Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy 104-115 in the 20-team field. Avon was ranked No. 2 in the state behind Watterson in the state coaches' poll. CVCA was only No. 18 but managed to squeeze out an 11-point win. Amherst (249) and Avon Lake (271) also advanced to regional, placing ninth and 10th of the 13 team qualifiers. Senior Ava Melott led Avon, finishing eighth in a field of 141 runners in 19:26.7. "A lot of good competition. This is what I expected, obviously going from conference to districts," said Melott. "Districts is a preview for the rest of the postseason. I feel like I have so many friends on all the different teams. At the end of the day it is just friendly competition. "I feel like I went after things. I didn't hold on at the end as strong as I liked but that's OK because we have many more races to go. I kept pressing. I didn't slow down on purpose." Freshman Brooke Tindera (11th, 19:49.0) and juniors Molly Suter (25th, 20:27.3), Madison Colaizzi (30th, 20:33.5) and Lauren Kershaw (41st, 20:40.3) rounded out the top five for the Eagles. "I tip my hat to them. They ran very well," Avon coach Justin Carroll said of CVCA. "It was our best that our pack has been. We just have to keep moving our pack up closer to Ava. We felt coming in that we were in a good spot and even after today we still feel the same way. That's just part of sport, win or lose. We're going to keep pushing and keep preparing for the next one, which is regionals next Saturday." Yuronich had about a five-second lead over Woodridge senior John Brock through 2 miles, but the Bulldogs runner went hard descending Mount Washka with a half-mile to go and went on to outdistance Yuronich 16:01.7 to 16:08.0. To his credit, Yuronich crushed his course PR by a minute, from when he placed eighth at districts last year in 17:08.28. "I was especially feeling it today, but I was able to get second, which was higher than I was seeded," said Yuronich. "I'm happy to be able to help out my team in that way. Today was a big improvement over last year, so I'll take it. I have a lot of respect for Woodridge. They put in a lot of work. They do a lot of things great." "I don't know how I did it," said Brock. "Honestly, I was feeling pretty bad at 1.5 and 2 miles, but I just focused on maintaining my distance. I caught him on the uphill and then I just used the downhill to keep my momentum." Yuronich's efforts helped the Keystone boys to their second straight regional berth and sixth since 2019. The Keystone boys finished fifth with 149 points, behind Woodridge (25), Norwayne (99), Holy Name (115) and Triway (135). "Jamie really executed his race plan very well," said Keystone coach Lynn Yuronich, Jamie's mom. "He was ranked No. 3 coming in. His goal was to try to be district champ. He knew that he had to make a move after the mile mark and that's what he did. We knew it was going to come down to a dogfight at the end. Woodridge always runs well. They're great kids." A three-time state qualifier, Rhein was in contention for the winner's circle through 2 miles. Smithville senior Nigel Wenger had other plans as he pulled away to win in 16:41.3. Rhein was second in 17:04.8. "The race plan was not to overexpend too much energy," Rhein said. "I didn't expect for someone like me to lead. When I took over I slowed down the pace and