A Championship Worth Waiting For

By the time the IAAM B Conference Championships arrived, there was little doubt which two teams would be battling for the title.

Throughout the season, St. Paul's School for Girls and Annapolis Area Christian School (AACS) had established themselves as the conference's two strongest programs. Both teams had outstanding runners, both had demonstrated remarkable consistency, and both knew that winning the championship would require their very best performances.

The girls understood what was at stake, and the nervousness was evident on championship afternoon. Thankfully, Father Laws was there to offer prayers before getting on the team bus, providing a welcome moment of calm amid the excitement and anxiety of the day.

Moments before the race, in what I considered a particularly fortunate sign, I found twenty dollars. Now, I am not suggesting that finding twenty dollars guarantees a conference championship, but I certainly appreciated the timing.

With prayers offered, nerves still lingering, and twenty unexpected dollars in my pocket, it was time to race.

And what a race it would be.

A Battle from Start to Finish

The championship unfolded exactly as we anticipated: a tremendous battle between two outstanding teams, with neither willing to concede an inch.

AACS struck first, placing its top runner 3rd overall. But SPSG responded immediately.

Freshman Melodi Ashford delivered the race of her young career, finishing 4th overall in 20:29.70. Melodi entered the championship with a personal best of 21:07.9 and shattered that mark by more than 38 seconds. On the biggest stage of the season, she ran the fastest 5K of her life.

Just two seconds later, junior Tessa DiManno crossed the finish line in 5th place with a time of 20:31.84.

Tessa has been one of the anchors of this team all season. Her consistency, competitiveness, and leadership have helped establish the standard for our program. With a personal best of 20:12.6 already to her credit, Tessa delivered another outstanding performance when her teammates needed her most.

The significance of those finishes cannot be overstated. Although AACS had the first runner across the line, SPSG placed two runners immediately behind her, giving us an important advantage in our top-two scoring.

AACS responded with its second runner finishing 6th overall, keeping the battle exceptionally close, tying the score at 9 a piece.

Then came another extraordinary performance from one of our freshmen.

Chloe Morgan finished 9th overall in 21:03.07, improving her personal best by nearly 45 seconds.

Chloe's finish was critical. AACS's third runner crossed the line immediately behind her in 10th place. In a race that would ultimately be decided by three points, that single position mattered tremendously.

With Melodi finishing 4th, Tessa 5th, and Chloe 9th, SPSG had placed three runners among the top ten overall, earning three All-Conference honors. Even more remarkable, two of those All-Conference runners were freshmen.

But the championship was far from decided, as SPSG was up by just one point on AACS, 17-18.

Where the Championship Was Won

Cross country is a team sport in which five runners determine the final score. And while the performances of our top three were extraordinary, the championship would ultimately come down to what happened farther back in the field.

AACS's fourth runner finished 15th overall, giving them another strong performance.

Then came junior Amy Tomayko, who delivered one of the most remarkable races of the afternoon.

Amy finished 16th overall in 22:40.30, improving her previous season's best of 24:08.0 by an astonishing 1 minute and 27.7 seconds.

Amy had worked throughout the season to become a stronger and more consistent runner. On championship day, she responded with her fastest race of the season by a considerable margin. Her finish kept SPSG firmly in contention as the race approached its decisive moments.

At that point, the championship was going to come down to the fifth runners with the score now tied at 32.

And sophomore Kendall Schollaert delivered.

Kendall finished 20th overall in 23:10.21, improving her personal best by more than 23 seconds.

AACS's fifth runner finished 24th overall.

That separation was decisive.

Kendall had not simply run a personal best; she had finished ahead of the runner whose position would help determine whether SPSG or AACS took home the championship.

When the official team scoring was calculated, the numbers told the story:

AACS's five scorers contributed 3, 6, 9, 14, and 22 points.

SPSG 51. AACS 54.

Three points.

After an entire season of competition, training, and preparation, the conference championship had been decided by just three points.

Every finish mattered. Every position mattered. Every girl mattered.

And our girls had done it.

SPSG was the 2026 IAAM B Conference Champion.

