Oct. 19, 2016 – The Heights High boys cross country team claimed its fifth-straight Lake Erie League championship, while the girls team took home its second-straight title last Saturday at Forest Hills Park.
HHS senior Na’Shawn Collins continued his dominance of LEL competition with his third consecutive individual championship. Collins finished the 5k course in 17:45, easily out-distancing the second-place runner by nearly 30 seconds.
On the girls side, senior Dayvione Briggs and sophomore Ella Damaser took the top two spots in the race. Briggs finished the 5k course in 21:05 followed by Damaser in 21:17. The third-place finisher from Bedford finished more than a minute and a half behind the top two Tigers.
Briggs won the third LEL individual title of her prep career after previously taking home the honor in 2013 and 2014. In 2015, Damaser won the individual title as a freshman.
The boys team had three of the top four runners, including Collins, sophomore Daniel Lewis and freshman Devonte Cotton. However, the Tigers narrowly defeated Maple Heights by just one point to claim the team title.
The girls team put its top five runners in the first 11 places, including Briggs, Damaser, sophomore Georgie Jolivette (5th), freshman Nataya Truitt (9th) and sophomore Rebecca Gordon (11th). With 24 team points, the Tigers easily beat second-place Bedford who finished with 51 points.
The Tigers now move on to the district meet at Willoughby South this Saturday October, 22. Good luck to those moving on and congratulations to both teams on a great season!
View the complete results from the 2016 LEL Championships