decided to chill. The pack of the (top) four guys started talking about halfway through the race. We wanted to keep it relaxed and not exert any extra energy. He (Wenger) made his move on the downhill. At the point it was just us two. I checked to make sure who was behind me and there wasn't anyone so I just decided to make sure I got second." As a team, the Black River boys advanced to regionals for the fourth time in five years. Black River finished fourth with 105 points. Open Door Christian (171) and Lake Ridge Academy (192) also advanced, taking the final two qualifying spots. "All week we worked on our pace and our tempo," said Black River coach Steve Rhein. "Today was just our first step of our ultimate goal of to get back down to Columbus." Avon Lake made amends in the Division II boys race. The Shoremen missed qualifying by just five points and one spot a year ago, but this time qualified by finishing eighth with 206 points. Senior Niko Koutouras led Avon Lake, finishing 21st of 135 runners in 17:11.8. "It definitely was not my best race," said Koutouras. "It was definitely different than conference. My finish time was 10-15 seconds slower than last week. The pace started out a lot faster than I expected it to be. I needed a little bit different of a race strategy. "I'm feeling beat up a little bit so I haven't been able to run as much during the week as I would have liked to. I got sick at the beginning of the week right after conference. I didn't have my best race at districts for track but bounced back and PR'd for regionals. Team ran great today as they always do." Amherst was ninth of 13 team qualifiers in the Division II girls race as it advanced to regionals for the 35th time in 38 years. Lola Schaaf (19th, 20:05.6) and Sam Falbo, (35th, 20:36.8) led the way. "Our fifth runner, Maddy Merthe, has fought a lot of adversity this season, but she came through for us today," said Amherst girls coach Eric Watts. "She closed the gap between our No. 4 runner (Aubrey Brenot), which makes a big difference in team scoring. Our No. 2 runner, Sam, came off the hill with a big pack and did a great job eating up about a third of that pack. "Our girls are smart. They see the race in front of them. They look at what's going on in advance so they know what they have to do." Behind Cassidy Valerino (13th, 19:51.1) and Gianna Brannen (26th, 20:27.4), the Avon Lake girls qualified for regionals for the first time since 2021 by taking 10th of 13 team qualifiers in Division II. Firelands (190) and Elyria Catholic (245) qualified for regionals by placing seventh and ninth in the Division III girls race. Natalie Smith (21st, 22:19.1) and Dilynn Copley (22nd, 22:21.6) led Firelands' second straight regional-qualifying effort. Led by Claire Lewis (24th, 22:30.7) and Alena Bray (31st, 23:11.9), the EC girls earned their second trip to regionals in three years. Open Door and Lake Ridge squeezed in as the final two regional qualifiers in the Division IV boys race. Open Door (138), Black River (168) and Lake Ridge Academy (169) grabbed the last three qualifying spots in the Division IV girls race. Contact Paul Heyse at (440) 329-7135 or ctsports@chroniclet.com. BOYS DIVISION II Top 11 teams and top 22 individuals from non-qualifying teams advance to Boardman regional Saturday 1. CVCA, 96; 2. Westlake, 107; 3. Cloverleaf, 