Peoples Girls Run Away with Fifth Straight Cross Country Title (DRAFT)
Junior Bender wins second individual crown

The P.A girls cross country team proved last Saturday at the Vermont
State Cross Country Championships, held in Thetford, that size doesn't
matter. As a Division III school the Lady Wolves dominated all Division
II and III schools and placed fourth among Division I schools.
Individually, the Wolves placed three runners in the top 25 among all
schools.
Jennie Bender, Johannah Ludington, and Hannah Dreissigacker provided a
1-2-3 punch to lift the Wolves to their fifth Division III crown in as
many years. Junior Jennie Bender made it look all too easy as she led
the race from start to finish claiming her second straight Division III
title in cross country. Junior Johannah Ludington, last week's league
champion, was just a few steps behind Bender taking the runner up
honors. Senior Hannah Dreissigacker, running in fifth place for most of
the race, made a strong surge in the last half mile to claim third
place. The team's depth was evident as the remaining runners from P.A.,
sophomore Emily Dreissigacker and seniors, Hannah Polow and Becci Geary,
crossed the line in 8th, 11th, and 13th respectively. Sophomore Sigrid
Bronner rounded out the team's scoring with a 40th place effort.
"Each girl put everything they had on the line today and it carried the
team to a very impressive victory," said coach Mark Churchill, "They are
certainly in prime shape to do very well at the New England Champion-ships."
Let's take a closer look at the numbers. The girls scored 12 points (a
perfect score is 10) to outdistance runner up Green Mountain, who
finished with 59 points. After compiling the other divisional races, the
girls placed 4th, behind last year's New England Champions Champlain
Valley, powerhouse Essex, and private ski school Burke Mountain Academy
(all Div. I schools). Jennie Bender and Johannah Ludington placed 3rd
and 6th overall with Hannah Dreissigacker finishing in 23rd. This same
core group of girls has been responsible for a string of seven
consecutive seasons of state championships in cross country, cross
country skiing, and track and field dating back to the fall of 2002.
The girls have qualified for the New England Championships held at
Whitcomb Park in East Hartford Connecticut on Saturday, November 13.
Last year they finished a very respectable 12th place among New
Englandís top schools.