Roberts takes 3A regional cross-country victory for Lions

By Gary Gaines, For the Ledger

LYONS — Melissa Roberts didn`t come into Thursday`s Region 4 3A cross country meet with the goal of winning it, but the Lyons junior certainly wasn`t averse to the idea of finishing first.

A week after losing to Estes Park`s Kim Hansen, Roberts reversed the roles on her home course, cruising to a regional victory and a return trip to the state meet. Roberts ran the 5-kilometer course in 19:39, finishing 14 seconds in front of Hansen.

“I wasn`t planning to win,” said Roberts, a sixth-place finisher at state last year. “I just wanted to go out and run a smart race and place as high as I could but not kill myself. I was kind of going for second and seeing how it worked out. But it just kind of came to me, so I was happy about that.”

While Roberts` win wasn`t enough to lead the Lyons girls to a team berth at state — the 3A meet will take place Oct. 31 at Fossil Ridge High School in Fort Collins — the Lyons boys qualified for the 13th straight year. With senior Dylan Donohoe placing second and teammate Zach Pfeifer 12th, the Lions boys advanced the fifth and final team on Thursday.

Though Roberts placed sixth at state last year, it`s far from a sure thing that she`ll move up in the ranks as a junior. “Top 10 is a realistic goal,” said Lyons coach Mark Roberts, Melissa`s father. “The 3A girls are just brutal as far as the amount of talent out there.”

Melissa Roberts (331) of Lyons wins the 3A regional on Thursday. The regional 3A/4A cross country races were held at Lyons High School. Cliff Grassmick / October 22, 2009 ( CLIFF GRASSMICK )

Donohoe also finished sixth at state last year, but on Thursday he saw one of the favorites for this year`s title, Brush`s Amos Bowen, win by 55 seconds with a time of 16:00.

Donohoe stuck to Thursday`s plan not to go all out — “I was saving it for state,” he said — but even at that he knows that beating Bowen won`t be easy.

“My goal at state is to finish in the top three,” said Donohoe, who has qualified all four years. “The way Amos is running it would be a long shot (to win), but if he`s having a bad day I think I may be able to take it.”

Class 3A Region 4

BOYS

Team scores (top 5 advance to state) — 1. Brush 52; 2. Jefferson Academy 58; 3. University 60; 4. Eaton 69; 5. Lyons 79; 6. Valley 108; 7. Erie 109; 8. Peak To Peak 113; 9. Estes Park 120; 10. Platte Valley 152; 11. Brighton Collegiate 174; 12. Weld Central 222

State qualifiers — 1. Amos Bowen, Brush, 16:00; 2. Dylan Donohoe, Lyons, 16:55; 3. Gabe Toepel, Brighton Collegiate, 17:04; 4. Stan Devore, Eaton, 17:28; 5. Garrett Coles, University, 17:38; 6. Sean Mahoney, Jefferson Academy, 17:41; 7. Anthony Rios, Brush, 17:44; 8. Ian McLain, Estes Park, 17:49; 9. Chris Buhler, University, 17:52; 10. Derek Schneider, Valley, 17:52; 11. Jarrett Durant, Jefferson Academy, 17:54; 12. Zach Pfeifer, Lyons, 17:55; 13. Connor Ryan, Erie, 17:55; 14. Brandon Fritz, Eaton, 17:56; 15. Gregory Mares, Brush, 17:58.

Other Lyons finishers – 31. Chris Smith, 34. Ryan Boucher, 36. Keith Albertson, 38. Sean Flynn

GIRLS

Team scores (top 5 advance to state) — 1. Estes Park 20; 2. Brush 45; 3. Erie 67; 4. Peak To Peak 82; 5. Platte Valley 102; 7. Lyons 118; 8. University 120; 9. Strasburg 153; 10. Jefferson Academy 172; 11. Yuma 191; 12. Brighton Collegiate 243

State qualifiers — 1. Melissa Roberts, Lyons, 19:39; 2. Kim Hansen, Estes Park, 19:53; 3. Beth Jones, Eaton, 20:00; 4. Sarah Goss, Brush, 20:07; 5. Chelsea Weitzel, Estes Park, 20:10; 6. Hannah Koschnitzke, Estes Park, 20:22; 7. Hanna Steadman, Estes Park, 20:33; 8. Mekenzie Atkins, Erie, 20:39; 9. Victoria Milano, Brush, 20:41; 10. Michelle McQuinn, Estes Park, 20:43; 11. Ariel Andrews, Yuma, 20:57; 12. Jasmine Rodenburg, Peak to Peak, 21:04; 13. Shelby Brow, Erie, 21:05; 14. Mercy Bowen, Brush, 21:06; 15. Carmen Laing, Estes Park, 21:08.

Other Lyons finishers — 31. Olivia Raspotnik, 41. Sydney Drotar, 45. Izzy Solman, 46. Maia Lang, 60. Shannon Gilman