108; 4. Rocky River, 116; 5. Medina Highland, 128; 6. Lakewood, 141; 7. Revere, 165; 8. Buckeye, 179; 9. Avon Lake, 206; 10. Bay, 258; 11. Brecksville, 267; 12. Olmsted Falls, 269; 13. Amherst, 341; 14. Copley, 342; 15. North Olmsted, 417; 16. Midview, 434; 17. Padua, 514; 18. Firelands, 538; 19. Benedictine, 577 Winner: Isaac Solomon (CVCA), 16:24.6 Local team qualifier: (Avon Lake): 21. Niko Koutouras, 17:11.8; 30. Luke Gunter, 17:22.9; 42. Alex Schultz, 17:40.2; 54. Daniel Muckerheide, 17:47.0; 59. Aidan Diamond, 17:54.4; 74. Liam Fritz, 18:13.6; 93. Liam Maitland, 18:31.4 Top individual qualifiers: 32, Hayden Maxwell (Midview), 17:25.9; 47. Eli Nicely (Amherst), 17:43.0; 50. Carter Woods (Firelands), 17:44.0; 53. Carter Banyas (Amherst), 17:46.4; 55. Carter Strawn (Amherst), 17:49.8; 64. Andrew Downey (Midview), 17:59.9; 83. Cale Miller (Amherst), 18:22.7.Out of 135 runners. DIVISION III Top 7 teams and top 14 individuals from non-qualifying teams advance to Boardman regional 1. Woodridge, 25; 2. Norwayne, 99; 3. Holy Name, 115; 4. Triway, 135; 5. Keystone, 149; 6. Streetsboro, 176; 7. Waynedale, 177; 8. Fairview, 179; 9. Elyria Catholic, 203; 10. Lutheran West, 236; 11. Beachwood, 272; 12. Orrville, 303; 13. Brookside, 324 Winner: John Brock (Woodridge), 16:01.7 Local team qualifier: (Keystone): 2. Jamie Yuronich, 16:08.0; 13. Brooks Thompson, 17:26.5; 23. Sam McConoughey, 18:03.1; 44. Matthew Gordon, 18:50.9; 67. Jake Handrosh, 19:47.6; James Van De Weerd, 20:11.8; 80. Alex Willi, 20:57.4 Local individual qualifiers: 19. John Barber (Elyria Catholic), 17:54.3; 26. Luke Jones (Elyria Catholic), 18:19.3; 40. Brian Simonetta (Elyria Catholic), 18:47.0; 42. Brian Lascola (Brookside), 18:48.6. Out of 91 runners. DIVISION IVTop 8 teams and top 16 individuals from non-qualifying teams advance to Boardman regional 1. Independence, 44; 2. Rittman, 78; 3. Kidron Central Christian, 103; 4. Black River, 105; 5. Smithville, 121; 6. Dalton, 131; 7. Open Door Christian, 171; 8. Lake Ridge Academy, 192; 9. Mapleton, 199; 10. Cuyahoga Heights, 257; 11. Wellington, 298 Winner: 1. Nigel Wenger (Smithville), 16:41.3 Local team qualifiers: (Black River): 2. Connor Rhein, 17:03.8; 18. Jackson Quallich, 18:14.3; 24. Ray Brakefield, 18:37.6; 30. Archer Combs, 18:53.9; 45. Brock Martin, 19:39.5; 73. Leland Gallatin, 21:04.6; 85. Logan Rhein, 23:09.8. (Open Door Christian): 28. Tripp Taylor, 18:48.1; 29. David Krauss, 18:50.1; 35. Nicholas Danczak, 19:08.7; 47. Cooper Szwagulak, 19:48.1; 67. Charles Murphy, 20:30.3; 80. Caleb Woods, 22:12.7. (Lake Ridge Academy): 16. Daniel Anastasoaie, 18:06.0; 48. Arjun Gupta, 19:48.5; 50. Yuanxi Zhao, 19:53.6; 51. Benjamin Thompson, 19:55.8; 52. Jerry Chiu, 20:00.5; 62. Jack Zahler, 20:19.2; 65. Caleb Stephens, 20:22.1 Local individual qualifiers: 11. Peter Caldwell-Kepner (Oberlin), 17:52.1; 33. Brandon Bertoni (Oberlin), 19:01.9; 41. Corwin Singleton (Oberlin), 19:25.5; 54. Nicholas Sword (Wellington), 20:07.3; 56. William McFarland (Oberlin), 20:09.2. Out of 95 runners. GIRLS DIVISION II Top 13 teams and top 26 individuals from non-qualifying teams advance to Boardman regional 1. CVCA, 104; 2. Avon, 115; 3. St. Joseph Academy, 155; 4. Bay, 157; 5. Westlake, 172; 6. Brecksville, 173; 7. Revere, 184; 8. Medina Highland, 237; 9. Amherst, 249; 10. Avon Lake, 271; 11. Rocky River, 