2024 WCAC Championship

If you took photos during this week's meet, you can upload those photos to our WCAC Championship folder in Google Drive using this link.

You really can't ask for more pleasant weather than we saw today at Kenilworth Park. Once the morning chill left the air and the fog cleared from the course, racing conditions were choice and may be to thank for some terrific performances from our athletes.

If you check Milesplit for your mile splits, you'll notice that they don't line up with those that Coach Hoke and I gathered. I have no idea what's going on with their 'official' splits from the Varsity B race, because they're off by roughly 15 seconds at both and I'm quite confident that the splits we gathered are accurate.

For the freshman and Varsity A splits, you'll notice that the 1-mile splits are all about three seconds faster than ours, and the 2-mile splits are faster by about two seconds. I think this can be attributed to a signal delay between the starting pistol sending a signal and the boxes at the two mile markers receiving it. Both were a pretty significant distance away from the starting line, and the 1-mile mark was a little further away than the 2-mile mark. For this reason, I'm sticking with our mile splits.

I also went ahead and gathered splits at the three-mile mark, so you'll see an identical layout to our results as we had for MDXC a few weeks ago.

As we jump into those results, as always, in blue, I have noted all athletes who set a new PR (personal record) in the cross country 5k (3.1 mile) at the meet. Additionally, in red, I have noted all athletes who set a new SB (season best), but not PR, in the cross country 5k. For our returning athletes who have run on this course one of the last two WCAC Chamionships, in silver I have noted all athletes who set a new PCB (personal course best) for the Kenilworth Park 5k course.

Freshman
Here are the results for our freshman athletes. The number in front of each name signifies their overall place among the boys in the mixed freshman race (76 total male finishers). In brackets are their first mile, second mile, third mile, and last 0.1 mile splits:

8 Andrew Stinson - 19:13.67 [(1) 5:49, (2) 6:22, (3) 6:28, (3.1) 0:35]
13 Lucas Moisiuk - 19:49.39 [(1) 6:06, (2) 6:41, (3) 6:30, (3.1) 0:32] PR by 3 seconds
17 Alexander Soto - 20:24.00 [(1) 6:06, (2) 6:47, (3) 7:02, (3.1) 0:29]
33 Tre Whitfield - 21:49.07 [(1) 6:30, (2) 7:19, (3) 7:27, (3.1) 0:33] PR by 1 minute 12 seconds
36 Olutimilehin Adefiyiju - 22:04.87 [(1) 6:10, (2) 7:29, (3) 7:44, (3.1) 0:42]
72 Terence Rascher - 26:49.94 [(1) 7:54, (2) 9:11, (3) 9:03, (3.1) 0:42] PR by 34 seconds
73 Jaidon Contreras - 27:25.22 [(1) 7:14, (2) 9:09, (3) 10:25, (3.1) 0:37]

Congratulations to Andrew, our only medalist of the day. He put together a pretty impressive performance, especially considering he was knocked down by a competitor shortly after passing the two-mile mark. He got back up and finished strong with his second fastest time of the season.

Tre certainly saved his best race for last this season. He ran a huge PR today. One thing that really impressed me about his race was the toughness he showed in the third mile. After running his second mile nearly 50 seconds slower than his first, he kept his form together and only lost another 8 seconds in the third mile, keeping all three of his mile splits under 7:30 for the first time this season!

I'm not sure who else realized it, but I didn't want to jinx it coming into today - Terence had set a new PR in every race he ran this season. He kept that streak going today as he broke 27 minutes for the first time. He's come a long way since that first race and I've been really impressed with the way he's shown up and worked hard every day in practice.

Team Results
1. Gonzaga 39 points
2. The Height 50 points
3. DeMatha 90 points
4. Bishop Ireton 99 points
5. St. John's 143 points
6. Bishop O'Connell 144 points
7. Paul VI 159 points
8. St. Mary's Ryken 203 points
Inc. Good Counsel 4 finishers
Inc. Bishop McNamara 4 finishers

The last time the WCAC had eight complete freshman boys teams was in 2019, which was also the last time we finished this high. In 2019, we finished third with 64 points. Our top two finishers in that freshman race, plus our top varsity finisher that year, were seniors running varsity for our 2022 WCAC championship team.

