North girls, Smithsburg boys repeat as Washington County cross country champions

HAGERSTOWN, Md. — Different races, similar results.

North Hagerstown’s girls and Smithsburg’s boys successfully defended their team titles at the Washington County Cross Country Championships on Thursday at South Hagerstown, while both individual races featured teammates battling for first place before the eventual winners pulled away late.

North sophomore Mackenzie Philp repeated as girls champion, covering the 3.1-mile course in 18 minutes, 38.8 seconds to beat her twin sister, Caroline, who finished second in 18:47.1.

Smithsburg senior Dylan Herbst won the boys race in 16:32.0, pulling away from sophomore teammate Grayson Wynkoop over the final mile. Wynkoop finished second in 16:43.3.

The North girls were dominant, scoring just 17 points to easily outdistance runner-up Boonsboro (55) and third-place Smithsburg (65). The Hubs finished just one point shy of the girls meet record of 16 they established last year.

“We were shooting for 16,” North coach Anthony Robinson said.

The Philp sisters led a North sweep of the top three places, with junior Anna Ramanan finishing third in 20:08.0. Senior Anabelle Myers placed fifth (22:43.2), and sophomore Charlee Hajel was sixth (22:44.4) to complete the Hubs’ scoring.

North Hagerstown’s Mackenzie Philp (left) and her twin sister, Caroline, run together during the Washington County Cross Country Championships on Thursday at South Hagerstown. Mackenzie pulled away late to defend her girls title in 18:38.8, while Caroline finished second in 18:47.1. (Photo by Andy Mason)

The Philps have established themselves among Maryland’s top distance runners. Last spring, Caroline won Class 3A state titles in the 1,600 and 3,200 meters, while Mackenzie captured the 800 title. The sisters finished close behind each other in all three events.

Asked what it’s like coaching the twins, Robinson smiled at the question.

“It’s a lot at one time. Talent, tempers, fun, everything in between,” he said.

Smithsburg’s boys, the defending Class 1A state champions, scored 29 points to beat Boonsboro (47) and North Hagerstown (54).

Behind Herbst and Wynkoop, the Leopards got a fourth-place finish from senior Luke Gentzel (17:41.8), an eighth-place finish from junior Dylan Lowe (18:29.9) and an 18th-place finish from freshman Garrett Hutzell (20:04.5).

Smithsburg accomplished the victory without senior Gavin Gross, its usual No. 3 runner, who has been dealing with an injury.

“If you want to be successful at the state level, you’ve got to win locally,” Smithsburg coach Adam Rudy said. “Washington County is usually a pretty good measuring stick of where we’ll be or can be in 1A.”

Rudy said he wasn’t entirely satisfied with his team’s performance, noting the unusually warm late-October conditions, but praised his runners for executing their race plan.

“I loved how they raced,” he said. “They went to the front. Winning is a skill.”

The runners now will turn their attention to next week’s regional meets, where teams and individuals will compete for berths in the state championships.

For Smithsburg, which is seeking another Class 1A state title, Rudy said the priority is arriving at the state meet at Hereford High School healthy, fit and ready to compete.