Great at state: Allori's repeat, Fossil's 5A runner-up finish and Heritage Christian's first title highlight big day

COLORADO SPRINGS — Liberty Common girls cross country runner Isabel Allori etched her name among local prep running legends on Saturday.

The Eagles senior cruised to her second consecutive Colorado Class 3A state championship at Norris Penrose Event Center.

Allori has made the sport look easy the last two years, winning 14 straight races across two unbeaten championship seasons and beating the city's girls records, 5A schools included.

This one came with a cost, though.

Allori was clearly hobbled after the win, needing medical attention before and after she braved the podium to accept her first-place medal while visibly shaking.

Neither Allori nor Liberty Common coaches were available for comment after the race.

This was a bittersweet ending for Allori, who won the race but was hardly in condition to enjoy the victory afterward.

The senior's winning time was 17 minutes and 32 seconds, more than 20 seconds off her 3A course record time in last year's championship.

Still, Allori won this year's edition by 20 seconds and was nearly a minute ahead of third in another dominant performance.

The result was at least a fitting finish for the Notre Dame commit, who produced the third-fastest girls time among all classifications at the event.

Allori was joined on the podium by one of the next great local girls runners, Timnath's Izzy Schimmelpfennig.

The Cubs' freshman got her sixth top-five finish of the season, placing fifth (19:04) in her state meet debut.

The Timnath girls finished sixth as a team, while Liberty Common took seventh place with Ella Howe (12th) the next-best Eagles runner.

Fossil Ridge girls have 'staying power' in 5A runner-up finish

The goal was third place.

Or so the refrain was leading up to the state meet for the Fossil Ridge girls cross country squad.

The SaberCats did one better, finishing second among a crowded Class 5A field with 120 points.

"It's incredible. I said we wanted third and they must have been offended," said Fossil Ridge head coach Dani Cook, absolutely beaming with the silver trophy in hand.

Second place was great in this case. Maybe even better than that.

Because the SaberCats bested two nationally-ranked teams to take runner-up honors, only finishing behind Air Academy, the No. 2 girls team in the country per MileSplit's rankings.

"That's the favorite moment in all my time at Fossil Ridge," said junior Tatum Berg. "Celebrating together was special and something I'll never forget."

Berg led Fossil Ridge with a 12th-place finish in 18 minutes, 25 seconds, a new course best for her.

Fellow junior Mia Williams took 20th (18:50) and senior Delaney Voronin capped her career with a 25th-place finish in 18:58.

It was a true team effort here, since no Fossil runner carried the scoring burden with a podium finish. Fossil Ridge's average time was under 19 minutes.

This was validation for a squad that was among the nation's top 20 teams all season but not often rewarded for it while facing Colorado's elite running competition.

"It feels amazing to finally have the result reflect their quality," Cook said.

Fossil Ridge was fourth through the one- and two-mile splits before turning on the jets in the final loop and into the arena finish at Norris Penrose.

The strong finishing kick earned Fossil Ridge its best team result in the program's 20-year history, boys or girls.

"It’s a testament to the teams we have now and the ones before who paved the way," Cook said.

The Fossil Ridge boys finished 12th, as Fort Collins led the locals with an eighth-place finish spearheaded by Cadel Ruthven's 10th-place podium spot.

For the girls, Fossil freshman Maya DiGiallonardo finished 34th and junior Samantha Geraets rounded out the scoring in 43rd place.

Notice the classes on these runners. The SaberCats will return five of the six state scorers next season.

"I was really surprised when we got second today, but I think we’re only going to keep getting better," Berg said. "We have a lot more for Colorado and maybe the nation, too."

"These girls have staying power," Cook added. "I can't wait to see them keep it going now."

Heritage Christian girls win first state title

This was finally the Eagles' year.

The Heritage Christian girls cross country team had been so close before. But it had never brought home a state championship trophy.

Until Saturday, as the Eagles won the Colorado Class 2A state title with 37 points behind Mikaela Kendall's runner-up finish.

"It's a dream come true, especially for our seniors," said longtime HCA coach Joe Packard. "With the success of the boys program, the girls wanted their turn and that’s been their theme all year."

Add another trophy to Heritage Christian's rich running tradition.

The boys cross country team won three of four 2A state championships from 2018-2021. The Eagles' boys and girls track teams combined for 12 state titles over the last decade.

This one completed the set after two runner-ups and three more top-five finishes over the last decade for the HCA girls.

"It feels amazing to be the ones to accomplish it," Kendall said. "I’m really happy right now."

Kendall was more than a minute behind now-three time state champion Nadhio Campos (Vanguard) but broke away from the rest of the pack in the final half mile.

"Once I passed (third-place Banning Lewis' Alexia Gonzales) after about two miles, it was clear ahead and I just went for it," Kendall said.

The sophomore ran a time of 19:22, with light snow flurries falling as she crossed the finish line.

That was just one second off her personal record despite Norris Penrose's supremely hilly and challenging course.

It was a comeback story of sorts for Kendall. She won the 2A 2-mile state title on the track last spring but got hurt in the 1-mile race, an injury that hindered her most of the summer.

"She’s unbelievable," Packard said. "To step up like that today shows how strong she is."

Senior Ainsley Stanton capped her career with an 11th-place finish (20:34), while sisters Lilly and Emma Lukens took 14th (20:37) and 15th respectively, separated by only eight seconds.

Faith Lee finished 23rd, and senior Julianna Lundy placed 33rd.

The Eagles boys finished seventh as a team. Ian Molgaard was their top individual runner in seventh place.

Heritage Christian ended Lake County's two-year championship reign in Class 2A, besting the Panthers by 10 points.

"I'm really proud of how they won it," Packard said. "It took all of them scoring pretty high to beat Lake like that."

"We wanted it this year. It just felt right to get it done with this team."

This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Colorado state cross country: Isabel Allori repeats and Fossil Ridge takes 2nd in 5A