Varsity B
Here are the results for our junior varsity athletes. The number in front of each name signifies their overall place in the Varsity B boys race (130 total finishers). In brackets are their first mile, second mile, third mile, and last 0.1 mile splits:

33 Nicholas Berry (Jr.) - 19:55.45 [(1) 6:12, (2) 6:46, (3) 6:28, (3.1) 0:29] PR by 16 seconds PCB by 1 minute 20 seconds
38 William Jackson (Sr.) - 20:03.21 [(1) 6:13, (2) 6:40, (3) 6:41, (3.1) 0:29]
39 Don DeRocha Jr (Jr.) - 20:06.09 [(1) 6:12, (2) 6:47, (3) 6:38, (3.1) 0:29] PCB by 1 minute 21 seconds
43 Elijah Hawkins (So.) - 20:15.02 [(1) 6:12, (2) 6:46, (3) 6:41, (3.1) 0:36] PR by 3 seconds
45 Cameron Lamb (Jr.) - 20:15.95 [(1) 6:13, (2) 6:46, (3) 6:45, (3.1) 0:32] PR by 27 second PCB by 2 minutes 7 seconds
48 Jeremy Juste (Jr.) - 20:23.65 [(1) 6:15, (2) 6:56, (3) 6:46, (3.1) 0:27] PR by 9 seconds
53 Renaud Williams (So.) - 20:37.85 [(1) 6:15, (2) 7:04, (3) 6:46, (3.1) 0:33] PR by 20 seconds PCB by 1 minute 54 seconds
69 Tyler Ellis (Sr.) - 21:35.26 [(1) 6:18, (2) 7:15, (3) 7:29, (3.1) 0:33]
77 Brendan Dougherty (Sr.) - 21:50.09 [(1) 6:22, (2) 7:25, (3) 7:29, (3.1) 0:34] PCB by 1 minute 29 seconds
85 Ryan Pickett (Jr.) - 22:07.67 [(1) 6:14, (2) 7:41, (3) 7:44, (3.1) 0:29] PCB by 2 minutes 30 seconds
86 Tyson Woods (Jr.) - 22:09.46 [(1) 6:34, (2) 7:43, (3) 7:22, (3.1) 0:30] PR by 14 seconds PCB by 4 minutes 13 seconds
89 Julian Maring (So.) - 22:15.49 [(1) 6:46, (2) 7:36, (3) 7:18, (3.1) 0:35] PR by 12 seconds PCB by 13 seconds
100 Joseph LeGloahec (Jr.) - 23:01.31 [(1) 6:58, (2) 7:52, (3) 7:33, (3.1) 0:38] SB by 31 seconds
110 Kazuki Reeves (So.) - 23:36.75 [(1) 6:40, (2) 7:55, (3) 8:29, (3.1) 0:33]
118 Julian Righi (So.) - 25:19.74 [(1) 7:22, (2) 8:44, (3) 8:40, (3.1) 0:34]
125 Carter Leecost (Sr.) - 27:12.17 [(1) 8:02, (2) 9:09, (3) 9:15, (3.1) 0:46]
127 Akintunde Shoetan (Sr.) - 29:03.61 [(1) 7:58, (2) 9:37, (3) 10:45, (3.1) 0:44]

After we had no PRs and only one season best from our JV squad at last year's WCAC Championship, this year's squad wrote a different chapter. Maybe it was just the heat suddenly returning after a long string of cold days last year, because I think these guys put to rest the narrative that Kenilworth Park "isn't a PR course."

A huge shout out goes to Nick at the top of our results for breaking 20 minutes for the first time! He ran a couple of early-season races on varsity this year and today set himself up to compete for a permanent spot in his senior season.

Considering we're only a few days removed from Don having an athsma flare-up, he did a great job of fighting to stay in contact right in the middle of our scoring group. And though his time might feel a bit disappointing coming off a remarkable 19:01 performance last week at the parkrun, this time still represents Don's second fastest time in a DeMatha uniform.

Elijah, Cam, Jeremy and Renaud all ran very well and with a solid summer of training in 2025 should run their first sub-20 5ks by the middle of September.

Team Results
1. Gonzaga 29 points
2. St. John's 45 points
3. The Heights 46 points
4. DeMatha 150 points
5. Good Counsel 159 points (6th finisher: 59th)
6. Bishop O'Connell 159 points (6th finisher: 64th)
7. Bishop Ireton 205 points
8. Bishop McNamara 219 points
9. Paul VI 261 points
10. St. Mary's Ryken 307 points

With a spread of just 20 seconds between our five scorers in the Varsity B race, we were able to overcome the disadvantage of having no athletes place in the Top 30. Our pack running allowed us to claim our second straight fourth place finish in the league's Varsity B race, though Good Counsel and O'Connell closed the gap significantly from 2013.

