It was a different story on the girls side. The deep Camden team easily outpaced runner-up Mt. Ararat to take the team title. Camden, led by senior Augusta Stockman's third place finish (19:20.6), collected 49 points, while Mt. Ararat led by 11th place finisher Camila Ciembroniewicz ran second with 88 points. Also qualifying for the State meet were Mt Blue (107), Bangor (125,) Brunswick (136), Messalonskee (151), and Cony (183).
The Camden team is deep enough that, even in the absence of injured junior Grace Iltis, it had the horsepower to push runners across at the top of the pack. Stockman, who won the Regional Meet in 2017, and placed second at the state meet in 2017 was joined in the scoring by first year Elsie Hildreth (4th, 19:40.7), Claire Wyman (9th), Miranda Dunton (14th), and Phoebe Root (22nd). Iltis, the 2017 KVAC Champion took second in last season's regional meet and took third at State's.
Finishing ahead of Stockman were Edward Little's Jillian Richardson and Kahryn Cullenberg of Mt. Blue. Richardson owned the course as she established her position as the front-runner at about the 150 meter mark. Cullenberg ran a strong race and looked comfortable throughout. In fact the junior from Mt. Blue was able to establish a new personal best at 19:10.10. Most runners noted that times were a shade off the typical Belfast speeds due to gusty winds and some soggy areas on the course. Cullenberg's strong personal mark is all the more noteworthy.
Even so, Richardson took the race by more than half a minute. Of course, the senior has gotten used to running alone. Getting ready to head into her fourth state meet, she will have a teammate with her in the starting box for the first time. In each of her last four season's Edward Little has not qualified as a team for the state meet, and Richardson has been the lone entrant from EL to qualify based on individual finishes. Next week she'll be joined by sophomore Lily Vincent, a sophomore who finished 25th with a new best mark of 21:37.
The senior from EL was 5th at this meet last season but has failed to cross the line first in just two races this fall. In the season opening Laliberte Invitational at Cony in August Richardson was edged by Gorham's Kate Tugman who made a late push at the finish. In addition Richardson finished second to Falmouth's Sofie Matson at the Festival of Champions, but in front of 609 other runners. Today Matson and Tugman went one-two at the Southern Regionals at Twin Brook.
Other top ten finishers included Peyton Arbour of Messalonskee (5th), Bangor's Lydia Gilmore (6th), Emma Charles of Mt. Blue (7th), Erin McCarthy of Bangor (8th), and Brewer's Olivia Mosca (10th).
For Arbour her 19:56 was a new personal best. The senior has rebounded this season after a disappointing junior campaign. Her form and times are reminiscent of a sophomore season that saw her as a top ten finisher at KVAC and regionals and earned her a 22nd place finish at the 2016 State meet.