Mentor, Kenston capture regional titles as six area boys cross country teams advance to state

Championships are won by the runners at the front, but state tournament berths often come down to the runners battling through the middle of the pack.

Both stories unfolded Saturday at the OHSAA Northeast Regional Cross Country Championships at Boardman High School.

Mentor Boys Cross Country dominated the Division I regional championship with 46 points, and Kenston Boys Cross Country claimed the Division II title with 173.

Berkshire Boys Cross Country, Chagrin Falls Boys Cross Country and Gilmour Academy Boys Cross Country finished second, third and fourth, respectively, in Division III, while Independence Boys Cross Country earned a regional runner-up finish in Division IV.

Six area teams advanced to the Nov. 7 state championships at Fortress Obetz, along with eight additional area athletes who qualified individually.

Among those individual qualifiers was Ian Res, who gave West Geauga Boys Cross Country a regional champion with a winning time of 15:32.3 in Division II.

From Mentor’s overwhelming depth to a nine-point separation among three area Division III programs, the regional championships offered plenty of evidence that Northeast Ohio’s distance runners are ready for one final challenge.

DIVISION I: Mentor dominates the field

There was little suspense about which team would capture the Division I championship.

Mentor placed three runners among the first five finishers, four among the top 12 and all seven among the top 27.

The Cardinals finished with 46 points, comfortably ahead of Medina (114), Massillon Jackson (130), Perrysburg (165) and Solon (167).

Those five teams advanced to state.

Senior Carter Schaubert set the pace for Mentor, finishing second overall in 16:00.4. Senior Vinny Klima was just behind him in third at 16:09.0, and sophomore Corbin Ott added a fifth-place finish in 16:18.3.

Junior Drew Maynard crossed in 16:31.6 to place 12th, while junior Shawn Castiglione completed Mentor’s scoring five in 24th with a time of 16:42.7.

The Cardinals were hardly finished.

Junior Cody Klasch finished 26th in 16:43.6, and senior Gabe Tulenson placed 27th in 16:43.7.

With seven runners separated by just 43.3 seconds, Mentor demonstrated the type of depth that can make a difference in a crowded state championship field.

Solon’s Matthew Scipione won the individual championship in 15:44.6, finishing 15.8 seconds ahead of Schaubert.

For Mentor, the regional championship provided another milestone in a season that has established the Cardinals among Ohio’s elite.

Their next challenge is carrying that depth into the Division I state championship.

DIVISION II: Kenston claims title; Res races to gold

Kenston didn’t need an individual champion to win the Division II team title.

The Bombers used a balanced scoring effort to finish with 173 points, defeating runner-up Massillon Perry (212) by 39.

Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy was third with 251, followed by Uniontown Lake (256) and Shaker Heights (265).

The top 10 teams advanced to state.

Senior Matthew Collins led Kenston with a 14th-place finish in 16:15.9.

Sophomore Tyler Cingcade finished 26th in 16:26.6, sophomore Huck Rundo placed 28th in 16:30.2, and sophomore Ian McCallin followed in 36th at 16:34.3.

Senior Porter Fontana completed the championship scoring lineup in 73rd with a time of 17:00.4.

The performance gave Kenston another championship after the Bombers previously captured the Suburban League and district titles.

While Kenston celebrated its team victory, Res provided the race’s individual highlight.

The West Geauga senior crossed the finish line in 15:32.3, holding off Nordonia’s Anderson Seredick, who finished second in 15:33.8.

Just 1.5 seconds separated the runners.

Res’ victory added a regional title to a postseason that already included a Chagrin Valley Conference Chagrin Division championship.

Three more area runners secured individual state berths in Division II.

University School Boys Cross Country senior Brennan Coley placed sixth in 15:49.8, and teammate Thomas Lodowski, also a senior, finished 13th in 16:13.9.

Orange Boys Cross Country junior Griffin Berlin earned his state berth with a 16th-place finish in 16:17.2.

University School finished 14th in the team standings, Orange placed 21st and West Geauga was 22nd, but their individual qualifiers ensured all three programs would be represented at state.

DIVISION III: Berkshire, Chagrin Falls and Gilmour Academy advance

Woodridge dominated the Division III championship, scoring just 37 points.

Behind the Bulldogs, however, the battle for the remaining state tournament positions was considerably tighter.