Varsity A
Here are the results for our varsity athletes. The number in front of each name signifies their overall place in the Varsity A boys race (65 total finishers). In brackets are their first mile, second mile, third mile, and last 0.1 mile splits:

17 Roman Zentek (Jr.) - 17:19.25 [(1) 5:14, (2) 5:50, (3) 5:48, (3.1) 0:27] PCB by 1 minute 6 seconds
29 Brandon Smoot (Sr.) - 17:56.17 [(1) 5:26, (2) 6:02, (3) 5:58, (3.1) 0:30] PCB by 1 minute 39 seconds
33 Phillip Marshall II (So.) - 18:01.39 [(1) 5:27, (2) 6:09, (3) 5:57, (3.1) 0:28] PR by 6 seconds
36 Arvin Mirchandani (So.) - 18:15.15 [(1) 5:25, (2) 6:14, (3) 6:08, (3.1) 0:28] PCB by 2 minutes 5 seconds
44 Jesse Holland III (Jr.) - 18:37.87 [(1) 5:30, (2) 6:14, (3) 6:24, (3.1) 0:30] PCB by 2 minutes 8 seconds
48 Jalen Neptune (Sr.) - 18:47.23 [(1) 5:38, (2) 6:24, (3) 6:19, (3.1) 0:26]
54 Malachi Wilson (Sr.) - 19:06.38 [(1) 5:38, (2) 6:28, (3) 6:28, (3.1) 0:32]

I'm very curious to see how much of a PCB Phillip would have run today if he'd been able to run in last year's WCAC Championship. He had a really impressive race today.

Roman finished off his junior campaign on a high note. He wasn't far off the PR he set last week on a notoriously fast course at Pole Green Park in Mechanicsville, missing it by just 11 seconds en route to posting the 75th fastest 5k time DeMatha has had since 2000.

Jesse was almost 20 seconds off the PR he set last week at the parkrun, but this was still his second fastest 5k and he stayed solidly under 19 minutes. After seeming to be stuck in the mid-19s from Trials of Miles through MDXC, he came on very strong to end the season.

Team Results
1. St. John's 34 points
2. Gonzaga 48 points
3. The Heights 70 points
4. Bishop Ireton 158 points
5. DeMatha 159 points
6. Paul VI 165 points
7. Good Counsel 172 points
8. Bishop O'Connell 176 points
9. Bishop McNamara 180 points
10. St. Mary's Ryken 288 points
Inc. Archbishop Carroll 1 finisher

The positive spin on today's result comes via a comparison to our 2019 championship performance. I already drew a comparison to our 2019 freshman championship performance, but we can also compare our varsity outcome to that pre-Covid season.

In 2019, we placed fourth (we were just one point out of fourth today). The average time from our Top 5 was 18:22 (our average today was 18:02). Our 1-5 spread in 2019 was 1:05 (our spread today was 1:19).

Now, it's not a 1:1 comparison. The 2019 championship was held on a different course at Bull Run Regional Park in Virginia, for one. But it's still more than enough reason to be optimistic about our prospects over the next two years or more.

Final Thoughts
We will certainly have our work cut out for us for next year. St. John's will return their top four finishers from varsity and their top Varsity B finisher. Gonzaga will return five of their top six Varsity A finishers. The Heights will return five of their varsity seven, as well.

To break back into the Top 3 next year, which I fully believe is in the cards, we'll need dedication from our athletes to train hard and smart next summer. As we approach the spring, I'll be meeting with various groups of athletes by class and also by varsity/JV designation to talk about what that training will need to look like for our team.

I am excited for our ultimate frisbee day on Monday. This should be a really fun way to wrap up our season.

Sometime in the next few days, athletes can expect to receive an email from me with a Google Form to gather some information for our team banquet. I put together a presentation every year and I like to highlight all the things our athletes do in addition to their participation in cross country. Please complete and submit that form ASAP after you receive it.

I will begin planning our banquet early this week with the hope of scheduling it for before Thanksgiving. I know many of our athletes will be playing winter sports and/or are part of our music program, which often makes it a challenge to plan our banquet when the season ends in mid-November, pushing our banquet into winter sports and concert season. Look for more details regarding this event in the coming days.

And finally, if any of our athletes are thinking about continuing their season through either of the regional cross country meets put on by Nike and Footlocker, please let me know. You would register and handle your own transporation for either one, but I can help provide you with information regarding those meets.

I am very proud of the effort I saw from all of our athletes today. As much as I am looking forward to having some earlier evenings and being able to get home to my family more quickly after school, today's performances also made me excited for next fall and the preperation process we will begin in the spring.