Dulaney nabs first title in 32 years

By Doug Binder, DyeStat Editor

Eric Walz led Dulaney to the its first boys cross country title since 1983 on Saturday at the MPSSAA Cross Country Championships at Hereford High School. 

Running on what is one of the toughest 3-mile courses in the country, Walz ran 16:06 and his team unseated Severna Park after finishing in the runner-up spot the past two years. Dulaney went 1-3-6 up front on the way to 37 points, matching Severna Park (2014) for the lowest team score since 2001. 

Walz beat runner-up Rohann Asfaw of Richard Montgomery by almost 14 seconds. 

On the girls side, Maria Coffin of Annapolis ran under the previous state meet course record at Hereford with 18:25.3 -- but had the second-fastest time of the day. Coffin was 34 second clear of second place when she crossed the finish line. 

Walter Johnson scored 51 points and won the 4A girls title for the third year in a row. 

In Class 3A, Annie Imhof of Green Mills won the girls race in 19:25.2 with a 20-second cushion. Centenial put its entire scoring five in the top 20 and won the team title with 68 points. 

River Hill's boys went 3-7-8 on the way to the team championship with 58 points. Matt Bennett of Northern Calvert was the individual winner in 16:14.9. 

In Class 2A, Hayley Jackson of Patuxent made history with her winning time of 18:23.6. It was not only the fastest time of the day, but it established a new record on the state meet course. She won by 44 seconds. Hereford's girls won the team title with 50 points.

Brian Cave of South Carroll won the boys race in 16:33.7, while Liberty edged Oakland Hills 89-92 for the team title.

In Class 1A , Boonsboro was the class of the small-school division and swept the team titles. Haley Wright won by 74 seconds in 19:33.8 and led a 1-3-5 finish. The Boonsboro girls scored 43 points to beat runner-up Smithsburg (51) for their sixth straight title. Will Merritt of Smithsburg won the boys race by 31 seconds in 16:50.1. The Boonsboro boys' depth allowed them to score 78 points for the win and their second straight win.