| DeKalb County Cross Country |
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| Ayala captures gold at Class AA state cross country meet |
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| Cross Keys junior Leonel Ayala ran a time of 16:22.44 to become Cross Keys' first cross country champion since 1967. (Photo by Mark Brock) |
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Lakeside takes second in Class AAAA boys' meet
2009 DeKalb Co. State Results
Cross Keys junior Leonel Ayala became just the second Cross Keys runner to win a cross country individual state title after posting a time of 16:22.44 to capture the Class AA championship at Carrollton on Saturday.
Ayala won by 2.29 seconds over Jordon’s Ian Edwards to give Cross Keys its first cross country individual title since Bobby McLeer captured the Class AA title in 1967.
The win was the second consecutive victory for Ayala on the Carrollton course this season. He won the Last Chance Meet in 16:47.04 and bested that time by 24.6 seconds to win the state title.
DeKalb County came up short of a team state championship with one second place team finish and three fifth places.
The Lakeside Vikings had a pair of Top 10 finishers on the way to second place in the Class AAAA Boys’ State Meet. Junior John Ewing captured silver in the individual results with a time of 16:31.14 which was just 3.24 seconds off D’Andre Smalley of Westside’s winning time of 16:27.90. Junior Charlie Clark finished in sixth in 16:52.09.
It was Lakeside’s 28th Top 10 finish in the team standings at state which leads all DeKalb County teams.
Southwest DeKalb junior Jared Williams finished 21st overall to lead the Panthers to a finish of 15th in the team standings. Chamblee sophomore David Coble ran a time of 17:11.53 to take 16th in the individual standings and lead Chamblee to an 18th place finish overall. There were 32 teams competing in Class AAAA.
The Dunwoody Wildcats finished fifth in the Class AAA state meet behind junior James Dwyer who ran a 16:34.41 to take 10th in the individual standings. It was Dunwoody’s eighth Top 10 finish which ties the Wildcats with Shamrock at fourth in DeKalb County
Dunwoody also finished fifth in the girls’ Class AAA meet led by freshman Kenzie Johnson’s 15th place finish in 20:25.61. It was Dunwoody’s fifth Top 10 finish to move the Lady Wildcats into a tie for fifth with Peachtree and Southwest DeKalb in the county standings.
Druid Hills' top finisher was senior Hannah Wichman (21:07.70) in 29th as the Lady Red Devils finished 10th in the team standings. It was Druid Hills 10th Top 10 finish at state which is second to Lakeside’s 19.
The Lakeside Lady Vikings were fifth overall in Class AAAA behind defending champion Meghan Wetterhall’s second place finish (18:45.87). The sophomore had won the title in 2008 as a freshman. This marked the Lady Vikings 19th Top 10 finish in the team standings.
Freshman Annie Kelly was fourth in 19:18.06 to give Lakeside a pair of Top 5 finishers in the race.
Southwest DeKalb finished 15th out of 31 teams led by sophomore Greciana Cooper’s 17th place finish in a time of 20:26.28.
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| Lakeside makes it 15 in a row at DeKalb |
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| Lakeside junior John Ewing improved from third in 2008 to first in 2009 in winning the individual boys title. (Photo by Mark Brock) |
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2009 DeKalb Co. Cross Country Championships
The Lakeside Vikings captured their 15th consecutive DeKalb County Cross Country Championship by placing five runners in the Top 15 of the 96 participants on the way to defeating Dunwoody 39-56 on Tuesday at the Shamrock Middle School course.
Junior John Ewing, the third place finisher in 2008, cut 44.19 seconds off his 2008 time in running a time of 16:39.05 to win the individual title and lead the Vikings to their 26th overall county championship.
Junior Charlie Clark (17:15.95) and senior David Dixon (17:25.05) finished fifth and sixth, respectively, to put three Vikings in the Top 10 finishers.
Juniors Tyler Lucas (17:54.71) and Aboho Kataburwa (17:55.74) were 13th and 14th to clinch the title for the Vikings.
Dunwoody’s James Dwyer, another junior, finished second in 16:41.55, just 2.5 seconds behind Ewing to lead the Dunwoody charge. Junior teammate Kuaniyal Chol finished in 17:46.76 to make the Top 10.
Cross Keys Leonel Ayala, another of the talented juniors in the county this fall, captured third with a time of 17:01.75 and Avondale senior Kasahun Neselu was fourth in a time of 17:13.19.
