High school cross country: Fast start propels Brunswick's Teodora Iovi to third place finish at regionals

YOUNGSTOWN — Teodora Iovi had something to prove Saturday afternoon at the Boardman Division I Regional. After a disappointing 64th-place finish a year ago, the Brunswick junior wanted to assert herself from the start. The result was a third-place finish for the All-Gazette selection and the Blue Devils capturing runner-up honors on a muddy Boardman course. "Before I started the race, I like, 'I'm going to stay with them and see where I am at the end,'" said Iovi, who crossed in 19:46.6. "But once I realized that I was feeling good and I wasn't too dead tired, I knew that I could keep picking it up." With Westlake's Sarah Peer and Olmsted Falls' Katie Clute duking it out for the second straight week ahead of the field — Peer came out on top by almost 7 seconds after the two traded leads twice — Iovi used that fast pace and her own motivation to make sure she was next. The effort was just enough to give Brunswick second after winning a sixth-runner tiebreaker with Medina. The Bees still advanced after a one-year hiatus, while Wadsworth's Kailyn Biecker and Clare Nicholas also punched their tickets to Fortress Obetz. Iovi got out to a strong start, keeping within eyesight of Peer and Clute while running alongside Brecksville's Anna Mehendale. Iovi then created separation after the two-mile-mark to put Mehendale and the rest of what was a tight pack in her rearview mirror. "It was all about maintaining," Iovi said. "Normally in races I go out too fast and then I'm tired in that second mile, but I just felt really good. I kept the pace up and worked with the girls around me." Morgan Roth added a 14th-place 20:27.4, but a strong pack of Abby Bardwell (50th, 21:25.7), Lindsay Wolf (57th, 21:32.3) and Amber Kemmann (58th, 21:32.5) kept the Blue Devils near the top of the standings. Emma Bradbury's 65th-place 21:40.8 sealed the tiebreaker. Medina senior Jenna Razavi, an individual state qualifier last fall, will have teammates running with her this week. The Bees also had a strong day, with underclassmen Mia Heine (20:36) and Haley Black (20:48.3) finishing 17th and 25th. Like Iovi, Razavi attacked from the start and maintained position near the front of the field en route to an 11th-place 20:21.4. "I made the goal of top 10, and the fact that I got really close to that made me really happy," she said. "I wanted to get up there early, so I had fallback room. I didn't want to fall back 4-5 places, because once you fall back, it starts to come back on you." Ahead of Razavi was Biecker. The Wadsworth sophomore advanced to state for the second straight season after a gutsy run, resulting in an eighth-place 20:15.5. Biecker, who was 19th at the regional last season, said she wasn't going to let the sloppy conditions of the course get to her head. "I just wanted to do better than last year," the All-Gazette pick said. "It was muddy out there, so it was more of a mental game. I knew coming into it I needed to do well. Last year it was muddy, too, but I let the conditions control me. But this year I just pushed through it." Nicholas also was an All-Ohioan last season and will get a chance after she crossed 22nd in 20:44.7, pushing ahead of Kailey Zagst and Sofia Istnick of Massillon Jackson in the final moments. The Grizzlies were 10th in the 21-team field. A pair of Medina County runners also took part, as Buckeye's Audrey Graham placed 87th in 22:00.3 and Highland's Kelsey Sheridan was 103rd in 22:19.1. Cloverleaf's girls ninth in the D-II race, recording 242 points. Freshman Emma Hibler came close to an individual berth as she clocked a 21:29.2 to finish 26th, two spots off an automatic spot. Brooke Gucker was seconds behind in 29th (21:33.1). In D-III, Black River freshman Olivia Szmania placed 44th in 22:55.4 Contact Dan Brown at sports@medina-gazette.com. Results Girls Division I Team standings (out of 24, top 8 advance): 1. Shaker Heights 89, 2. Brunswick 153, 3. Medina 153, 4. Massillon Jackson 165, 5. Mentor 192, 6. Stow 212, 7. Rocky River 237, 8. Westlake 245, 10. Wadsworth 283. Brunswick (153): 3. Iovi 19:46.6, 14. Morgan Roth 20:27.4, 50. Abby Bardwell 21:25.7, 57. Lindsay Wolf 21:32.4, 58. Amber Kemmann 21:32.5, 65. Emma Bradbury 21:40.8, 84. Samantha Roth 21:58.9. Medina (153): 11. Jenna Razavi 20:21.4, 17. Mia Heine 20:36, 25. Haley Black 20:48.3, 37. Cara Razavi 21:08.7, 91. Ruth Schmeller 22:04.2, 111. Kylie O'Cull 22:26.1, 112. Janelle Gehman 22:26.7. Wadsworth (283): 8. Biecker 20:15.5, 22. Clare Nicholas 20:44.7, 66. Eliana Wilson 21:40.8, 114. Rachel Murphy 22:28.3, 122. Rowan King 22:33.9, 172. Karlee Adams 24:08.9, 173. Samantha Turner 24:13.2. County Individuals: 87. Audrey Graham (Buckeye) 22:00.3, 103. Kelsey Sheridan (Highland) 22:19.1. Division II Team standings (out of 20, top 6 advance): 1. Woodridge 123, 2. Revere 128, 3. Chagrin Falls 154, 4. Salem 159, 5. Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary 172, 6. Hathaway Brown 196, 9. Cloverleaf 242. Cloverleaf (242): 26. Emma Hibler 21:29.2, 29. Brooke Gucker 21:33.1, 57. Alyssa Stoner 22:21.6, 86. Madison Snyder 23:07.6, 87. Vanessa Monhemius 23:11.6, 109. Paige McMaster 24:07.3, 116. Paige Munchick 24:19.4. Division III Team standings (out of 14, top 4 advance): 1. Gilmour Academy 76, 2. Waynedale 107, 3. Mineral Ridge 115, 4. McDonald 149. County individual: 44. Olivia Szmania (Black River) 22:55.4.