North Penn boys, Central Bucks West girls race to victory

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TOWAMENCIN >> A sea of blue with with little green in between, the North Penn boys arrived at the finish line as a tightly connected pack on Wednesday afternoon.

The Knights took the top seven scoring places and soaked in a successful day on their home course against rival Central Bucks West.

“The leadership has been really good,” Knights coach Mike Werner said of his squad. “The young guys have really stepped up. And overall the culture has been as good as our performance. It’s been excellent, so I’m very proud of the guys. We just need to remember that it’s Sept. 21 – there’s a long way to go.”

With a 15-50 victory over the Bucks, North Penn raised its Suburban One League Colonial Division record to a perfect 3-0.

“It was definitely a struggle – it was pretty hot,” said a first-place Achilles Shui, who led his squad to a performance he deemed “pretty solid.”

Abigail Kolbe of Central Bucks West hits the stretch run. Kolbe’s first-place finish led the Bucks past North Penn on Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2022. (Kev Hunter, MediaNews Group)

The CB West girls also raced to victory, packing it in tight and pulling away to an 18-43 win over the Knights.

“Our preparation was good and I could see all my teammates did well. Coach (Kiki Bell) told us to run as a pack and I think we got that done,” said the Bucks’ front runner, Abigail Kolbe.

The North Penn boys were paced by Shui, who crossed in 16 minutes, 53 seconds. Colin Fisher was second in 16:53.

North Penn runners huddle before the start of their race with Central Bucks West. (Kev Hunter, MediaNews Group)

“It was our first home meet so we were happy to race on our course. The guys ran competitively on the second half. We ran a tough race, wanted to run well on our home course and try to post some good times,” said Werner. “It was a little warmer today but overall, I was pleased with the result.

“I’m looking forward to getting back to work and getting ready for our next home meet on Wednesday (against Souderton).”

Central Bucks West and North Penn runners launch off the starting line. (Kev Hunter, MediaNews Group)

Kolbe led the West girls with a winning time of 20:29, with teammate Maile McFadden racing to second in 20:49. The Bucks took the top three spots and five of the top seven.

Said Kolbe: “It’s a really good group. The team is great…I’d love to break 19 (minutes) and get to states this season. It would be a first but I’m going for it.”

CB West and North Penn runners hit the final straightaway. (Kev Hunter, MediaNews Group)

The West boys were without pack leader Owen Donaher (illness) but expect him back soon. Ben Fuhrmeister led the West pack on Wednesday, crossing in 18:05.

Sophia Schell led the NP girls, finishing in 21:10.

Boys Cross Country
North Penn 15, CB West 50
Top 10 – 1. Shui (NP) 16:44; 2. Fisher (NP) 16:53; 3. Landis (NP) 16:54; 4. Miryalker (NP) 17:08; 5. Sharkey (NP) 17:29; 6. Leary (NP) 17:53; 7. Sweeney (NP) 17:54; 8. Moore (NP) 18:03; 9. Fuhrmeister (CBW) 18:05; 10. P. Kelly (CBW) 18:34.

Girls Cross Country
CB West 18, North Penn 43
Top 10 – 1. Abigail Kolbe (CBW) 20:29; 2. Maile McFadden (CBW) 20:49; 3. Sofia Pocai (CBW) 21:02; 4. Sophia Schell (NP) 21:10; 5. Cayleigh Haag (CBW) 21:19; 6. Kira Logovine (NP) 21:22; 7. Rachel Folkins (CBW) 22:05; 8. Malia Mulcahy (CBW) 22:06; 9. Meghan Ajemian (CBW) 22:08; 10. Ella Lentini (CBW) 22:17.

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Kev Hunter

Kevin Hunter
Kev Hunter is a sports reporter for Montco Media. He has been a staff writer for The Reporter Newspaper in Lansdale since 2000. Prior to that, he covered sports for The Day Newspaper in New London, Conn. He began his writing career at The Courier-Post in South Jersey, along with covering prep football in Pa. for The Philadelphia Inquirer.

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