Berkshire finished second with 224 points, Chagrin Falls followed in third with 227, and Gilmour Academy placed fourth with 233.

Nine points separated the three area programs.

Canal Fulton Northwest (235), Marlington (254) and Norwayne (265) claimed the remaining team qualifying berths.

Berkshire’s scoring lineup was led by senior Danny Auth, who finished 22nd in 16:43.9.

Junior Aiden Hollingsworth placed 32nd in 16:53.5, sophomore Evan Tromba finished 49th in 17:20.9, and sophomore Tripp Wadsworth placed 63rd in 17:38.9.

Freshman Ben Townsend completed the scoring five in 71st with a time of 17:42.6.

The Badgers’ three-point advantage over Chagrin Falls demonstrated how important those finishing positions became in the middle of the field.

Chagrin Falls countered with one of the division’s stronger pairs near the front.

Senior Kelan Byrne finished 10th in 16:20.3, and junior TJ Mitchell placed 16th in 16:39.3.

Freshman Jameson Byrne contributed a 37th-place finish in 17:01.9, followed by junior Michael Hanley in 80th at 17:48.9 and sophomore Nathan Nelson in 114th at 18:14.7.

The Tigers, who won a district championship one week earlier, secured another opportunity to test themselves against Woodridge and the state’s best Division III programs.

Gilmour Academy wasn’t far behind.

Senior Evan Lindley led the Lancers with an 11th-place finish in 16:23.5.

Junior Evan Sammut placed 38th in 17:05.3, junior Carter Shininger finished 57th in 17:36.5, and junior Kevin Shank followed in 60th at 17:37.2.

Senior Ryan Moore completed the scoring five in 84th with a time of 17:51.7.

The Lancers finished only six points behind Chagrin Falls and nine behind Berkshire.

Three additional area runners qualified individually.

Jefferson Area Boys Cross Country junior Cody Weber finished 13th in 16:32.7.

Conneaut Boys Cross Country junior Ethan Van Norman placed 21st in 16:43.3, and Lake Catholic Boys Cross Country junior Mason Panhorst finished 24th in 16:45.1.

Canton South’s Logan Howard won the individual title in 15:32.7, followed by Woodridge’s John Brock in 15:37.9.

For Berkshire, Chagrin Falls and Gilmour Academy, another meeting at state will provide an opportunity to settle a regional competition that was separated by only a handful of points.

DIVISION IV: Independence claims regional runner-up finish

Independence entered Saturday with conference and district championships already secured.

The Blue Devils added another significant accomplishment at Boardman, finishing second in Division IV with 104 points.

Maplewood captured the regional championship with 86, while Lake Center Christian (159), Kidron Central Christian (205) and Black River (219) completed the five-team state qualifying field.

Freshman Archer Dlugolinski led Independence with a 10th-place finish in 16:55.6.

Junior Mitchell Creel crossed in 17:08.7 to place 16th, and freshman Jayden Musni followed one-tenth of a second later, finishing 17th in 17:08.8.

Sophomore Andrew Gibbons placed 28th in 17:30.0, while freshman Liam Polter completed the scoring lineup in 35th at 17:37.9.

Freshman Finn McGovern also contributed a strong race, finishing 58th in 18:06.3.

The Blue Devils’ lineup included three freshmen among their five scorers, a promising sign for both the final race of 2026 and the program’s future.

Grand Valley Boys Cross Country senior Sam Steimle secured an individual state berth with an outstanding fourth-place finish in 16:20.5.

McDonald’s Owen Cappuzello won the individual championship in 15:48.2, followed by Smithville’s Nigel Wenger in 15:52.6.

AREA BOYS TEAMS ADVANCING TO STATE

AREA BOYS INDIVIDUAL STATE QUALIFIERS

Additional individual qualifiers from schools that did not advance as teams.

One final race

For Mentor and Kenston, the regional championships provided confirmation that both programs belong among Ohio’s strongest teams.

For Berkshire, Chagrin Falls, Gilmour Academy and Independence, Saturday’s results extended seasons built on consistency, depth and postseason success.

And for eight individual qualifiers, the chance to compete against the state’s best remains alive.

The OHSAA state cross country championships are scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 7, at Fortress Obetz.

Six teams. Eight additional individual qualifiers.

One more opportunity to make the season unforgettable.

Cameron Palmer contributed to this story.

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