The final race of the day was the Class AAA Girls. The expected very tight team battle between Preston and University did indeed take place. Preston was favored by just two points, and University was able to overcome them for the four point win. Individually, Elkins' Letitia Propst, Preston's Kaitlyn Workman, and Fairmont Senior's Alyssa Scherich battled closely for most of the race before Propst finally pulled away late for the 6 second win.

The first checkpoint is the top of the hill, which is about 0.7 miles into the race. At this point, Elkins' Letitia Propst, Preston's Kaitlyn Workman, and Fairmont Senior's Alyssa Scherich had moved to the front with Propst holding a slight lead but will all crossing in 4:25. Parkersburg's Madison Hill was in 4th in 4:28. University's Amelia Paladino was in 5th with the same time. Bridgeport's Morganne Phillips was running in 6th in 4:29 with University's Emily Lynch right on her heels. Cabell Midland's Jorden Thornton was running in 8th in 4:31, followed closely by Jefferson's Lindsey Hash, Morgantown's Sydney Pineault, and University's Katelyn Wheeler in 9th, 10th, and 11th, respectively. Preston's Ashley Shultz was running in 12th, coming through in 4:33. Hampshire's Rachel Lipps was in 13th in 4:34. North Marion's Emma Harrison was in 14th in 4:35. Musselman's Heather Jenkins was in 15th in 4:37 with Nicholas' Morgan Kesecker right behind. Hampshire's Danielle Lewis was in 17th, still in 4:37 with Hampshire's Holly Ruggles in 18th in 4:38. Morgantown's Brynn Harshbarger was in 19th in 4:39, and Bridgeport's Erika Voreh and Morgantown's Allison Lynch were battling for 20th with the same time.

At the mile mark, Alyssa Scherich and Letitia Propst were stride for stride in the lead with Kaitlyn Workman and Madison Hill just behind. The foursome passed the mark in 6:14. Amelia Paladino held 5th in 6:17. Sydney Pineault held a slight advantage over Morganne Phillips for 6th in 6:18. Emily Lynch was in 8th less than a stride behind Phillips. Jorden Thornten was in 9th, and Katelyn Wheeler was in 10th with the pair crossing in 6:19. Rachel Lipps held a slight advantage over Ashley Shultz with the pair crossing in 6:20. Lindsey Hash was in 13th crossing in 6:25. Brynn Harshbarger was in 14th with a time of 6:27. Heather Jenkins was at the front of a four-pack that included Danielle Lewis, Emma Harrison, and Allison Lynch as the group held the 15th through 18th spots and crossed in 6:29. Morgan Kesecker was in 19th in 6:30, and Erika Voreh was in 20th with a 6:32.

The next checkpoint was at the WVU Extension service building at approximately 1.4 miles. Letitia Propst and Alyssa Scherich crossed the mark together with Kaitlyn Workman right behind with the trio coming through in 8:47. Amelia Paladino had moved into 4th in 8:53. Sydney Pineault and Madison Hill crossed together in 8:54. Emily Lynch was in 7th in 8:55. Morganne Phillips was in 8th in 8:56. Katelyn Wheeler was in 9th in 8:59. Ashley Shultz was in 10th in 9:01. Jorden Thornton was in 11th in 9:04. Rachel Lipps was in 12th in 9:09. Brynn Harshbarger was running in 13th in 9:10. Heather Jenkins was in 14th in 9:11. Emma Harrison was in 15th in 9:12. Allison Lynch held the 16th spot in 9:13. Danielle Lewis was in 17th in 9:14. Erika Voreh was in 18th in 9:17. Lindsey Hash was in 19th in 9:19. Morgan Kesecker and University's CiCi Cottrell crossed together in 9:21 battling for 20th.

At the two mile mark, the trio of Letitia Propst, Alyssa Scherich, and Kaitlyn Workman crossed together in 12:30. Amelia Paladino remained in 4th in 12:40. Emily Lynch was up to 5th, but with the same time as Sydney Pineault and Madison Hill, each crossing in 12:41. Morganne Phillips was in 8th, crossing in 12:42. Ashley Shultz was in 9th in 12:52. Jorden Thornton was in 10th in 12:54 with Katelyn Wheeler close behind in 12:55. Brynn Harshbarger was in 12th in 12:59. Emma Harrison was in 13th crossing in 13:00. Danielle Lewis was up to 14th in 13:06. Allison Lynch was in 15th in 13:08. Rachel Lipps was in 16th, also in 13:08. Heather Jenkins was in 17th, crossing in 13:10. Erika Voreh was in 18th in 13:15, followed closely by Preston's Racheal Hulett in 19th. Morgan Kesecker was in 20th in 13:19.

