Brunswick Invitational Recap: All Satsangi On A Rain-Soaked Saturday

Poolesville's Nandini Satsangi finished fourth overall at last year's Brunswick Invitational, but couldn't be caught on Saturday. (Photo by Jeff Lagasse)

Plenty of teams made the journey to Brunswick High School in the corner of Frederick County for Saturday's Brunswick Invitational. Despite far-from-ideal conditions there were still many noteworthy performances. These were the top moments from 2017's Brunswick Invitational.

Satsangi Begins Junior Year With A Bang

You're not supposed to run fast on an all-grass course in the rain, but don't tell Poolesville sophomore Nandini Satsangi. The junior ran over a minute faster in the rain than she did as a sophomore last year en route to a dominant victory. Urbana's Brin Strouse matched her stride for stride for about a mile, but Satsangi would pull away in the final mile to secure her first win of the season. Newcomer Strouse also had a big day, finishing second overall and adding more depth to an Urbana team that finished second in the large school division.

Baba, Oakdale Girls Could Be A Force In 2A

A year after finishing ninth at the 3A state championships, the Oakdale girls came out and put five girls in the top 17 in the large school division to win the team title at the Brunswick Invitational. Emily Baba finished 30th as a freshman during that race and was the team's top finisher on Saturday placing third overall. Among the Bear's scorers was another freshman, Aubrey Schaffer, who was the third-fastest freshman across both divisions on Saturday. The team's performance could set them up as the best team in Frederick County heading into the season.


Northwest Boys Edge Centennial In Best Team Race Of Weekend

The Northwest boys suffered heavy graduation losses from a team that won the Montgomery County championship last season, but they are far from out of it. They may not feature last year's trademark pack, but senior Chase Osborne led the way with a second-place finish and helped the Jaguars edge a balanced Centennial team by four points. Both Linganore and Oakdale finished within 15 points of Northwest as well in the large school division.

Liberty Boys Begin Quest For Third Straight Title

It was a successful beginning to the 2017 season for Liberty, who went 1-2-3 en route to winning the small school division. Cross country newcomer Woodrow Kashima was the key, finishing in third behind the solid duo of Daniel Saxon and John Lemaster. It won't be an easy road for the two-time defending 2A champions with the three-time 3A state winners from River Hill moving down a classification, but it was a good start on Saturday for the Lions.