The Union Catholic girls cross-country team has undergone lots of changes in its lineup over the last few weeks, but there's one thing that has remained the same! Winning!!!
With the potent 1-2 punch of super sophomores Paige Sheppard, first in 18:06, and Cayleigh Kaiser, third in 18:30, spearheading a lethal frontal attack, UC threw down a NJ course record average of 19:01 and put its scoring five under 20 minutes to blitz the field with 69 points to capture its second straight title at Saturday's 17th Nike Northeast Regional Championship at Bowdoin Park in Wappingers Falls, N.Y.
With the victory, the undefeated Vikings, ranked No. 1 in the state, clinched a berth in the Nike National Championship race for the third straight year. The national race is scheduled for Dec. 7 at the Glendoveer Golf Course in Portland, Oregon.
UC, who defeated runner-up Champlain Valley of Vermont by a whopping 97 points, broke its own NJ course record average of 19:06 that the Vikings ran at the Nike NE Regional last year.
The indefatigable and undefeated Sheppard was her usual smooth self, controlling the race the whole way as she simply outclassed and overpowered the field to win her second straight title with a five second Bowdoin PR. Sheppard's 18:06 is No. 2 in NJ history at Bowdoin, narrowly missing the record of 18:00.0 that Charlotte Bednar of Lawrenceville ran to win the NE Regional in 2019.
Kaiser, who said Bowdoin is her favorite course to run, showed why by running a Bowdoin PR of 18:30! UC also received a huge boost from the return of sophomore Sophia Thompson, who missed the last two races with a sore foot. Thompson, a true gamer who always races well even if her training gets interrupted, finished 10th in 18:55, 10 spots ahead of Champlain Valley's No. 1 runner.
Rock steady junior Emmy O'Hearn was the No. 4 runner for UC, placing 31st in 19:39, and sophomore Kayla Devine, one of the gutsiest runners you will ever come across, closed it out by running 19:57 to finish 46th.
UC got bounced out of the national rankings last week after its speed ratings dropped with Thompson out, but with her back in the lineup it wouldn't be surprising to see the Vikings improve on their 10th place finish from last year when they toe the line in Portland.
