Girls cross country: Sterling Sophomores, Best Friends, 1-2 at Twin City

ROCK FALLS – Megan Barnhart and Maggie McPherson are best friends.

The two Sterling sophomore runners can't remember who has crossed the finish line first the most times between them this season.

But as long as they are first and second, they don't mind.

In Tuesday's Twin City Meet at Centennial Park, the Golden Warrior duo finished 16 seconds apart from one another in taking the top two spots individually. The low points helped the Golden Warriors take bragging rights for the second year in a row, and for the 10th time in the past 15 years.

Sterling finished with 29 points, ahead of runner-up Rock Falls (46) and Newman (59).

Barnhart and McPherson competed with Rock Falls' Makaley Velazquez in the first mile. Velazquez sprinted ahead for the first 50 feet before being overtaken by the two Golden Warriors. The trio packed together before Velazquez fell off pace past the 1-mile mark.

In the last half-mile, Barnhart pulled ahead to get about a 30-foot lead on her teammate, who was about 70 feet ahead of Velazquez. Barnhart finished the race in 19 minutes, 20 seconds, with McPherson following 16 seconds later.

"What we wind up doing is staying with each other for the first 2 miles or so, and then one of us usually breaks off," McPherson said. "Usually Megan."

"This race had a lot more pressure on it," Barnhart said. "It's just a competitive race here between the three schools."

Sterling coach Tyler Gaumer also likes the rivalry nature of the meet.

"We talk about the mentality about 'anywhere, anytime, let's race,'" Gaumer said. "It doesn't matter who we're running against, just go. It's of course always much more fun to get an opportunity to run against Rock Falls and Newman. Their kids always run great too, when you get this opportunity for a rivalry. So we love this because of that opportunity."

Velazquez, who finished last month's Rocket Run on the same course in 20:17, only shaved 2 seconds from her time in this home meet.

"I was not satisfied at all," Velazquez said. "I could have done better. I just went out way too hard and died at that first mile."

But she had high praise for her rivals across the river, whom she had finished higher than in their two prior mutual meets at Oregon and Sycamore.

"They did real good today," Velazquez said about the 1-2 Sterling combo. "They went out and stayed in that front pack. They're 2A and I'm 1A, but they push me a lot. I tried to stay with them, but they're real good."

Rocket teammate Bailie Smith finished in fourth place with a time of 21:01, besting her time from the Rocket Run by 25 seconds. Newman's tandem of Tegan McKenna and Haley Simpson rounded out the top six, finishing in 21:14 and 21:28, leading the Comets – who had five runners place in the top 15, including Kate Bonnell (13th-place, 23:19) and Kirsten Tuniak (14th-place, 23:23).

The Golden Warriors – racing without senior Mercedes Sanchez, who is out with an ankle injury – had six runners in the top 12. Carly Hanson finished in seventh place with a time of 21:47, while a line of teammates followed starting with Bryana Johnson's ninth-place finish (22:11), and followed by Maegan McCue (22:17), Mackenzie Barnhart (22:39), and Santana Estrada (22:55).

But the stream of Golden Warriors needed another 2 minutes to catch up to the pair of besties.

"For us two, it's a great feeling to have that person there next to you to push you through the race," Barnhart said. "None of us wants to give up that place to each other, but we push each other at practice, and we push each other every race."

"Especially when it's your best friend, and you're just racing," McPherson added. "You want to be friendly, but you also want to beat each other at the same time. It's that extra little push."


Star of the Meet: Megan Barnhart, Sterling, 19:20 (1st).

Key performers: Maggie McPherson, Sterling, 19:36; Makaley Velazquez, Rock Falls, 20:15; Tegan McKenna, Newman, 21:14.

Up next: Newman, Rock Falls at Bureau Valley Invitational (9:30 a.m.); Sterling at Geneseo Invitational (9 a.m.)