NEWS CEDAR CLIFF BOYS 10th IN THE UNITED STATES CENTRAL PA PRIDE ON DISPLAY AT THE GREAT AMERICAN XC CHAMPIONSHIP IN SOUTH CAROLINA   Cedar Cliff is now ranked 10th in the United States (Winthrop University, SC) - Cedar Cliff High School boys carried central Pennsylvania to national recognition Saturday, September 21, 2001, at The Race of Champions, the most prestigious invitational race in the Nike-sponsored Great American Cross Country Championship, a major meet featuring the top 25 teams out of 670 teams and 5,000 runners who gathered in South Carolina for the three day festival. On a hot dry late summer southern morning and a fast flat 5K course, the Cedar Cliff Colt Boys, seeded 25th, upset the forecasts and placed 10th in a field the very best runners in the country. In fact, the boys placed first of any team from the northeast, teams from Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, New York, New Jersey, PA and Maryland, and ahead of favored national powerhouse squads like Danbury Connecticut; Bingham Utah; Campbell County Wyoming; and The Woodlands, Texas. Andy Brehm and Christian Kunkle pose for a photo with Alan Webb. "I favored the southern teams in this race because of the climate," Marc Bloom, editor of The Harrier's Cross Country Report, said before the race. "Also many of these teams are three weeks ahead of Cedar Cliff in training because their State Championships fall earlier than PA's," Marc noted. "Cedar Cliff is definitely a team to watch now." "We were running third in the country if you look at our top three runners," Coach Ken Roseberry said after the hard run race. "Those guys delivered. We have to focus on our fifth runner. We're going back into training now with a good national showing today; but we have more work to do this season." The Colt top three finished within six seconds of each other. Lead runner junior Patrick Philbin opened with a 4:50 mile and finished 32nd / 181 with a season PR of 16:22. Seniors Andrew Brehm (16:23) and John Butler (16:26) placed 33rd and 40th, while junior Jason Yinger (16:51) and senior Christian Kunkle (17:23) ran 67th and 108th , locking in the team's 10th place finish. Junior John MacConnell (17:46) and senior Jon Boal (17:47) capped the Colt championship performance placing 127th and 129th. Coach Ken Roseberry said the Colts still "have more work to do this season." "I went out too fast at 4:50. We haven't started speed work yet," Philbin said after the race. "It cost me at the finish line. At 5:02 or so, I think I would have finished stronger, and maybe bumped the team up a couple of places," he added. "But it was a great race for all of us, we're ready to kick some butt." Coach Bill Megagna (who incidentally placed 13th in the senior 5K race with a time of 17:41) said later that the team looked strong, but more work was needed to prepare for the PIAA state championship in Hershey this November. "Every runner on this team counts." He said. "We have no room for error." Visits to the Colts by high school mile record holder Alan Webb and two-time Olympian Bob Kennedy set a professional tone for the race. Dinners and a party for all the runners created an atmosphere of bonding and good sportsmanship among the very finest high school distance runners in the United States. [Team and individual results and links below.] Team Results: The Race of Champions 1. Kingwood HS-TX 13, 17, 27, 36, 69 = 162 2. La Salle HS-OH 1, 37, 42, 46, 57 = 183 3. Canyon HS-NC 3, 6, 19, 75, 99 = 202 4. North Mecklenburg HS-NC 5, 14, 43, 51, 100 = 213 5. Farragut HS-TN 9, 11, 47, 61, 88 = 216 6. Long Beach Poly-CA 8, 15, 59, 60, 87 = 229 7. Kearney HS-NE 2, 26, 44, 48, 133 = 253 8. Mountain View HS-UT 23, 30, 58, 74, 81 = 266 9. Brookwood H S-GA 29, 45, 49, 66, 82 = 271 10. Cedar Cliff HS-PA 32, 33, 40, 67, 108 = 280     11. The Woodlands HS-TX 38, 39, 52, 53, 101 = 283 12. Madera High-CA 20, 22, 76, 85, 102 = 305 13. Hendricken -MA 25, 41, 55, 89, 103 = 313 14. BINGHAM-UT 34, 56, 71, 83, 86 = 330 15. Danbury HS-CT 12, 50, 62, 105, 116 = 345 16. Cherokee HS-PA 4, 10, 65, 136, 138 = 353 17. Midlothian H S-VA 31, 68, 73, 77, 114 = 363 18. South Oldham HS-KY 7, 54, 79, 109, 115 = 364 19. Good Counsel HS-MD 28, 63, 64, 104, 113 = 372 20. Campbell County HS-WY 24, 70, 78, 96, 110 = 378 21. Londonderry N H HS-NH 35, 80, 90, 94, 95 = 394 22. Hoover HS-Al 16, 18, 123, 141, 143 = 441 23. Pearl River HS-NY 21, 72, 84, 144, 145 = 466 24. James F. Byrnes HS-SC 91, 118, 128, 159, 161 = 657 [Individual Boys Results here:] www.dyestat.com/us/1xc/GreatAmerican/charlotte/r-roc-boys.htm More NEWS here.