Introducing the 2020 XC Season!

 Hey Everyone! 

    I’m Faith Hollister, a junior at Delaware Valley Classical School (DVCS). One of last year's captains, Katie Rippon (‘20), asked if I’d be willing to take over the blog for the season and of course I said that I’d give it a shot! I’ve been running cross-country since sixth grade and I absolutely love it, so I’m super excited to see what this season will bring. 

    For various reasons, this year’s season will look a little different than it has in the past. Because of the Covid-19 restrictions, we will most likely not be participating in any invitationals or large meets, and in addition we will also be competing solely in MIL competitions. But, our school is super blessed to be able to have sports this year in light of all that is happening in our world, and so we will happily run any race that is set before us! The last major change is that DVCS is opening up its sports program to Harvest Christian Academy. This allows us to gain new teammates and grow our program, as well as meet more of the people who share their campus with us. It’s a great opportunity and so far we’ve had a few amazing Harvest students out and running with us which has been a lot of fun!

    The next big thing on the XC schedule is the annual 5K Fundraiser! The race is starting at 9am on this upcoming Saturday, September 12 and will be held at Lums Pond State Park. There will be prizes awarded to the winners of several age groups, and you can preregister by emailing David Corbett (dcorbett@dvclassical.org). The cost of the race is $20 if you sign up ahead of time but you can also register the day of the race and pay $25. The race is always super fun and a great way to join the school community in supporting Titan athletics, so I highly recommend signing up and joining the team out on the course this weekend! 

    That’s all the news from the cross-country team so far, but I will be posting race results and team updates as they become available. This year our team looks like it’ll be pretty strong and I can’t wait to see how we’ll all improve as the season progresses! 

2019 New Castle County Championship

Saturday, November 2nd, was our final race of the 2019 season. The New Castle County Championship race, held at the Winterthur Estate, is both a challenging race and a fun one. Runners and spectators came from all over the county to compete in races or cheer on runners. The clear, cool, sunny weather and no wind made for a great final race.

The varsity girls ran first, with 174 total runners. Alternate Captain Faith Hollister ('22) finished first for DVCS with a season best of 23:17 to end up in 88th place overall. Celia Pope ('24) was only fifteen places behind with a time of 23:55. Captain Katie Rippon ('20) finished in 121st place overall with a time of 25:10, and Fiona Fawcett ('22) crossed the line ten places behind in 25:47. Full race results can be found here.

Captain Katie Rippon ('20) finished in 25:10 in her final high school race. (Photo: Blue Hen Photography)

The varsity boys' race had 203 runners. Alternate Captain Bryce Pope ('23) and Kai Schmiedel ('23) finished in 148th and 149th places with times of 20:46 and 20:47, respectively. Judah Deitrich ('21) finished in 162nd place and 21:10. Josiah Deitrich ('24) finished in 23:05, and Captain Marc Sherman ('20) crossed the line in 23:29. Edward Scott ('24) and Anthony Dorno ('24) rounded out the DVCS boys, running times of 24:15 and 24:29, respectively. Full race results can be found here.

Captain Marc Sherman ('20) finished his final high school race in 23:29. (Photo: Blue Hen Photography)

Despite Winterthur's reputation as a "challenging course," our whole team had a solid race. After the race, most of the team was able to make it over to Seasons Pizza for a time of celebration, including some of our middle school runners. We have had a wonderful first season as the Delaware Valley Classical School Titans!

DVCS vs. Avon Grove Charter

This past Monday, October 21, was a dual meet against Avon Grove Charter School at their home course. The course was a fairly flat two loops around Goddard Park in West Grove, PA. Each loop circled around a field before taking a wide trail through the woods and coming out again on a gravel and asphalt path. Despite this being our third race within a week, we pushed through it and had a strong race.

For the boys' race, Alternate Captain Bryce Pope ('23) pulled out first on our team, finishing in 20:51. Kai Schmeidel ('23) came in just behind him in 20:53. Josiah Deitrich ('24) crossed the line with a time of 22:17. Captain Marc Sherman ('20) and Judah Deitrich ('21) were not able to make it to the race due to other commitments, but Edward Scott ('24) rose to the challenge and ran a new personal best of 23:59. Anthony Dorno ('24) rounded out our five guys with a 25:38 finish. The DVCS boys tied 28-28.

Alternate Captain Faith Hollister ('22) won the girls' race with a time of 24:36. Celia Pope ('24) finished just behind her in 24:38. Captain Katie Rippon ('20) took fourth place overall with a 24:45 finish, and Fiona Fawcett ('22) crossed the line in 25:42 and fifth place. DVCS won the girls' race with a score of 12-24.

It's hard to believe this season has gone by so quickly. We have seen some improvements and have grown so much as a team. We have just one more meet left: the county championship meet at Winterthur. We are entering "taper mode" and have a few more practices, then we will go for it at the final race of the 2019 season. Until then, Go Titans!

2019 Joe O'Neill Invitational

This past Friday, October 18th, was the Joe O'Neill Invitational, held at Bellvue State Park. The flat, fast course starts on the gravel loop, goes through the woods and across some fields, then crosses the gravel track to finish on the grass. Between five different races, about 1400 runners from over thirty teams competed that day. The crisp fall air, slight breeze, and plenty of competition made for a wonderful race for many of our runners. 