277; 12. Cloverleaf, 289; 13. Copley, 308; 14. Lakewood, 334; 15. Padua, 346; 16. Olmsted Falls, 397; 17. Holy Name, 409; 18. North Royalton, 505; 19. Midview, 575; 20. North Ridgeville, 610 Winner: Maya Gonzalez (Bay), 18:18.7 Local team qualifiers: (Avon): 8. Ava Melott, 19:26.7; 11. Brooke Tindera, 19:49.0; 25. Molly Suter, 20:27.3; 30. Madison Colaizzi, 20:33.5; 41. Lauren Kershaw, 20:40.3; 43. Momoka Tanaka, 20:43.0; 44. Molly Pomfrey, 20:44.4. (Amherst): 19. Lola Schaaf, 20:05.6; 35. Sam Falbo, 20:36.8; 60. Lila Woskobunik, 21:28.4; 67. Aubrey Brenot, 21:45.2; 68. Maddy Merthe, 21:48.6; 70. Rosalie Kapalin, 21:49.9; 108; Taelyn Nida, 23:07.0. (Avon Lake): 13. Cassidy Valerino, 19:51.1; 26. Gianna Brannen, 20:27.4; 34. Kelsey Sheehan, 20:36.8; 84. Sadie Siefert, 22:12.0; 116. Olivia Lemmerbrock, 23:44.7; 117. Carolyn McVey, 23:51.7; 120. Marissa Craig, 24:01.0 Local individual qualifiers: 66. Molly Ockuly (Midview), 21:44.4; 109. Megan Shollenberger (North Ridgeville), 23:11.8. Out of 141 runners. DIVISION IIITop 10 teams and top 20 individuals from non-qualifying teams advance to Boardman regional 1. Woodridge, 27; 2. Buckeye, 122; 3. Laurel, 141; 4. Fairview, 142; 5. Triway, 147; 6. Beachwood, 187; 7. Firelands, 190; 8. Lutheran West, 245; 9. Elyria Catholic, 245; 10. Streetsboro, 247; 11. Orrville, 253; 12. Norwayne, 270; 13. Keystone, 280; 14. Bard Early College, 399; 15. Brookside, 399 Winner: Lola Mullen (Woodridge), 20:11.6 Local team qualifiers: (Firelands): 21. Natalie Smith, 22:19.1; 22. Dilynn Copley, 22:21.6; 35. Diem Vanderpool, 23:28.6; 52. Scarlett Vaughn, 24:37.8; 60. Adelynn Schlechter, 25:18.3; 61. Reagan Moore, 25:19.7; 73. Sarah Bartish, 26:18.6. (Elyria Catholic): 24. Claire Lewis, 22:30.7; 31. Alena Bray, 23:11.9; 39. Lucy Groshek, 23:44.5; 63. Amelia Neugebauer, 25:25.8; 88. Lindsay Kalyn, 29:47.4 Local individual qualifiers: 18. Amme Wilson (Keystone), 22:05.6; 44. Avery Kastler (Keystone), 23:59.1; 58. Emma Allen (Brookside), 25:04.7; 70. Hailey Wilson (Keystone), 25:50.7; 71. Marin Fedor (Keystone), 25:52.2; 77. Charli Leach (Keystone), 26:50.5; 78. Aubrey Winkler (Brookside), 26:54.6. Out of 96 runners. DIVISION IVTop 8 teams and top 21 individuals from non-qualifying teams advance to Boardman regional 1. Rittman, 28; 2. Kidron Central Christian, 92; 3. Independence, 116; 4. Waynedale, 128; 5. Dalton, 130; 6. Open Door Christian, 138; 7. Black River, 168; 8. Lake Ridge Academy, 169; 9. Smithville, 198; 10. Mapleton, 211 Winner: Gracie Steiner (Kidron Central Christian), 20:12.5 Local team qualifiers: (Open Door Christian): 16. Claire Hepner, 22:21.8; 18. Alayna Boone, 22:53.9; 28. Brianna Couture, 23:34.1; 32. Allison Powers, 24:05.5; 66. Lillyanna Nichols, 28:08.9; 76. Avery Pentz, 33:17.5. (Black River): 22. Jade Mitchell, 23:12.9; 24. Ella McCann, 23:22.4; 25. Scarlett Olive, 23:25.0; 57. Ruby Johnston, 26:16.2; 72. Ava Workinger, 31:59.5; 74. Grace Bowen, 32:42.3. (Lake Ridge Academy): 20. Lilly Shmois, 23:04.2; 26. Lena Foltin, 23:31.3; 47. Arielle Kluth, 25:16.4; 51. Zealli Overstreet, 25:38.0; 59. Kathryn Krueger, 26:33.4; 73. Graycen Rowe, 32:20.6. Local individual qualifiers: 36. Rose Marie Boyer (Oberlin), 24:32.9; 37. Fynlee Morris (Wellington), 24:35.8; 44. Molly Caldwell-Kepner (Oberlin), 25:05.1; 55. Hadley Fleming (Wellington), 26:01.4. Out of 82 runners.