Wavering Over #1 Walz, Dulaney Over #1 Severna Park At Glory Days

Glory Days Grill Invitational
MileSplit Staff


Photos by Tim Dillistin

Maryland Team Results Merge From Glory Days: Boys - Girls

The Glory Days Grill Invitational on Saturday in Virginia was not kind to Maryland's top ranked with the exception of the Bethesda-Chevy Chase girls. Dulaney senior Eric Walz had been undefeated this season, but ended up faltering in the final mile to not only eventual race winner Tyler Cox-Philyaw from Millbrook High School in Virginia, but in-state competitor and MD #3 ranked Jack Wavering of Good Counsel.

However, Walz's day was not without victory as he team in the previous #1 ranked Dulaney boys evened the score back up with their 4A rivals in current MD #1 ranked Severna Park after a loss at Bull Run by defeating them at Glory Days and repeating as the meet champions.

After Walz finishing third (15:59) and just under 16 minutes as the team's top finisher, Dulaney had 3 more runners among the top 12 places and just over a 15 second time gap behind their front runner with Elijah Hawkins (10th, 16:13), Sean Smyth (11th, 16:15), and Andrew King (12th, 16:15). Austin Carey (47th, 16:56) rounded out their top 5 scoring to keep their spread under one minute. Their team score of 80 points was able to just put them one point ahead of arguably the best team in the state of Virginia in the Lake Braddock boys, who received preseason recognition nationally as well one of the best teams in the Southeast Region. Dulaney has to feel better about their chances at season's end to compete for a Nike Cross Nationals berth after their win at Glory Days.

Severna Park, the reigning 3-time 4A state champs, seemed to get an off day from the Bull Run Invite runner-up Josh Tucker (15th, 16:18) as after challenging Walz two weekends ago at Hereford, saw four Dulaney runners finish ahead of him as his team's #2 runner. Andrew Forsyth took back over the #1 runner position for his team just ahead of the Dulaney pack in 8th place at 16:09. It ended up being a second rough outing for the 2-time NXN qualifying program in Virginia this fall (3rd at Oatlands) as they ended up finishing with a team score of 133 points behind not only Dulaney, but Lake Braddock (81 pts) and MD #3 ranked Good Counsel (127 pts). Even a great race from Tucker would not have made much of a difference on their team finish.

Wavering's race was just one of many consistently great performances from him this fall. A winner of the Chancellor Invite and Howard County Invite earlier in the season, the top Maryland finisher at Oatlands, a 15:40 5K PR at the Carlisle Invite in Pennsylvania, and now stating his case as the best cross country runner in the state of Maryland with a head to head win against current #1 ranked Eric Walz.

The Good Counsel boys as well looked great as they put 4 runners among the top 30 places with Wavering, Matt Lopez (2nd, 16:23), Jimmy Vazanna (28th, 16:36), and Kevin McGivern (29th, 16:37). Their team can get only stronger too with sub 16 minute 5K runner McGivern trying to work himself back into shape after an early season setback.

Two of the best 4A girls squads raced head to head again after taking the top two places in the elite race at Bull Run two weeks ago in MD #1 Bethesda-Chevy Chase and MD #4 Dulaney. Neither could put up much of a challenge to two of Virginia's top 6A squads in Lake Braddock (1st, 49 pts) and James Madison (2nd, 78 pts), so it ended up being a more compelling race to see how they would matchup against one another.

It was a single digits difference between the two at Hereford two Saturdays ago, but it was not as close this time around as a 75 point buffer was created at Glory Days with the third place finishing Bethesda-Chevy Chase girls (192 pts) and the fourth place finishing Dulaney girls (267 pts).

Dulaney did have Maryland's fastest individual performer in the meet in senior Kristin Meek finishing 12th with a time of 19:12, just ahead of Bethesda-Chevy Chase freshmen Virginia Brown, who ran #1 for her team for the first time in 13th place in a PR of 19:14. Bethesda-Chevy Chase had 5 runners at 20:31 or faster on the course, while Dulaney appeared to matchup well through four runners as Brynn Jones was their #4 at 20:17, but had a big dropoff in the fifth runner spot.

The Good Counsel girls were without top runner Claudia Wendt due to a hip injury that is not believed to be a serious injury to keep her out for a while according to mocorunning.com.

Maryland may not have had the individual winners in the seeded varsity races, but did see Winston Churchill's Julia Reicin win the varsity B division race in a time of 19:35 as the junior continues her impressive string of races this fall in the low to mid 19 minute range.

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