Ford tough

PALMER — As a freshman, Jenna Ford is still considered a rookie in high school cross country running. But when it comes to winning races, the Wasilla standout is a seasoned veteran.

Ford, who won six races during the regular season, earned an individual region title during the Region III Championships at the Crevasse Moraine Trails outside of Palmer on Saturday.

“She’s intense. She’s so fast,” said Soldotna’s Bree Mucha, who finished 11 seconds behind Ford to take second.

While Mucha led a trio of runners who finished within a nine-second span, Ford enjoyed a steady comfortable lead ahead of the pack throughout the 5-kilometer race.

“There’s a couple of girls who are really good, but I wanted to run alone today,” Ford said.

And that’s exactly what the Wasilla freshman did.

After using the first stretch of the first lap to separate herself from the pack, Ford gradually increased her lead. At the start of the second lap, Ford had a seven-second advantage over Chloe Ivanoff, of Kodiak.

When Ford made the turn into the third lap, she held a healthy 13 second lead over a group of runners that included Mucha, Ivanoff, Skyview’s Ivy O’Guinn and Colony’s Alyssa Hutchins.

“I thought Jenna was tough,” Wasilla head coach Gary Howell said. “She’s just able to hold her threshold a lot longer. She didn’t really slow down.”

Ford finished with a time of 19:32.2 on the muddy Crevasse Moraine course. Last week at Crevasse Moraine, albeit a much more dry Crevasse Moraine, Ford posted a personal career best of 18:49.5 during the Wasilla Invitational.

While Ford claimed the top individual honor in the girls’ race, Hutchins used a late push to break into the top four of the field.

Hutchins finished with a time of 19:52, nine seconds behind Mucha and five behind O’Guinn.

Hutchins passed Ivanoff during the third lap and finished 10 seconds ahead of the Kodiak runner.

Ivanoff was in second place during the second lap, but Mucha, O’Guinn and Hutchins were all able to pass her before the finish line.

“It was really tight,” Mucha said. “I was expecting it. The top-10 is always super tight. We have a lot of really good girls in our region.”

Hutchins and teammate Sydney Stewart both notched top-six finishes to help Colony earn the girls’ team title. Stewart used a time of 20:08.1 to finish sixth in the 50-runner field.

“She’s been running strong all season long,” Colony head coach Mark Strabel said. “It’s nice she’s able to continue that.”

Audrey Michaelson, Liza Laughlin and Abby Jahn also finished in the top-20 to help the Knights win the region team title for the second straight season.

Michaelson, a freshman, finished 13th for the Knights.

“Audrey has come on strong,” Strabel said of Michaelson, who finished with a time of 20:45.4. “She doesn’t realize how good she is.”

Laughlin followed at 20:53 to finish 14th, and Jahn was 18th with a time of 21:08.4.

“Abby Jahn had a great sprint at the finish,” Strabel said.

Jahn used that sprint to edge Wasilla sophomore Morgan Dampier by just three-tenths of a second. Dampier finished 19th with a time of 21:08.7.

Ford and Dampier were among six Wasilla runners who finished in the top-20 for the Warriors, who were third in the team standings.

Brooke Nelson was Wasilla’s second runner to cross the finish line, placing 15th in the race. Allison Kelley (16th), Mandi Riggenberg (17th) and Cori Schleich (20th) also posted top-20 finishes.

Grace Bohman (36th) and Gretchen Winter (39th) led the Palmer Moose.

The top four teams and 15 individuals advance to the state championships, slated for Saturday on the Michael Janecek Trails at Palmer High School.

Colony, Kodiak, Wasilla and Soldotna will be the four teams representing the region at the state meet.

Contact Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com.

2009 Region III Championships

Saturday, Crevasse Moraine Trails

Region III-4A girls team scores:

1. Colony 47, 2. Kodiak 59, 3. Wasilla 60, 4. Soldotna 89, 5. Kenai 100, 6. Homer 179, 7. Palmer 193.

Region III-4A girls individual results:

1. J. Ford, Was 19:32.2; 2. B. Mucha, Sol 19:43.4; 3. I. O’Guinn, Sky 19:47.2; 4. A. Hutchins, Col 19:52.4; 5. C. Ivanoff, Kod 20:02.4; 6. S. Stewart, Col 20:08.1; 7. M. Smith, Sol 20:15.6; 8. A. Smith, Kod 20:29.5; 9. H. Hutchinson, Sky 20:37.8; 10. S. Ng, Kod 20:42.5; 11. J. Bethea, Kod 20:44.0; 12. T. Ostrander, Ken 20:44.5; 13. A. Michaelson, Col 20:45.4; 14. L. Laughlin, Col 20:53.1; 15. B. Nelson, Was 20:59.8; 16. A. Kelley, Was 21:00.4; 17. M. Riggenberg, Was 21:01.4; 18. A. Jahn, Col 21:08.4; 19. M. Dampier, Was 21:08.7; 20. C. Schleich, Was 21:09.9; 21. T. Stewart, Col 21:22.9; 22. K. Clump, Was 21:40.6; 23. R. Devito, Ken 21:43.2; 24. M. Klaben, Ken 21:46.0; 25. F. Chay, Ken 21:46.6; 26. H. Steffensen, Ken 21:54.7; 27. K. Skjold, Sol 21:59.8; 28. M. Merkes, Sol 22:14.4; 29. F. Bursch, Hom 22:15.2; 30. S. Schmitter, Ken 22:31.2; 31. M. Wick, Col 22:29.7; 32. J. Clock, Sol 23:02.2; 33. D. Santos, Kod 23:05.8; 34. S. Wyatt, Sol 23:13.6; 35. A. Stafford, Hom 23:20.9; 36. G. Bohman, Pal 23:21.3; 37. S. Ernest, Kod 23:33.6; 38. M. Bursch, Hom 23:36.9; 39. G. Winter, Pal 23:28.2; 40. T. Whitfield, Pal 23:44.5; 41. A. Miller, Hom 23:49.0; 42. A. Egle, Kod 23:51.6; 43. A. Stricker, Pal 24:04.1; 44. A. Theisen, Ken 24:37.8; 45. M. Lundt, Pal 24:43.7; 46. C. Clonan, Sky 24:46.5; 47. V. Mastolier, Hom 24:47.6; 48. J. Jensen, Sol 25:57.8; 49. H. Smith, Pal 26:38.0; 50. K. Sworts, Pal 27:40.7.

Region III-1-2-3A girls team scores:

1. Grace Christian 22, 2. Seward 56, 3. Anchorage Christian 80, 4. Valdez 82,

Region III-1-2-3A girls

invididual results:

1. M. Boyles, Grac 20:02.4; 2. M. Applegate, Gra 20:38.7; 3. A. Barnwell, Sew 20:49.1; 4. B. Davis, Gra 20:58.0; 5. L. Anderson, ACS 21:25.0; 6. K. Atherton, Sew 21:26.5; 7. A. Trujillo, Gra 21:59.1; 8. B. Winkle, Gra 22:05.3; 9. C. Trujillo, Gra 22:10.3; 10. B. Price, Gra 22:53.2; 11. E. Merioles, Val 22:56.3; 12. T. Larson, Val 23:02.5; 13. K. Miller, Val 23:09.3; 14. J. Hamberger, Cor 23:14.4; 15. K. Sefton, Sew 23:21.0; 16. R. Baker, ACS 23:33.6; 17. J. Borodkin, Co 24:18.7; 18. L. Dyer, Sew 24:23.1; 19. C. Zweifel, Sew 24:27.4; 20. O. Jaconette, ACS 24:34.9.