Abington Heights senior Anna Pucilowski runs her to third district title.
Tom Robinson / For Abington Journal
MESHOPPEN – Anna Pucilowski took control early on the way to a 31-second victory and a repeat of her Class 3A girls championship in the District 2 Cross Country Championships Oct. 22 at the Wyoming County Fairgrounds.
“I always do better when I get out hard and just see if I can hold on,” Pucilowski said.
Pucilowski’s career features three titles and a runner-up finish at districts, all while helping Abington Heights to four straight team titles.
The Lady Comets had four of the top eight runners and all seven team members in the top 17 out of 52 finishers. They needed it to defeat unbeaten Wyoming Valley Conference champion Crestwood by a 35-43 margin while finishing 56 points ahead of the rest of the seven-team field.
“I’m really happy about that,” Pucilowski said. “I knew they could do it. There wasn’t a doubt in my mind. I just knew we had to work for it.”
The winning time of 18:43 is the fastest Pucilowski has ever run on the 3.1-mile Fairgrounds course, despite finishing up into a strong headwind.
“Coming up the hill was so hard,” he said. “At the finish, I just felt defeated.”
Five other Abington Heights runners claimed medals with top-15 finishes.
Marley Gilboy was fifth in 19:57.5.
Calli Gilboy was seventh, Morgan Kresge eighth, Julia Healey 14th and Kennadi Lotz 15th.
Layla Caraballo came in 17th.
Class 2A girls
Scranton Prep did not have a medalist or state qualifier, but the Classics had enough balance to beat out three teams that did while finishing sixth out of 12.
Valley View (60 points) and Wallenpaupack (62) landed state berths.
Scranton Prep had a team score of 147.
Madelyn Schoenwetter was 19th and Emelia Williams 26th out of 82.
Class A girls
Lackawanna Trail entered just two runners in the race, which was won by Elk Lake and its sophomore standout, Kendyl Weisgold.
