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ELLSWORTH -Pack running is the key behind any successful cross country team, and the Ellsworth Lancers girls' cross country squad accomplished that goal with ease in winning the Division 4 portion of their own House on the Hill invitational on Saturday, Sept. 15.

The Lancers had four girls finish in the top 15, helping them to dominate the race. Ellsworth scored an amazing 29 points, putting them solidly ahead of second place Wolverine, which tallied 46.

Far and away the leader of Ellsworth's pack was Taylor Hartley. She came in a close second in the girls' 5K race behind overall champion Alyssa Oram of Mackinaw Trails.

Hartley completed the course in a time of 21 minutes and 58 seconds, while Oram reached the finish line just a few strides ahead of her in 21:42.

Next in for the Lancers was Maggie Pielusch, taking the 10th position in the Division 4 race with her time of 24:05.

Lindsey Fisher came in right behind Pielusch, finishing 11th in a time of 24:12, and Haley Drenth nailed down the 15th place with a time of 24:28.

That was enough to put the Lancers in excellent position to win the overall championship.

But, the Lancers weren't finished.

Emily Pielusch scored 12 points by finishing 25th overall in a time of 26:13 to give the Lancers some insurance. Jalyn Ingalls was 27th in 26:24, and Kelcie Drenth finished 31st in 26:39.

Gaylord St. Mary came in third overall with 72 points, and Bellaire finished fourth with 74.

Kaila Fillmore paced the Eagles' runners by taking 19th place in a time of 25:14 for eight points. Katie Odom finished 24th in 26:03 for 11 points. Jill Folker scored 16 points with her 29th place finish in 26:34, Caitlyn McDaniel tallied 17 points by taking 30th place in 26:35 and Pia Osterdorp contributd 22 points with 42nd place in 31:23.

Maria LaLone led the way for Alba with a sixth place finish in 23:12, followed by Beca Hoig finishing 16th in 24:52 and Taylor Roberts taking 21st place in 25:25.

Dani Haydell topped the Central Lake runners with a ninth place finish in 23:42, while Sarah Lambert was 33rd in 27:12 and Megan Brown placed 40th in 30:23.

Ellsworth also won the boys' race, but had a bit more difficulty handling Mackinaw City, outscoring them by only 13 points, 50-63. Wolverine finished third with 108.

The Lancers had four boys in the top 15 as well, with Ashton Fisher taking first place overall in a time of 16:44 in the Division 4 race. Ruben Oviedo was fourth in 17:25, Aaron Miller took the sixth spot in 18:19 and Burton Jones rounded out the Lancers' scoring with a 26th place finish in 20:21.

Tyler Ingalls came in 32nd place with a time of 20:42 and Nick Cook finished 38th in 21:10.

Mike Haydell paced the Trojans with an eighth place finish in 18:34, followed by Adam Janeczek in 16th place with a time of 19:25 and Hunter Sutherland in 17th place with a 19:34.

Simon Janeczek was 25th in 20:03, Luke Beal finished 58th in 22:57, Isaac Janeczek took 68th in 24:14 and Aaron Curtis finished 89th in 28:55.

Alba was led by Glen LaLone in 18th place with a time of 19:35, followed by Steve Strouse in 33rd place with a 21:14, Joe Milbocker in 53rd place with a 22:23, Chris Pawson in 65th place with a 23:56, Ron Westcott in 73rd place with a 24:43, Wade Roberts in 74th place with a 25:04 and Dean Harris in 76th place with a 25:14.

Trevor Shane finished 71st for the Eagles in 24:21, and Matt Edwards was 87th in 28:07.

In the junior high race, Zack Harvey led the Central Lake Trojans with a 13th place finish in a time of 12:29.78, followed by Taylor Sutherland in 15th place in 12:32.05 and Carrick Conway finished 31st in 13:34.12.