A 5 kilometer course on the grounds of Oatlands Plantation in Leesburg played host to the Oatlands Invitational cross-country meet Sept. 17. The event - comprised of eight races - is annually one of the top high school cross-country events in Virginia.

Sean McGorty (15:30) of Chantilly High School and Megan Moye (18:22) of Cosby claimed individual titles in the elite Varsity A races. Albemarle took home the boys team title in the Varsity A race, as did Walt Whitman (Md.) on the girls side.

Five runners from Loudoun schools cracked the top 20 in either the Varsity A boys or girls races. Patrick Joseph (16:06) of Loudoun County led the way with his ninth-place finish.

Joining Joseph in the boys’ top 20 were Freedom’s Thorpe Lichtenberg (16:18), Woodgrove’s Evan McCarthy (16:25) and Freedom’s Joseph Sibalik (16:26). Audrey Houghton (19:40) of Woodgrove crossed the finish line 16th in the Varsity A girls race.

Loudoun County - aided by Josh Showalter’s 26th place run - placed best among Loudoun boys teams in 13th overall.

Houghton’s strong showing - combined with Lydia Cromwell (20:05) and Alex Juzbasich (20:18) - led Woodgrove’s girls to a 14th place finish, tops in Loudoun.

Briar Woods finished second in the Varsity B girls race, just eight points behind champion Chantilly. The Falcons were led by top 10 finishes from Melissa Rizor (20:09) and Jackie Deffer (20:18).

Dominion produced top five team finishes in both the Varsity B races. Sam Coffman (17:09) paced the Titan boys to a third-place showing, and Sydney Shepherd (20:46) and Lindsey Cook (20:51) led Dominion’s girls to fifth place.

Gurjeet Chinayna of Broad Run enjoyed the top local boys individual finish in the Varsity B race, placing ninth with a time of 16:58. 

Below is a listing of top Loudoun finishes in the Varsity A races. Log on to http://www.runhigh.com for full results.

Boys Individual
9. Patrick Joseph (LC) 16:06
12. Thorpe Lichtenberg (F) 16:18
18. Evan McCarthy (W) 16:25
20. Joseph Sibalik (F) 16:26
23. Brady Guertin (SB) 16:28
26. Josh Showalter (LC) 16:34

Girls Individual
16. Audrey Houghton (W) 19:40
30. Natalie Rosas (T) 20:03
34. Lydia Cromwell (W) 20:05
44. Sarah Dillistin (PF) 20:14
49. Kathryn Eder (LC) 20:17
50. Alex Juzbasich (W) 20:18

Boys Team
13. Loudoun County (391)
18. Potomac Falls (519)
20. Stone Bridge (579)
21. Freedom (589)

Girls Team
14. Woodgrove (418)
19. Heritage (519)
21. Loudoun County (538)
22. Stone Bridge (561)
24. Potomac Falls (578)