Ocean City junior Riley Tolson ran the 3rd-fastest time among all six races and won her 1st state cross country title Saturday in the Group 3 race at Holmdel County Park.
Tolson ran 18:05, matching her time from Shore Coaches and winning by 125 meters over Amelia Pattwell of Middletown South, who wasa 2nd in 18:31.
Tolson is Ocean City’s first XC state champion in 22 years, since Brittany Sedberry won her 3rd conseutive title in Group 3 in 2004. Megan Hartman [1992] and Abbey Hartman [1995, 1996] also won state titles for Ocean City.
Ocean City, ranked 4th in New Jersey, placed a close 3rd in the state’s toughest group with 106 points, behind No. 3 Middletown South [86] and No. 5 Princeton [97] in a battle of three of the top-5 ranked teams in New Jersey.
Senior Lillian Flora [24th in 20:02], junior Lenna Driscoll [28th in 20:09], senior Carly Godfrey [32nd in 20:17] and freshman Mackenzie Jenkins [36th in 20:28] gave the Red Raiders four finishers in a 26-second span.
Northern Burlington freshman Molly Cataline placed 5th in 18:58, 7th-fastest by a freshman in South Jersey history at Holmdel, Moorestown senior Catherine Hipple was 26th in 20:06, Winslow juniop Annabella Cassidy was 35th in 20:26, Northern junior Kamiyah Vergo ran 20:30 for 37th and Ocean City senior Peighton Clemens was 40th in 20:40.
