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Cross Country Cats Open 2020 With a Resounding Victory

By Joe Ginley '12 , 08/29/20, 2:45PM EDT

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Matt Kelly won the race with a nice time of 16:14.

Months of anticipation proved to be worth it on Saturday.

On a cloudy morning in Painesville, the Saint Ignatius Cross Country team reigned supreme. The Wildcats' Varsity A squad rolled into first place with an impressive score of 33 at the Riverside Cross Country Kickoff Invitational. Riverside (84) and St. Edward (87) rounded out the top three. 

Certainly not a bad way to open the 2020 campaign.

If there was any doubt in the Wildcats following the graduation of many talented veterans, Matt Kelly put them to rest. The junior roared to a great early-season time of 16:15, beating the field on an at-times muddy course. Kelly is an exceptional runner who will be a great anchor this year.

Sean Uhran also posted an impressive time, notching bronze with a time of 16:24. The fellow junior will be a fun Wildcat to watch grow this season.

Guillamme Carroll exploded onto the scene on the East side today, ripping off a time of 17:08.44 for seventh place. The sophomore could make a big impact for the Wildcats if he keeps this up this year. 

Four seniors rounded out the top seven for the Wildcats today. Joseph Maloney snagged ninth with a tally of 17:22, breaking the top 10 overall with a ninth-place time. Connor McAndrew penciled in a time of 17:22, good enough for 13th overall. Mike Mayer and Connor Geary each hit 17:29, with Mayer edging Geary by .30 seconds. The two finished 17th and 18th, respectively. 

Joey Sepesy, Christian Wolke, and Peter Fitzpatrick also raced for the blue and gold on Saturday in the Varsity A race. Sepesy and Wolke snatched 64th and 65th, with times of 18:36 and 18:37. Fitzpatrick rounded out the pack with a time of 19:21. All three veterans will only get better as the season continues and are three names to keep an eye on. 

In the Varsity B race, Wildcats dotted the results page. 

Caleb Delacruz stood out with a nice opening race, carding fourth with a time of 18:29. Tom Kilbane (18:37) and Ben Showman (18:39) also raced at the front of the pack, earning 6th and 8th places, respectively. 

Danny Becker just missed out on the top 10, but 11th is nothing to sniff at, as Becker marked down a time of 18:52. C.J. Lyon (19:00), Owen Rodstrom (19:04), and Aidan Zielinski (19:10) stuck close together, and it paid off with 13th, 14th, and 16th place finishes. 

Tyler Cupar dashed to a time of 19:52 for 30th and Aidan Smith skated to a time of 20:35 for 48th.  

A total of 26 Wildcats competed in the Open race. Of those 26 Cats, a whopping 15 finished in the top 25. 

Sean Ward bested the field, turning in a time of 18:04 with a great pace of 5:49 minutes/mile. Luke Chesney earned the silver with a time of 18:04. Danny Flanagan (19:53), Brendan Gilbride (19:56), Tim Schmelter (19:57), and Conor McGuire (20:02) all clocked in with Top 10 finishes in impressive fashion. 

Dominic Wilson (20:03), Will Scott (20:03), Thomas Mason (20:06), Joseph Macbride (20:14), Luke Lavelle (20:25), Walkie Ripepi (20:33),, Blake Kneisly (20:36), Dominic Ambrogio (20:38), and Andy Ericson (20:52) all wrapped up Top 25 times. 

Ben Ravas (20:53), John Scally (20:58), Jack Gilbride (21:02), Shivan Pandya (21:08), Matt McGraw (21:09), Conor Pick (21:22), Sam Eldridge (21:24), John Eicher (21:27), Owen Hobbs (21:58), Fitwilliam Lokiec (22:11) rolled into the Top 50. 

Peter Conover (22:54), Henry Kuras (22:57), Dominic Fiorilli (23:04), Ryan Gilbride (25:29), Tom Uhlir (25:41) rounded out the Cat Pack in the Open Race. 

Next week, the Wildcats will head south down I-71 for next Saturday's Hilliard Davidson Invitational. No spectators will be allowed, but the venue will provide a stream available to watch.