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Published: Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2009 / Updated: Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2009 07:59 PM

Blackmon, Kilburn lead Jackets to cross country titles

YORK -- 

Cool weather and a wet, muddy course made for an exciting Herald/York County Cross Country Meet Saturday morning at York Comprehensive High School.

Fort Mill took first place in both the boys' and girls' varsity races. The Jackets' Mark Blackmon and Meredith Kilburn were individual champions.

The meet originally was scheduled for Thursday, but rain forced the meet to be postponed until Saturday. The rescheduling meant some runners missed the event due to previous obligations.

Fort Mill's girls were without Abby Lewis and Taylor Miller, two of the team's top five runners. It made the team win even more impressive as they edged Northwestern by one point, 28-29.

“Team-wise, we have our confidence rolling for the rest of the season,” Fort Mill coach Marc Pyrc said.

The Fort Mill boys won by a wide margin. Fort Mill's 31 points was 41 better than second-place Rock Hill and third-place Clover.

Blackmon won the boys' race with a time of 17:42.9. Mick Francis of Clover was second (17:50.4). Nation Ford's Kevin Ketner was third (17:52.7).

Francis said he and Ketner stayed with Blackmon until they ran into the woods for the second time about 2.5 miles into the 3.1-mile course.

“Then he left us,” Clover's senior runner said.

Ketner ran well after being out with the flu recently. Francis had a great kick in the final 100 yards — on York's football field — to take second.

Blackmon is just a sophomore but runs and carries himself as though he is a much more seasoned runner. He said after the race that he wasn't aware of anyone chasing him.

“The first mile felt fast,” Blackmon said after the race.

Kilburn is also a sophomore. Her clocking of 20:28 was 75 seconds ahead of the second-place finisher, teammate Julia Van Buskirk.

“Other than the mud, it was good today; not too windy,” Kilburn said.

Most runners finished the race with mud-splattered shorts and streams of mud running down their shins and calves.

The York course usually features a hill commonly known as “Mount Olympus.” The recent rain rendered the red clay surface on the hill a slick mess. York cross country coach Eddie Sanders reconfigured a much flatter course for Saturday's race.

The Herald/York County Meet began in 1984. It serves as a precursor to region meets, state qualifiers and the state championship that will be run in the coming weeks.

The Region 3-AAAA meet is at Northwestern on Thursday. The Region 4-AAAA meet will be run at Spring Valley High in Columbia.

The top seven finishers in the boys' and girls' varsity races were named to the All-County Team.

Herald/York County meet results

Boys Varsity

Team scores: Fort Mill 31, Rock Hill 72, Clover 72, Northwestern 85, Nation Ford 114, York 173, South Pointe 204

All-County Team: Mark Blackmon (Fort Mill), Mick Francis (Clover), Kevin Ketner (Nation Ford), Avery Martin (Fort Mill), J. Case (Fort Mill), Bo Hutchison (Rock Hill), David Hegwood (Rock Hill).

Girls Varsity

Team scores: Fort Mill 28, Northwestern 29, Clover 88, Nation Ford 96, York 157, South Pointe 158

All-County Team: Meredith Kilburn (Nation Ford), Julia Van Buskirk (Fort Mill), Julianna Hearn (Northwestern), Rachael Summers (Northwestern), Lisa Nichols (Fort Mill), Sarah Baker (Northwestern), Kelly Little (Northwestern)