By: Kristy Booher Angelo, Associate Athletic Director
For More Info: booherk@gilmour.org
Normally in the fall, the Gilmour Academy campus is host to more than 1,000 runners for what has become one of the most highly anticipated events of the cross country season – the Paul Primeau Invitational. In fact, the event, which has been run for 60 straight years, is one of the longest consecutive-running cross country meets in the state of Ohio. That streak was threatened when the Ohio Department of Health prohibited large-scale meets such as this as a result of COVID-19.
That's where the ingenuity of head coach Matt Lindley '89 came in. Rather than cancel the 61st running of the Primeau Invitational, he came up with ways to scale it back in order to meet the necessary safety protocols. The Mini Primeau was born, and on Saturday, October 3, a handful of teams embraced the sunshine and the opportunity to bring to life another year of this beloved invitational.
The girls ran first and the Lancers finished in impressive style, taking six of the top seven places, scoring 18 points and easily outpacing Walsh Jesuit with 41 and Lutheran West with 80 points. The Lancers were led by Amy Weybrecht '24, who won the third race of her young high school career. The rest of the varsity runners were equally impressive with Caitrina Barton '21 (second), Mary Lombardo '22 (fourth), Gia Rosko '24 (fifth) and Mia Polisena '22 (sixth) rounding out the scoring for Gilmour.
According to Lindley, "The result was well-deserved, with Gilmour displaying their best pack running of the season."
The boys ran second and came away with a third-place finish. The Lancers, who scored 79 points, trailed Walsh (16 points) and Lutheran West (58 points), but bested University School (90 points) and Richmond Heights (126 points). Scott Vergilii '23 led the way with an eighth-place finish. Tim Papczun '24 grabbed 11th place in a personal-best time, followed closely by Michael Piccirillo '24 in 12th. Andrew Lewis '23 finished in 23rd and Ben Lindley '24 in 25th to round out the scoring.
At this final home meet of the season, the Lancers took the opportunity to recognize lone senior Caitrina Barton '24 prior to the meet. Click here to see photos of the ceremony, as well as the race, in the Athletics Online Photo Gallery. #GoGA #WeAreGilmour