Chamblee’s brother duo of sophomore David Coble (17:32.96) and senior Alex Coble (17:46.18) finished in seventh and ninth, respectively, to lead the Bulldogs to a fourth place finish.
Southwest DeKalb’s third place finish was led by senior Ed Austin as he clocked a 17:38.14 to take eighth place.
VARSITY BOYS TOP 10
Participant CL School Time
1. John Ewing JR Lakeside 16:39.05
2. James Dwyer JR Dunwoody 16:41.55
3. Leonel Ayala JR Cross Keys 17:01.75
4. Kasahun Neselu SR Avondale 17:13.19
5. Charlie Clark JR Lakeside 17:15.95
6. David Dixon SR Lakeside 17:25.05
7. David Coble SO Chamblee 17:32.96
8. Ed Austin SR SW DeKalb 17:38.14
9. Alex Coble SR Chamblee 17:46.18
10. Kuaniyal Chol JR Dunwoody 17:46.76
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| Dunwoody captures second ever DeKalb County girls’ championship |
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| The Dunwoody Lady Wildcats won the school's second county title and first since 1984. (Photo by Mark Brock) |
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The Dunwoody Lady Wildcats made the third different champion in the past three seasons as they got past Druid Hills and Lakeside for the 2009 DeKalb County Girls’ Cross Country Championship.
Those top three teams finished within seven points of each other as Dunwoody placed six in the Top 20 for a score of 45 while Druid Hills put five in the Top 20 and Lakeside five in the Top 20 to finish with 50 and 52 points, respectively, in the race.
A trio of Dunwoody runners finished fourth through sixth to lead the Wildcats run to title as freshman Kenzie Johnson (21:06.35) was followed by senior Charlotte Collins (21:35.10) and sophomore Katie Martin (21:35.46). Dunwoody's only other county title came 25 years ago in 1984.
Lakeside sophomore Meghan Wetterhall defended her 2008 individual title by knocking one minute and 21 seconds off her time of a year with a clocking of 19:12.46. Lakeside freshman Annie Kelly was second in a time of 19:48.74.
Greciana Cooper, a Southwest DeKalb sophomore, finished third for the second consecutive season in a time of 20:38.49 to cap off a season in which she won twice at Shamrock.
Druid Hills had three of the last four runners in the Top 10 led by senior Hannah Wichman in seventh (21:38.09), freshman Mary Katherine Leary in ninth (21:59.02) and sophomore Kelsey Sullivan (21:59.57) in tenth.
Senior Soyong Smith of Redan finished eighth overall with a time of 21:56.04 to round out the Top 10.
VARSITY GIRLS TOP 10
Participant CL School Time
1. Meghan Wetterhall SO Lakeside 19:12.46
2. Annie Kelly FR Lakeside 19:48.74
3. Greciana Cooper SO SW DeKalb 20:38.49
4. Kenzie Johnson FR Dunwoody 21:06.35
5. Charlotte Collins SR Dunwoody 21:35.10
6. Katie Martin SO Dunwoody 21:35.46
7. Hannah Wichman SR Druid Hills 21:38.09
8. Soyong Smith SR Redan 21:56.04
9. Mary Katherine Leary FR Druid Hills 21:59.02
10. Kelsey Sullivan SO Druid Hills 21:59.57
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| Lakeside sophomore Meghan Wetterhall became the eighth girl to win two county championships as she won her second consecutive title in 2009. (Photo by Mark Brock) |
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| Dunwoody, Lakeside swap junior varsity cross country titles |
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JV Championship Results from Shamrock
Dunwoody and Lakeside traded trophies at the 2009 DeKalb County Junior Varsity Cross Country Championships on Thursday at the Shamrock Middle School course.
The Dunwoody Wildcats ended a four-year reign by the Lakeside Vikings with a three-point victory (41-44) spurred by five runners finishing in the top 12 of the boys’ race. Chamblee finished third with 77 points.
Lakeside freshman Ryan Kelly took the individual medalist honors by running a time of 11:37.13 for a 27.78 second victory over Southwest DeKalb freshman Jacques Williams (12:04.91).
Sophomore Sam Hill from Chamblee was third in 12:08.00 before the Dunwoody sophomore duo of John Soper (12:08.58) and Will Sylvester (12:09.28) started a run of five Dunwoody runners over the next nine places.
