The Parkland Trojans cross country program ended the 2020 regular season with a showdown Oct. 14 against a tough opponent in the Emmaus Green Hornets. To say it was a showdown would not be too dramatic. Both teams were undefeated this year and as always, rivals.

“Our student-athletes know that the Emmaus race meant a little more this year,” said Parkland head coach Stephen Ott. “There is no EPC championship race this year, so our Emmaus race was the closest thing to it. Emmaus has a fine coaching staff and solid runners. It was a great test to see where we are at with districts on the horizon.”

Where Parkland is at is pretty good. For the boys, perfection (5-0). For the girls, a 4-1 record.

“There were several close finishes and our boys showed their heart at the finish,” said Ott. “It was a great win, but I reminded them that this was just the next step. Now it is on to districts.”

For the girls “Emmaus won, but our girls had some strong performances,” said Ott. “Emmaus has a great lead runner and a solid pack right behind. This race showed you where we need to be in order to compete with the defending District 11 champs.”

Seniors Brooke Labenberg, Ava Bendetti and Lauren Williams fueled the girls outstanding season.

“Brooke is our top runner for our girls, and her mental toughness in races is the reason why,” Ott said. “Ava’s hard work and dedication during practices hitting paces and pushing Brooke. Elena Wenger has helped all three of them continue to improve. Lauren’s drive and determination has helped her and our other top runners.”

On the boys side, senior Ben Esquieres and Joshua Wynn provided Ott with leadership.

“Ben leads the way for our boys team,” said the coach. “His drive and motivation are contagious for the younger boys. Josh shows up to work each day and strives toward improving.”

Helping that improvement all season were Ott’s assistant coaches Doug Finley, Christie Schlaner and Lexi Dongvort.

“We all work well together keeping our student-athletes mentally and physically prepared for the challenges ahead,” said Ott. “We discuss paces, workouts and training plans to set our student-athletes up for success. We all have each others backs, and that helps use support our student-athletes to the best of our ability.”

Districts are scheduled for Oct. 27 and 28 at Blue Mountain Ski Resort.

GIRLS

Emmaus 21, Parkland 37

1. Ashleigh McNellis (E) 20:40, 2. Hailey Reinhard (E), 3. Brooke Labenberg (P), 4. Elena Wenger (P), 5. Belle Lees (E), 6. Keerstin Augustin (E), 7. Kera Reinhard (E), 8. Clara Kennedy (E), 9. Ava Bendetti (P), 10. Jessica Price (P), 11. Lauren Williams (P), 12. Gracie Trexler (P), 13. Zoe Patselas (P), 14. Olympia Curley-Katrishan (E), 15. Madison Torretta (E).

BOYS

Parkland 18, Emmaus 39

1. Benjamin Esquieres (P) 18:02, 2. Brady Hoffman (P), 3. Josh Beltrame (P), 4. Geoffrey Kleinberg (E), 5. Paul Abeln (P), 6. Nic Buonanno (E), 7. Brian Warren (P), 8. Ethan Strzempak (E), 9. Cameron Price (P), 10. Keshav Shankar (E), 11. Sam Dalton (E), 12. Cameron Carter (E), 13. Avi Hochhauser (P), 14. Dominic Nunes (E), 15. Ethan Willard (P).