NY STATE CROSS COUNTRY: SVEC DUO TO MAKE STATE DEBUT (2022-11-11)

By TIM TAYLOR
Tioga County Sports Report
VERONA, N.Y. — SVEC’s Ayasha Schweiger and Johnathan Garrison will make their debuts Saturday at the 2022 NYSPHSAA Cross Country Championships at Vernon-Verona-Sherrill High School.

“We’re very excited to see how John and Ayasha perform this weekend,” said SVEC coach Kyle Holmes. “Our main expectation for both runners is to enjoy the experience, then worry about placement and times, as this is the first time either of them have competed at the state level.”

Holmes noted that both Garrison and Schweiger recorded their fastest 5K times at the IAC championships this season, clocking 17:52 and 21:56, respectively.

Those times could be even faster at states.

“It is a fairly flat course, so we do expect their times to be faster for this race,” Holmes said. “Ayasha is looking to run a personal best and break 21 minutes while John is aiming for a low 17-minute 5K and finishing within the top 25.”

Garrison won dual meets hosted by Tioga and Edison, was the IAC South champion and the IAC runner-up. He placed fifth at the Bob Greene / Newark Valley Invitational, and between 11th and 21st in four other invites.

He qualified for states with a 4th-place showing at sectionals and led the Eagles to second in Class D team scoring.

Schweiger wasn’t even the top runner on the girls team when the season started, but continued to improve and led the SVEC ladies to second overall in Class D at sectionals. She would place seventh individually to earn a spot on the state team.

She took fifth in the divisional meet and fourth in the league meet as the Eagles won both team titles. Schweiger missed two events but ran well in four invitationals and the Edison dual.

“Both athletes have been working on mechanics and getting their mind and body right for Saturday in practice this week,” Holmes said. “They are nervous, but eager to compete against some fast competition.”

At states, Garrison will run in the second race of the day at 10:30 a.m. while Schweiger’s event begins at 1 p.m.

Tickets are only available online and can be purchased at https://gofan.co/app/school/NYSPHSAA. Prices are $11.50 per car which covers the entire day of competition. The event will be streamed on the NFHS Network via MileSplit, the official broadcasting partner of the NYSPHSAA State Championships.

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SCHEDULE
Boys Class C — 10 a.m.
Boys Class D — 10:30 a.m.
Boys Class A — 11 a.m.
Boys Class B — 11:30 a.m.
Girls Class C — 12:30 p.m.
Girls Class D — 1 p.m.
Girls Class A — 1:30 p.m.
Girls Class B — 2 p.m.


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