(Nov 11, 2021) The Saint John Paul the Great boys Cross Country team won the Virginia Independent School Athletic Association (VISAA) State Championships today at Pole Green Park in Mechanicsville, VA.  This Division I VISAA victory was the first in school history and made possible by the JP harriers placing five runners in the top 20. The Wolves were led by Senior Sean Alorro in 5th place, James Bertram in 9th,  Matthew Elliott in 15th, Ben Moloko in 16th, and Xander Fry in 17th.  All five were named to the VISAA All-State team. What made this victory more impressive was that the gap between the first and fifth runners was only 30 seconds.  On the girls side, Junior Sarah Dake’s 13th place finish paced the JP lady harriers to 8th place overall.  Dake was also named to the VISAA All-State team.  Congratulations to the Wolves for a fantastic and historic finish to a great season. Full results can be found at: https://va.milesplit.com/meets/439601-visaa-state-cross-country-championships-2021/results/781395 

(Nov 4)  The Saint John Paul the Great Boys Cross Country team placed five runners in the top 8 to capture the first ever Virginia Christian Athletic Conference Championships today at Burke Lake Park.  Leading the team and overall winner was Senior Xander Fry in a school record time of 15:52 for the 3 mile course.  Following Fry was Senior Sean Alorro in third place, Sophomore James Bertram in fifth place, Sophomore Matthew Elliott in seventh place, and Senior Ben Moloko in eighth place to round out the top 5 harriers.  The top five boys were named to the all conference team.   The boys team also won the regular season VCAC by winning every meet this season.  On the girls side, Junior Sarah Dake’s second place finish led the Lady Wolves to VCAC Conference Runner-up.  Strong performances by Senior Maddie Cassidy and Sophomore Isabella Alicea fishing in seventh and ninth place respectively contributed to this second place team finish.  Dake, Cassidy, and Alicea were named to the all conference team for the girls. Overall, the team saw everyone on the team set a personal best time for this course.  Congratulations to the JP Boys and Girls Cross Country teams for these achievements.  The Wolves will next compete in the Virginia Independent Schools Athletic Association State Championships on Nov 11. Full results for this meet can be found here: https://va.milesplit.com/meets/448365-vcac-championship-2021/results

(Oct 27, 2021) Saint John Paul the Great placed six runners in the top 10 to capture the boys State Catholic Cross Country Championships today at Newport News Park.  Leading the Wolves to victory was Senior Xander Fry who was the overall Champion covering the 5K course in 17:05.  Fry was followed by teammate Sean Alorro who finished in second, James Bertram in fourth, Ben Moloko in fifth, Matthew Elliott in sixth, and Shane Wall in eighth.  This is the fourth Championship for the Wolves Harriers in the last four non-covid seasons. On the girls side, Junior Sarah Dake finished sixth and Senior Maddie Cassidy finished 15th to lead the lady wolves.  The Wolves will next compete in the Virginia Christian Athletic Conference on Nov 7 before heading on to the VISAA Championships on Nov 14. Full results for Today's Meet: https://va.milesplit.com/meets/448435-state-cathlolic-cross-country-championship-2021/results 

Senior Xander Fry’s first place finish led the boys to a team victory yesterday in the VCAC Meet #3 at Leesylvania State Park. Fry’s time of 16:40 established a new record for the 5K course. Teammates Sean Alorro, James Bertram, Matthew Elliott, Ben Moloko, Shane Wall, and Daniel Merriman finished second, fifth, sixth, seventh, ninth, and twelfth to round out the scoring for the boys who all finished in season best times.  On the girls side, Junior Sarah Dake won the girls race in a course record time of 20:42 and Maddie Cassidy finished sixth with a season’s best time as well. Congratulations to the John Paul the Great Cross Country team for these victories. The team will next compete in the State Catholic Championship on Wednesday October 27 at Newport News Park.

  The John Paul Cross Country team opened the 2021 season by competing in the Great Meadows Invitational in The Plains on Saturday Aug 28.  The runners suffered through the hot and humid weather to post some good times for an early season race.  In the Girls Varsity race, Junior Sarah Dake led the team with a solid performance and close to a personal best time of 22:57 for the 5K course.  Freshman Brooke Ortega competed well in her first ever race for John Paul.  In the Boys Varsity Race, Seniors Xander Fry and Sean Alorro along with Sophomore James Bertram led the team to a 15th place finish out of the 32 teams competing. In the Freshman/Sophomore Race, Sophomore Matthew Elliott’s 17th place finish led the team to a 14th place finish.  Many of the John Paul runners turned in personal best performances despite the challenging weather conditions.  Congratulations to the John Paul Cross Country team for a great start to the season. Results for this meet can be found at: https://va.milesplit.com/meets/435856-great-meadow-invitational-2021/results  (Picture Courtesy of MileStat, Mary Ann Magnant)