This was expected to be the tightest team race of the four, with three teams holding legitimate shots at taking the title. This race was also expected to produce the best individual effort of the day. Fans were disappointed on neither count. Ritchie picked the perfect time to finally knock off favored Doddridge, taking a slim 3 point victory. Individually, Berkeley Springs Freshman Rachel Buser carved a whopping 25 seconds off the course record in running an exceptional 18:19.

The gun sounded and the rains came. The threatening weather that was a meager sprinkle just seconds before became a downpour as the girls race started. Fortunately, the hard rain last only a couple minutes before fading back into a light drizzle.

Awaiting the runners at the mile mark, we saw the expected leaders come into sight. Berkeley Springs' Rachel Buser was already in control, coming through in a blistering 5:29. Berkeley Springs' Valerie Peer came through in 5:37 with Doddridge's Clara Grandt close behind in 5:40. There was a gap between these three and the next pack. This pack included Ritchie's Jamie Cokeley and Melanie Manning, Doddridge's Jennie Spencer, Winfield's Holly Rooper and Kasey Jividen at the least. It's difficult to take good notes on wet notebook paper.

At the two mile mark, it was apparent that the individual race was pretty much over. Rachel Buser blasted through the two-mile mark in 11:24, nearly 30 seconds ahead of teammate Valerie Peer who crossed in 11:52. Peer had opened the gap on Clara Grandt to 18 seconds as Grandt crossed in 12:10. Jamie Cokeley was holding 4th, followed by Winfield's Holly Rooper. Those two had established a gap on Doddridge's Jennie Spencer, Ritchie's Melanie Manning, and Wheeling Central's Stephanie Caruso. Teamwise, at this point, Doddridge appeared to have the upper hand, with their 5th runner ahead of Ritchie's 4th.

Rachel Buser never let off the gas and shattered the course record and silenced any doubts about her status among the elite runners in WV history. Buser took the meet by 44 seconds, with Valerie Peer easily holding second place in an impressive 19:03. Clara Grandt cruised in for 3rd, 30 seconds back of Peer, but over 40 seconds ahead of the next finisher. Holly Rooper made one final move into 4th. A tight finishing group saw the next four runners finish within 6 seconds. Jamie Cokeley led that group, followed by Stephanie Caruso. Jennie Spencer kicked past Melanie Manning for 7th. Philip Barbour's Kerry Davis completed her strong season by finishing 9th, and Grafton's Nicole Tingler returned to the All-State team for the first time since her Freshman season. In the team race, strong final miles by Angela Kimbler, Brittany Sellers, and Samantha Crouch turned the tables for Ritchie as they edged past Doddridge for the team title.

I suppose an argument could made for any of Ritchie's 3-4-5 runners to take the MVP award, but to me, it's clearly in the hands of one from the group. Angela Kimbler only moved up 6 predicted places, but picked up 4 important team points in getting away from the trio of Doddridge girls that she typically raced. She established a gap on them and never looked back and in doing so was the critical factor in Ritchie's win.

How did RunWV do on our predictions? On the team side, our 1st and 2nd flopped places, as did our 5th and 6th. No team went way above or way below expectations. Individually, we correctly picked 9 of the All-State performers. We also got 13 of the top 15 and 21 of the top 25 correct. The runner who climbed up to take the upredicted All-State spot was Wheeling Central's Stephanie Caruso (predicted 11th, got 6th). Those moving into the top 25 were Richwood's Laura Spencer (predicted 34th, got 19th), Charleston Catholic's Kim Abcower (predicted 26th, got 20th), Charleston Catholic's Nora Sheridan (predicted 28th, got 22nd), and Ritchie's Samantha Crouch (predicted 32nd, got 23rd). The big mover for the meet was Richwood's Laura Spencer who climbed 15 spots from a predicted 34th place finish to a strong 19th.

We offer our congratulations to the Ritchie girls. You were knocked off by Doddridge every time you met this season, but you never lost the confidence or belief that you could win it all.

We offer our congratulations to Rachel Buser. There must be something in the water in Berkeley Springs. This was by far the most impressive individual performance of the meet. There were no Freshman jitters, and you've firmly established yourself among the best ever in West Virginia.

We offer our congratulations to the girls who shook up our predictions. You prove what we try to tell people every year. Rankings and predictions don't mean a thing. That's why we run the race.