Banfich beats state's best

By Paul Dendiu
Pilot Sports

Culver Academy’s Alex Banfich accepts her medal at the IHSAA cross country state meet on Saturday in Terre Haute. Banfich won the girls race, giving her school its first champion in the sport. photo submitted

CULVER - Alex Banfich is still pinching herself.

Banfich, a sophomore at Culver Academy, won the IHSAA girls cross country state meet on Saturday in Terre Haute, becoming the first individual state champion in school history.

“I haven't really thought about that,” Banfich said Sunday. “It hasn't quite sunk in yet. It's pretty exciting.”

Like most of her victories during the last two years, Banfich finished well in front of her closest competitors. She ran a personal best time of 14:05.1, crossing the line more than 10 seconds ahead of Chesterton's Sarah Kehe.

“I wasn't trying to run a certain time. I knew that if I was going to do well, I had to stay up with the girls in the front,” Banfich said.

She kept pace with the lead pack through most of the 2.5 mile race, then broke away with 3/4 mile left and was never threatened. Her winning time was the fastest championship mark in five years.

Banfich burst onto the high school cross country scene in 2004, placing third in the finals as a freshman. Many considered her the favorite to take the first spot on the medal stand this year, but she wasn't blinded by the glare of the spotlight.

“I was definitely nervous,” Banfich said. “There was some pressure with people who were expecting me to win. I was just going to try to block that out and run my race.”

And run she did, improving her finals time this year by almost 39 seconds. The Eagles ended in 15th place overall after coming in 11th a season ago.

Banfich was glad she had her teammates along for the ride again.

“That was a big help. They really calmed me down. It was a really great experience having them there,” she said.

The experience she gained in her first year also gave her confidence that she could go head-to-head with the state's best runners.

“Last year, I was kind of oblivious to everything,” she said. “This year, I was more informed. I knew the course and I knew the people I was racing against.”

She plans to keep racing this winter - in the water.

“I'm still going to continue swimming,” she said when asked about her off-season schedule. “It's possible (winning state) will motivate me to work harder. I'll probably do a little more training than I did last year. ”

Westfield won its second girls team title, upsetting three-time defending champion Valparaiso.

Warren Central's boys team captured its first state crown, edging Valparaiso 118-130, the slimmest margin of victory at the meet since 1995.

Culver Academy senior Joe Stamper was 35th individually, finishing in 16:14.1.

Neilsen rating

Bremen senior Kelsey Nielsen finished 14th in the individual competition to earn a state medal. Nielsen ended with a time of 14:24.8.

HS CROSS COUNTRY
Girls
Westfield 88, Valparaiso 126, Carmel 128, Northridge 136, Lawrence North 163, Indianapolis Cathedral 176, Chesterton 191, Center Grove 201, Fort Wayne Snider 248, DeKalb 274, Carroll (Fort Wayne) 281, Fort Wayne Concordia 294, Portage 325, West Lafayette 346, Culver Academy 378, Terre Haute North 404, Tell City 453, Jasper 454, Bedford North Lawrence 463, Terre Haute South 493

At Terre Haute (LaVern Gibson Championship Course)
Top 20 finishers: 1. Alex Banfich (CA) 14:05.1, 2. Sarah Kehe (CHES) 14:15.7, 3. Maggie Bingham (WF) 14:18.4, 4. Kristina Krasich (WF) 14:18.6, 5. Amanda Hardesty (VAL) 14:20.0, 6. Katy Achtien (IC) 14:20.2, 7. Lauren Hardesty (VAL) 14:21.6, 8. Mary Cate Quiett (Marian) 14:22.1, 9. Kyla Chapman (Rensselaer) 14:22.7, 10. Jenny Kulow (Brown Co.) 14:23.3, 11. Megan Jackson (NR) 14:23.6, 12. Anna Weber (Michigan City) 14:23.7, 13. Lauren Waterman (Carmel) 14:24.1, 14. Kelsey Nielsen (BRE) 14:24.8, 15. Rachel Hissong (DK) 14:26.7, 16. Linsey Daluga (WL) 14:28.6, 17. Andrea Kent (VAL) 14:29.3, 18. Shelbi Burnett (CG) 14:29.9, 19. Maria Gramelspacher (JAS) 14:31.0, 20. Theresa Schamberger (East Noble) 14:32.2.

Other Culver Academy finishers: 72. Kiley Trennepohl 15:20.2, 106. Hannah Goettle 15:51.3, 145. Kelly Norton 16:25.0, 153. Elise Hoover 16:39.3, 166. Marisa Gilmore 17:37.9, 167. Emily Thews 17:49.6.