Gwinnett Co. Boys
While some of the familiar faces such as Girma Mecheso and Michael Winston are gone, 2007 has proven to be one of the deepest years team wise in Gwinnett Co. history. Entering the Gwinnett County Championships, 6 teams were ranked in the top 10 of AAAA: Brookwood at #1, Collins Hill at #2, Parkview at #5, Peachtree Ridge at #7, Mill Creek at #9, and North Gwinnett at #10. Add to that Wesleyan, ranked #1 in AA, and Dacula, ranked #3 in AAAA, and you have the makings of a deep meet. Brookwood had the #1 ranking despite not running all of top runners together at Carrollton. So the County Meet would be a showdown between the Broncos’ full squad, Collins Hill (who would actually race without Rob Manning, their 2nd man), and Parkview, who found themselves in the unfamiliar position of not being the top ranked team in the state.
From the start, the lead pack consisted of Philip O’Brien of Collins Hill, Colin Conroy of Mill Creek, and Josh Pinson and Brett Richardson of Parkview. Shortly after the mile mark, O’Brien threw down the gauntlet and opened up a lead on the others. He would stay there the rest of way, winning in 15:51. The real battle was for 2nd place, as Conroy, Pinson, and Richardson stayed close together throughout the race. With less than 200 meters to go, Conroy made a move to break away, and apparently had. However, Pinson made another push on the last straightaway and was able to take 2nd place in 15:56 to Conroy’s 15:58. Richardson had an outstanding race to take 4th in 16:06, giving the Panther’s 2 runners ahead of Brookwood’s #1. Brookwood was led by Doug Kalmbach, 5th in 16:15, and two more top 10 runners: Tyler Anyan in 7th place in 16:23, and Michael Sexton, 9th in 16:24. Parkview’s Brian Detweiler placed 10th in 16:27, but that gave the Broncos 3 runners in front of Parkview’s #3, so that team race would be a nail biter.
In the end, Parkview took home the title by having JJ Van Tonder in 12th place in 16:32 and Evan Marbury in 25th in 16:52. Brookwood’s scoring was rounded out by Oscar Garduno, 15th in 16:39, and Sean Hitchens, 20th in 16:45. The final score was Parkview 53, Brookwood 56, one of the closest races ever for the Boy’s title. Collins Hill took 3rd place with 101 points. Wesleyan showed they can more than hold their own among the larger schools, finishing in 4th place with 123 points. Only 17 points separated 5th-7th, with Peachtree Ridge taking 5th with 138 points, North Gwinnett in 6th with 142 points, and Mill Creek in 7th with 155 points.
With Parkview and Brookwood both in Region 8-AAAAA, there will be at least one more showdown before the state meet. And with Collins Hill, Peachtree Ridge, North Gwinnett, and Mill Creek in Region 7-AAAAA (along with South Forsyth), the intensity will only increase over the next few weeks.
Gwinnett Co. Girls
The girl’s teams of Gwinnett County can usually be found among the top teams in the state, and this year is no exception. Going into the Gwinnett County Championships, Collins Hill held the #1 ranking, followed by Parkview at #2, Brookwood at #4, North Gwinnett at #5, and Peachtree Ridge at #6. While Collins Hill are without Jackie Drouin, they still have a front runner in Ohio transplant Amanda Winslow. As the race unfolded, she kept a modest lead over the rest of the field, with Nicky Akande and Allyson McGinty of Collins Hill and Lindsey Ebert of Parkview following close behind. Nicole DiMercurio and Laura Serres of North Gwinnett, Caroline Ward of Parkview, and and Carly Egan of Brookwood battled for some of the remaining top 10 spots.
As the race wore on, Winslow showed her strength, eventually winning the race in 18:17, almost 30 seconds ahead of the next runner. However, the excitement was the race for 2nd place, as Ebert, Akande, and McGinty were still together with an 800 to go. Ebert unleased a devastating kick to take 2nd place in 18:44, with Akande taking 3rd and McGinty 4th. Dimercurio and Serres took 5th and 7th to give North a nice 1-2 punch. Egan took 9th to finish first for the Broncos. Peachtree Ridge got a top 10 finish from Sara Curry, 10th in 19:33.
When the results were tabulated, it was Collins Hill taking the title once again, with a low score of 28 points. Parkview took 2nd with 77 points, but the real surprise was 3rd place: North Gwinnett took the last team trophy, scoring 95 points to Brookwood’s 116. Rounding out the top 5 was Peachtree Ridge with 130 points. With plenty of meets left, the battle for a podium spot at State should be well worth watching.
Coach Andy Christie