Coming onto the track, Letitia Propst had finally opened a gap, though it was just by a few seconds, over Kaitlyn Workman. Propst stretched her final margin of victory to 6 seconds, finishing in 18:55. Kaitlyn Workman had gotten away from Alyssa Scherich and took the 2nd place position with a 19:01. Alyssa Scherich easily held onto the 3rd spot in 19:13. Amelia Paladino pulled away from her pack over the last mile to claim the 4th spot in 19:18. Morganne Phillips edged Sydney Pineault at the line for 5th with both recording a 19:25. Emily Lynch scored the 7th position with a 19:33. Ashley Shultz moved up to 8th in 19:39. Emma Harrison used a strong last mile and finishing kick to edge Jorden Thornton for 9th as both recorded a 19:42. Madison Hill held on for 11th in 19:45. Brynn Harshbarger took 12th with a 19:57, while Katelyn Wheeler held on for 13th as the last runner under 20:00 by finishing in 19:59. Danielle Lewis took the 14th spot with a 20:05. Racheal Hulett moved up to 15th in the last mile and finished in 20:08. Heather Jenkins scored 16th with her 20:15. Morgan Kesecker won a big kick to the finish over Erika Voreh and Allison Lynch for the 17th spot. Kesecker scored a 20:16, while Voreh and Lynch recorded 20:17. Preston's Laura Shaffer used a final kick to snag the 20th spot in 20:20.

The MVP for this year is tough to call. When you have a race that is this close, and the championship is decided by just a few points, I have to look at what created the difference. There were two things that created the difference this year. One was Cici Cottrell who moved up 8 spots from her predicted finish and picked up 6 team points in the process, but I think the more difficult move was made by Emily Lynch. Her climb from a predicted 13th to an actual 7th picked up 3 team points, and it also knocked Preston down a point, which would have created a tie had she finished where expected. The tie-breaker would have gone to Preston. Emily Lynch performed at the highest level when she was needed most and was an important factor in her team's championship. For that reason, the 2010 RunWV MVP for the State Meet is Emily Lynch.

How did RunWV do on the predictions? University and Preston both ran very well, but University just ran slightly better to take the title, switching predicted positions. Morgantown and Hampshire switched positions. Parkersburg and Hurricane switched positions. The remaining four teams finished as expected. Individually, 8 of the predicted top 10 finished in the top 10. 13 of the predicted top 15 finished in the top 15, and 21 of the predicted top 25 finished in the top 25. This was probably my best set of individual picks of the day. The runners who made their wy into the All-State lineup were University's Emily Lynch (picked 13th, got 7th) and North Marions' Emma Harrison (picked 11th, got 9th). Those who moved into the top 25 were Musselman's Heather Jenkins (picked 27th, got 16th), Nicholas' Morgan Kesecker (picked 26th, got 17th), Parkersburg's Kaylee Williams (picked 28th, got 22nd), and Unvirsity's CiCi Cottrell (picked 31st, got 23rd). The big mover of the day was Morgantown's Rebekah Lafata who moved up 15 spots from a predicted finish of 44th to an actual finish of 29th. From a team standpoint, Morgantown had the best day, scoring 15 fewer points than was predicted.

I offer my congratulations to the University girls. Honestly, I was a little surprised when I tallied my individual picks and you weren't on top (and confession...on the RuntheArb contest, I did pick you). You stepped up when you had to, and you did have to, because Preston ran well. You perform well at the State Meet every year, and this year was certainly no different. It was a well-earned win. You were strong all year and even stronger when it mattered most.

I offer my congratulations to Letitia Propst. Three titles in four years is quite an accomplishment. You closed your storied career the same way you began it...atop the podium. You spent much of your career with a target on your back, but you never failed to run your own race.

I offer my congratulations to the girls who shook up the predictions. You prove what I try to tell people every year. Rankings and predictions do not determine the finish. You determine the finish.