The varsity boys' race happened first, with a total of 249 runners. There was a false start, but things got back on track pretty quickly. Kai Schmeidel ('23) finished first for the Titans and 167th overall, with a time of 19:46. Alternate Captain Bryce Pope ('23) followed in 191st, running 20:22. Judah Deitrich ('21) crossed the line in 21:53, placing 220th overall. Josiah Deitrich ('24) came in eight places behind him in 22:13. Captain Marc Sherman ('20) finished in 23:43. Edward Scott ('24) and Anthony Dorno ('24) rounded out our guys with times of 25:09 and 27:05, respectively. 

The varsity girls' race happened soon after, with 213 runners. Celia Pope ('24) sprinted ahead at the last second and came in first for our girls, finishing in 138th place overall in 23:44. Fiona Fawcett ('22) came in just behind her in 23:45. Captain Katie Rippon ('20) came in 145th overall with a time of 24:02. Despite tripping and falling in the middle of the race, Alternate Captain Faith Hollister ('22) still finished strong in 24:14 and 153rd place. All four girls finished within 15 places and 30 seconds of each other. 

This invitational was a great opportunity to get out there and run a fast and fun course. Many of our runners got new personal bests or ran their best times so far this season, and all of us had a strong run. We still have some work to do this season, but we have seen some great improvement. Tomorrow is our second to last race at Avon Grove Charter. That will be a new course to our runners, but we will do our best and see what happens. 

DVCS vs. Fellowship of Christian Athletes and Senior Night

On Tuesday, October 15, we hosted a dual meet against the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. The weather was beautiful, and our home course has become a favorite for many of our runners. We had an enjoyable racing experience.

The girls' team once again swept the top four spots. Alternate Captain Faith Hollister ('22) came in first with a time of 23:33. Fiona Fawcett ('22) was close behind, finishing in 23:59. Celia Pope ('24) pulled ahead of Captain Katie Rippon ('20), and they finished in 24:47 and 24:49, respectively.

Kai Schmeidel ('23) finished first for the Titans and third in the boys' race, crossing the line in 20:33. Alternate Captain Bryce Pope ('23) followed in 20:40. Judah Deitrich ('21) finished in 22:12, placing seventh. Josiah Deitrich ('24) followed three places behind with a time of 23:18. Captain Marc Sherman ('20) finished his in 24:38. Anthony Dorno ('24) and Edward Scott ('24) rounded out our boys' team, running 25:17 and 26:49, respectively.

This was our last home meet, so we took some time after the race to recognize our seniors. Coach recognized Captains Marc Sherman and Katie Rippon for their encouragement and contributions to the team over the years. Thank you to all who came out to that race to support us, as well as the parents, teammates, and coaches who made this possible!

Captains Katie Rippon and Marc Sherman at the senior recognition race. (Photo: Mrs. Jennifer Rippon)

By the time I'm publishing this, we have already run another meet, so read on for that race recap!

DVCS vs. Fellowship of Christian Athletes vs. Tome

On Tuesday, October 1st, we raced against Tome and the Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA). FCA hosted the meet at the Restoration Farm out in Harford County, Maryland. The course looped around the farm and through the woods, and included plenty of uphills and downhills. The unseasonably warm weather and scenic location made for a wonderful race.

The teams on the line just before the start of the race. (Photo Credit: Mrs. Jennifer Rippon)

In the varsity girls' race, the four DVCS girls swept the top four places. Alternate Captain Faith Hollister ('22) won the race in 25:39. Fiona Fawcett ('22) came in not far behind her, running 25:58. Captain Katie Rippon ('20) and Celia Pope ('24) finished with times of 26:23 and 26:27, respectively.

Katie Rippon and Celia Pope near the two mile mark. (PC: Mrs. Jennifer Rippon)

The DVCS boys had a strong race as well. Alternate Captain Bryce Pope ('23) finished first for our team and in seventh place overall, with a time of 21:36. Kai Schmeidel ('23) finished in eighth place overall in 22:21. Captain Marc Sherman ('20) came in with a time of 25:18. Edward Scott ('24) and Anthony Dorno ('24) rounded out our guys' team, running times of 27:18 and 30:31, respectively. Our guys' team achieved their goal of beating Tome with a score of 24-31.

Overall, this was a good race for the DVCS Titans. The course was challenging for many of us, but we still worked hard and had a strong performance. We get a break from racing this week, but that gives us a chance to focus on our training as we enter the final month of the season.

DVCS vs. Tome

Yesterday was our first home meet of the season, held against Tome. The sunny, warm weather, combined with the familiar course, made for a great race.

Alternate Captain Faith Hollister ('22) won the girls' race with a time of 23:56. Fiona Fawcett ('22) came in not far behind her, running 24:48 to finish in third place. Captain Katie Rippon ('20) and Celia Pope ('24) took the fourth and fifth places, finishing in 25:10 and 25:27, respectively. We only have four girls, but with a fifth "ghost runner" in the last spot in the race, we won with a score of 24-32.

Kai Schmeidel ('23) won the boys' race, running the course in just 20:47. Alternate Captain Bryce Pope ('23) finished in third place and in 21:49. Judah Deitrich ('21) crossed the finish in 22:56, placing fourth. Josiah Deitrich ('24) and Captain Marc Sherman ('20) finished not far behind, with times of 24:12 and 25:09, respectively. Edward Scott ('24) and Anthony Dorno ('24) rounded out the DVCS boys, running their respective times of 27:52 and 29:49. Our boys' team won with a final score of 25-30.

This was a great race for the DVCS Titans. We put in our best effort, and lot of us improved our times significantly compared to last week's race. Looking ahead, next week is a Fellowship of Christian Athletes meet out in Maryland. I don't think any of us have run the course before, so it should be an exciting race experience. It is hard to believe there are already just five weeks of the season left, but I look forward to seeing what we can accomplish as we continue to work hard as a team.