Orange Cross Country Makes Strong Showing at Legends Meet

CORTLAND, OH- The Orange High School cross country teams competed at the annual Legends Meet on Saturday, held at the Trumbull County Fairgrounds, with both the boys and girls teams turning in solid performances against top competition from around the region.

The boys team placed 9th out of a highly competitive field of 50 schools, led by senior Ishan Bhatt, who crossed the finish line in 18:05.2, earning him 49th place overall. He was closely followed by sophomore Landon Bell (78th, 18:33.0) and Calvin Schroer (80th, 18:35.2). Freshmen Spencer Wolinetz (90th, 18:43.9) and Sam Melvey (95th, 18:50.8) also delivered impressive performances, helping to solidify Orange's top-10 team finish.

Other key contributors included senior Chase Lepene (105th, 18:55.2) and sophomore Nickhil Bobba (133rd, 19:20.4). Maplewood High School claimed the boys team title, followed by Chagrin Falls and Salem.

On the girls side, the Orange girls team finished 12th out of 34 schools, led by standout sophomore Marina Campbell, who placed 18th with a time of 20:16.8. She was backed up by sophomore Zahra Navadeh (50th, 21:53.2), sophomore Emily Moderick (78th, 22:54.0), junior Grace Breininger (94th, 23:16.9), and senior Panka Karman (105th, 23:42.1).

Also competing for the Lions were freshman Noomi Levine (127th, 24:42.2) and junior Natalie Martincic (177th, 26:37.6). The girls team title went to Hathaway Brown, with Maplewood and McDonald rounding out the top three.

With strong showings from underclassmen on both teams, the future looks bright for Orange cross country as they prepare for the final stretch of the season.