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BELFAST — Shock, pain and disbelief. There was an outpouring of multiple emotions as George Stevens Academy’s Ripley King-Ofsiany crossed the finish line Saturday at Troy Howard Middle School.

The junior had never in her life won a cross country race. What better time then Saturday, as King-Ofsiany crossed the finish line in 20 minutes, 43.77 seconds to win the Class C girls race at the Northern Maine championships.

“I’m so happy,” said King-Ofsiany, who was still crying tears of joy 10 minutes after her win. “It’s just something I’ve really been working for. I can’t believe the first race I’ve won was Northerns. I’m just so proud of myself.”

Caribou’s Emma Graves (Class B, 18:44.40) and Hampden Academy’s Addison Elliott (19:21.39) won the other girls races at Troy Howard. Pierce Gorneault of Caribou (Class B, 16:01.03), Brady Cox of Orono (Class C, 16:48.44) and Sam Bergmark of Bangor (Class A, 15:51.07) won the boys races.

The Caribou boys (61 points) and Mount Desert Island girls (40 points) were Class B team champions, and the Houlton/Greater Houlton Christian Academy boys (26) and GSA girls (46) won in Class C. The Hampden Academy boys (63) and girls (27) swept Class A.

Gorneault, a sophomore, easily defended his Class B regional title. His time was the best in a B North boys race since Medomak Valley’s Connor Daigle (15:53.52) in 2021. Daigle’s younger brother, Colby, was runner-up to Gorneault in 16:53.72.

A third-place finish from Tewolde Stewart (16:59.73) and a fourth from Peyton Gorneault (17:12.04) helped power the Caribou boys to victory over John Bapst (83 points) and Presque Isle (83, lost tiebreaker). Paxton Darrell (17:15.20) of Presque Isle rounded out the top five.

“I wish I could have shaved off one second (to finish sub-16), but I feel good about it,” Pierce Gorneault said. “I’m really happy with how my teammates performed, and I hope to see them grow in the future even more.”

Caribou’s success continued in the girls race, with Graves beating out MDI’s Kulani Granholm (18:54.88). The Vikings (84 points) placed third behind MDI, which claimed its seventh consecutive B North championship by beating out Presque Isle (64 points).

“I had hoped (I could beat Granholm) because I had beaten her or gotten close to her at some of the other meets,” Graves said. “The weather was great, and the course was in good condition. … Our team did really good; one of my teammates (Isabella Albert) got a PR.”

Cox was followed in the Class C boys race by a quartet of Houlton/GHCA runners: Malachi Witmer (16:52.80), Brayden Drake (16:59.00), Wyatt Quint (17:01.89) and Logan Witmer (17:13.72). That helped the Shiretowners beat GSA (48 points) and Orono (71) for the team title.

Then came King-Ofsiany’s win in the C girls race. King-Ofsiany finished fourth to Orono’s Ellie Arsenault and Ruby Beane and teammate Paige Carter a week earlier at the Penobscot Valley Conference championships. This time, she finished ahead of Beane (20:52.01) and Carter (21:17.19), while Arsenault dropped out because of an injury.

“I think (finishing fourth at PVCs) kind of lit a fire in me to really push harder today,” King-Ofsiany said. “I knew I could do it; I just told myself, ‘This is my race,’ and I just followed through on me. … (That belief), I think, is what made me win.”

And she helped GSA claim the team title, too. Olesya Shafarina (21:20.27) finished third for Orono, giving the Eagles and Red Riots two runners each in the top four. With the two teams pretty much even the rest of the way, GSA edged Orono by two points to dethrone the Red Riots as champs.

Bergmark defended his Northern Maine title in Class A, ahead of the Mt. Blue duo of Lucas Demarco (16:09.98) and Wyatt Oliver (16:33.25). Noah Seigh (16:55.77) of Camden Hills took fourth, while Jack Scott (17:03.38) finished fifth for champion Hampden.

Elliott’s win for the Hampden girls was her second straight North title. Elsie Mann of Camden Hills took second in 19:38.71. Isabelle Clark (19:56.99) placed fourth for the Broncos, who defended their Northern Maine crown.