Owen McArdle gave much credit to teammate Jack Levine for enabling him to win a region cross country championship.
The Yorktown High School senior won the boys 6D North Region individual title at Burke Lake Park on Nov. 3 in 15:16. McArdle explained that Levine was running fast and ahead of him over the last mile or so of the race. So McArdle paced himself off of Levine over the final portion of the course, until he made his strong move to take the lead, which he did, then maintained until the finish.
“I put a big surge on to get to the lead off of Jack, and I was able to hammer it from there and win the race,” McArdle said. “My buddy Levine was really feeling it with how he was running, and he won it for me.”
A week earlier in the Liberty District meet, McArdle finished second behind McLean High’s Xavier Jemison. In the region meet, Jemison finished second. The two runners have dueled in many meets this season and last.
McArdle said he had extra momentum to win the region, because he didn’t like how he ran at the district meet.
“I was scared to get that hurt feeling last week at districts,” said McArdle, who was sick to his stomach and being attended by trainers following the region meet. “This week it hurts so much, but I’m so happy.”
By winning, McArdle, fifth in last season’s region meet, helped the Yorktown boys finish third in the Nov. 3 region meet and earn a berth to race in the Class 6 state meet for the second straight season. Yorktown had 73 points. Oakton won with 61 and South Lakes was second with 71.
Levine finished fourth in the race in 15:38 and Yorktown’s Bennett Lamb was ninth (15:54) to help lead the way. Other top runners for Yorktown were Jack Blocher in 30th (16:39), Matthew Pedicano 35th (16:47), Lucas Keith 37th (16:48) and Roman Steis 54th (17:56).
For the Washington-Liberty boys, Ryan Malatesta was 28th (16:30) in the region meet.
In the 6D North Region girls meet at the same date and venue, Yorktown senior Anna Corcoran finished third individually in 17:42, helping her team place fifth with 101 points. McLean won with 55. The Washington-Liberty Generals were sixth with 110.
Also for Yorktown, Sofia Sheldon was 18th (19:31) and Eleanor Whitehouse 29th (20:06).
For W-L, Karenna Keane was 12th (18:41), Kate Mulvaney 15th (19:19) and Rachel Mulvaney 17th (19:25).