Seven Varsity Runners, One Championship Team

While the five scoring runners determined the championship, the performances of our sixth and seventh runners were equally deserving of celebration.

Junior Hannah Gocke finished 22nd overall in 23:21.91, improving her previous personal best of 24:28.0 by more than one minute.

Hannah has demonstrated tremendous growth throughout the season, and to deliver such a remarkable improvement at the championship was a testament to her determination and hard work.

Junior Sloane Hessen finished 29th overall in 24:33.51, lowering her previous personal best of 24:49.0 by approximately 15 seconds.

Sloane's performance was another example of the progress our runners have made through their commitment to training and one another.

Consider this: all seven SPSG varsity runners finished among the top 29 overall, and five of those seven established new personal bests.

That is the kind of depth and collective improvement that championship teams are built upon.

The Open Championship: Another Reason to Celebrate

While our varsity girls were battling for the conference title, our Open Championship runners were producing remarkable performances of their own.

Junior Abbey Lancelotta won the Open Championship outright, finishing 1st overall in 23:33.86.

Abbey entered the meet with a personal best of 23:41.81 and improved that time by approximately eight seconds. Winning an individual championship is a tremendous accomplishment, and Abbey deserves special recognition for finishing her season with a victory.

But she was not alone near the front.

Freshman Chloe Bannon finished 3rd overall in 24:44.98, improving her previous personal best of 26:34.0 by an incredible 1 minute and 49 seconds.

Sophomore Addison Booth finished 4th overall in 24:53.80, lowering her previous personal best of 26:44.0 by 1 minute and 50 seconds.

Three SPSG runners finished among the top four in the Open Championship, with Chloe and Addison each improving their personal bests by nearly two minutes.

Those are extraordinary accomplishments, and they reflect the dedication and determination of these girls throughout the season.

Senior Emily Karpowicz also delivered a memorable championship performance, finishing 33rd overall in 32:41.90.

Emily improved her previous personal best of 34:07.6 by approximately 1 minute and 26 seconds. What a wonderful way to conclude her final conference championship, with the fastest 5K of her career.

The Open Championship performances deserve every bit as much celebration as our varsity victory. They demonstrated that the strength of this program extends well beyond the seven runners competing for the varsity team title.

A Day of Extraordinary Accomplishments

Across the varsity and Open Championship races, nine of our eleven SPSG runners established new personal bests, while Amy recorded a season's best nearly a minute and a half faster than her previous mark.

Ten of eleven runners delivered either a new personal best or a new season's best. At the championship and under the greatest pressure of the season. That is remarkable.

We celebrated three All-Conference runners, an individual Open Championship winner, three of the top four Open Championship finishers, and, of course, a varsity conference championship.

But beyond the finishing positions and personal records, what made this season special was the way these girls supported one another. They pushed each other during workouts, celebrated each other's successes, and learned that being part of a team means caring just as much about your teammates' accomplishments as your own.

They became more than teammates. They became a family.

One Championship, Three Points, and One Tattoo

When I think back on this championship, I will remember the nervous anticipation, Father Laws' prayers, and the twenty dollars I found before the race.

I will remember Melodi and Tessa finishing just seconds apart, Chloe's remarkable personal best, Amy's extraordinary improvement, and Kendall delivering the finish that helped secure our championship.

I will remember Hannah and Sloane running personal bests, Abbey winning the Open Championship, Chloe Bannon and Addison making enormous improvements, and Emily finishing her senior championship with a personal best.

And I will remember the final score.

51–54.

Three points separating two outstanding teams that had pushed one another all season.

AACS deserves tremendous credit for an exceptional season and an outstanding championship performance. They challenged us throughout the fall and brought out the very best in our girls. The narrow margin of victory speaks to the quality of both programs.

But on championship afternoon, our girls rose to the occasion. They trusted their training, believed in themselves, and ran for one another. And apparently, I will also have a permanent reminder of this championship.

You see, somewhere along the way, I made a promise that if these girls won the conference title, I would get a tattoo to commemorate the occasion.

Well, the girls have fulfilled their part of the bargain. Now it's my turn.

Congratulations to our 2026 IAAM B Conference Cross Country Champions!!!