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| Lakeside freshman Ryan Kelly ran a time of 11:37.13 to take gold in the boys' junior varsity championship. (Photo by Mark Brock) |
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| Lakeside ends Dunwoody's reign over JV title |
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| Lakeside captured the 2009 DeKalb County Junior Varsity Cross Country championship. (Photo by Mark Brock) |
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The Lakeside Lady Vikings returned the favor in the girls’ race as they stopped a two-run by the Dunwoody Lady Wildcats with another close score of 37-44. Druid Hills was third with 76.
Chamblee eighth grader Maddy Wetterhall, the younger sister of Lakeside sophomore Meaghan Wetterhall (the 2008 Class AAAA state champion), captured the individual title with a time of 13:01.55.
Dunwoody eighth grader Alex Cameron took second in a time of 13:11.04 and Lakeside freshman Hayley Keadey was third in 13:44.90 to lead a group of six Lakeside runners to finish in the top 15.
Lakeside freshmen Katy Guzdial (14:26.73), Jennifer Cora (14:47.33) and Mona Haddad (14:58.51) were fifth, seventh and eighth, respectively.
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| Chamblee eighth grader Maddy Wetterhall won the junior varsity girls' championship. (Photo by Mark Brock) |
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History of Cross Country in DeKalb County |
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| Chamblee's Emily Reese completed her career in 2007 as a four-time state champion. (Photo by Chris Smith) |
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DeKalb County has made its mark on the cross country scene since the 1950s when state competition began with the boys. Since that time the county has brought home 19 state titles in boys and 3 in the girls’ competition.
The first team state title came in 1957 as the Druid Hills boys won the first of two consecutive titles. Lakeside and the now defunct Gordon High lead the county with five state titles apiece. Lakeside won five titles in a seven-year span from 1969 to 1975, the only non-title years coming in 1971 and 1974. Gordon won all five of its titles in consecutive years from 1981-85. Tucker (1965), Shamrock (1970), Lithonia (1972), Dunwoody (1974), Avondale (1977), Towers (1980) and Chamblee (1986) hold the other seven boys titles.
The DeKalb boys teams have combined for a total of 103 Top 10 finishes (including the 19 titles). Lakeside leads the way with 24 Top 10 finishes followed by Druid Hills with 17 and Chamblee rounds out the teams in double figures with its 16 Top 10 finishes. The county has 15 of its current 18 high schools with at least one Top 10 finish. Shamrock (8), Gordon (6), Briarcliff (3), Sequoyah (2), Walker (2) and Henderson (1) combined for 22 of the Top 10 finishes before they were closed.
Peachtree High, no longer in existence, won the first girls team state title in 1979 and was followed by Chamblee in 1981 and Gordon in 1982 (giving Gordon a sweep of the two titles in 1982).
Lakeside also leads the county in Top 10 finishes on the girls’ side with a county high of 14 out of the 51 within the county.
Druid Hills has eight Top 10 team finishes and Chamblee with its one state title has seven.
The county boasts 25 boys’ individual state champions and 13 on the girls’ side. Avondale’s Hugh Tankersley won the first individual state title in 1955. Gordon’s James Flack won titles in 1982-84 during Gordon’s five-year reign as the team champ. Walker’s Ricky Watson became the first two-time champion with state titles in 1971-72. Avondale's Chase Van Valkenburg (1976-77), Chamblee’s John Boney (1990-91) and Lakeside’s Joe Thorne (2000-01) were also two-time state champs.
The girls’ first individual state title came in the inaugural season of the state competition in 1975 when Lakeside’s Kristi Hanna won the AAA title. Chamblee junior Emily Reese won the last individual title in the 2007 season with the AAA state title to become the first four-time winner from DeKalb County. She won the Class AAAA title in 2004 and 2005 and the Class AAA in 2006.
DeKalb has three other two-time state title winners including Stacie Reich of Chamblee (1980-81), Loreen White of Gordon (1982-83) and Chamblee's Allison Danford (1990-91). |
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| The Lakeside Vikings ran their streak to 15 consecutive (26 overall) at the 2009 DeKalb County Championships. (Photo by Mark Brock) |
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22 State Championships
Boys' State Titles (19)
Lakeside (5) 1969, 1970, 1072-73, 1975; Gordon (5) 1981-85; Druid Hills (2) 1957-58; Avondale (1) 1977; Chamblee (1) 1986; Dunwoody (1) 1974; Lithonia (1) 1972; Shamrock (1), Towers (1) 1980; Tucker (1) 1965.
Girls' State Titles (3)
Chamblee (1) 1981, Gordon (1) 1982, Peachtree (1) 1979. |
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