Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, January 1, 1995 TAG: 9501040041
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C-9 EDITION: HOLIDAY
SOURCE: BOB TEITLEBAUM STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
\ It doesn't take a genius to figure out the Timesland girls' cross country runner of the year.
For the second straight fall, Glenvar's Trish Nervo is the winner and as the years roll by, the Highlander junior gets tougher and tougher when it comes to running.
This year, Nervo won her third consecutive Group AAA championship, finished sixth in the Foot Locker South Region cross country run at Charlotte, N.C., and 29th nationally at San Diego against opponents from schools of all sizes in the United States.
The Timesland boys' Runner of the Year was not as clear cut, but then again it was. Christiansburg's Kevin Nolan had a bad day in the Group AA state meet, finishing 16th. Still, he was the pacesetter for the Blue Demons who claimed the team state title and all year he was the top runner for a team thatat one time was nationally ranked in the United States.
Christiansburg's Steve Shelton is the boys' coach of the year while William Byrd's Mike Sebolt is the top girls' coach.
Joining Nolan on the All-Timesland boys' cross country team are two other Christiansburg runners - freshman brother Matt Nolan and Justin Mosby. The team is completed by Franklin County's David Angell, Northside's Stuart Bray, Floyd County's Ben Cooke and Blacksburg's Scott Shepherd. Angell, Kevin Nolan and Shepherd are repeaters from last year.
Christiansburg's Bethany Eigel and Laura Evans, Blacksburg's Sarah Hendricks, Salem's Johanna Fisher, Floyd County's Johanna Neumann and Cave Spring's Claire Rotramel are the other girls' All-Timesland's selections. Rotramel and Eigel are repeat selections while Nervo is first team for the third consecutive year.
Despite the competition, Nervo wasn't happy with her race at scenic Balboa Park in San Diego. ``I would have been happy with 29th, if I had run well. It wasn't my best race. I didn't have it and it wasn't a good day not to have it,'' said Nervo.
Make no mistake, Nervo may run in the state's smallest classification when it comes to winning high school titles, but she wants much more.
``I was beaten by nearly two minutes [at San Diego] and it's big-time stuff. I'd like to compete big time,'' said Nervo. ``That's the worst I've been beaten. I expected to be beaten. This will make me work harder. It shows me what I have to do.''
Nervo says she also didn't run that well in the state. ``I was nervous, tense. I didn't run an awful race, but I could have run better if I had been relaxed. I think winning for the third time in a row was tough. Even if I don't win next year [for a four-peat], I'll be in good position for college.''
Kevin Nolan's bad day in the state started when he was clipped by another runner and lost a shoe.
``He went down, got his shoe on and still finished 16th,'' said Shelton. ``Matt saw Kevin drop and went right to the front.''
Matt Nolan finished fifth in the state after coming in third in the New River District and second behind his brother in the Region IV run.
``It [losing the shoe] didn't bother me since my brother and two teammates beat me,'' said Kevin Nolan. ``They had a great day.''
The older Nolan intended on a soccer career rather than being a runner. ``I was going to run track and play soccer, but I got hooked and just kept running. I thought it was more fun and I guess I'm better at it.''
Shelton followed successful coach Jeff Custer to Christiansburg and has maintained the program with his first state title this year after the Blue Demons had been state runnerup two consecutive years.
``When I took over, they had just won three state titles. It took me three years to find the answer. You don't have to top [what they did under Jeff] because those teams did great things,'' said Shelton.
Christiansburg was ranked 18th nationally, but a bad performance at one October meet dropped the Blue Demons out of the national picture. ``That's just something for a scrapbook anyway,'' said Custer. ``I think we'll do well in the future because we have some sophomores to compete for the spot that Kevin's leaving.''
Sebolt's girls team finished third in the Region III meet with only one senior and was right behind Blacksburg, the Region IV team it beat in a regular season meet, at the state.
``We had a real young team and our goal was to be in the top 10,'' said Sebolt, whose squad finished 11th. ``As this team gets older [more experience], it will be one of the best I've had. We just happen to be in the same region as Brookville [fourth in the state] that doesn't lose anyone.''
Sebolt beat out Blacksburg coach Ben Thomas for the honor. Thomas had just five girls on the team from the district through the state, meaning all five had to finish the race for the Indians to get a team score. They did just that.
Among other highlights for the boys' first team, Angell wasw 36th in the state and the only Roanoke Valley District runner including girls to make it out of the Northwest Region; Mosby was 13th in the Group AA state and third in Region IV after transfering to Christiansburg from Auburn; Bray was 11th in the Group AA state meet after winning the Blue Ridge District and finishing third in Region III; Shepherd was eighth in the Group A state meet and fifth in the Region IV that was dominated by Christiansburg; and Cooke was second in Group A as the junior came back from a third place finish in Region C behind teammate Jason Morisce, a second-team choice.
Other second-team boys included Galax's Jamar Bryson, Salem's Jason Herron, Christiansburg's Michael Lee and Robby Rakes, Covington's Chris Merrell and Blacksburg's Dave Williams and Dave Brown.
Among other highlights for girls, Eigel was third in the Group AA meet after a fourth-place regional finish behind Evans, who was fifth in the state and second in Region IV; Hendricks won the New River District, finished seventh in the state and second in Region IV; Rotramel won the Roanoke Valley District title and was fifth in the Metro; Neumann was fourth in Group A after winning the Three Rivers District title and ending up third in Region C; and Fisher, also a sophomore, won the Blue Ridge and Region III before running a disapppointing Group AA state meet where she finished 34th.
Second team girls included Blacksburg's Amy Feuerbach, Christiansburg's Sharon Huppert, William Byrd's Jessica Webber and Briana Grose, Bath County's Kathie Burns, Lord Botetourt's Heather Chaffin and Radford's Sarah Argabrite.
TIMESLAND BOYS' CROSS COUNTRY
FIRST TEAM
David Angell, Franklin County, senior
Stuart Bray, Northside, junior
Ben Cooke, Floyd County, junior
Justin Mosby, Christiansburg, junior
Kevin Nolan, Christiansburg, senior
Matt Nolan, Christiansburg, freshman
Scott Shepherd, Blacksburg, junior
Boys' Runner of Year:Kevin Nolan, Christiansburg
Boys' Coach of Year:Steve Shelton, Christiansburg
SECOND TEAM
Dave Brown, Blacksburg, senior
Jamar Bryson, Galax, sophomore
Jason Herron, Salem, senior
Michael Lee, Christiansburg, junior
Chris Merrell, Covington, senior
Robby Rakes, Christiansburg, junior
Dave Williams, Blacksburg, junior
TIMESLAND GIRLS' CROSS COUNTRY
FIRST TEAM
Bethany Eigel, Christiansburg, senior
Laura Evans, Christiansburg, freshman
Johanna Fisher, Salem, sophomore
Sarah Hendricks, Blacksburg, junior
Johanna Neumann, Floyd County, sophomore
Trish Nervo, Glenvar, junior
Claire Rotramel, Cave Spring, senior
Girls' Runner of Year:Trish Nervo, Glenvar
Girls' Coach of Year:Michael Sebolt, William Byrd
SECOND TEAM
Sarah Argabrite, Radford, senior
Kathie Burns, Bath County, junior
Heather Chaffin, Lord Botetourt, sophomore
Amy Feurbach, Blacksburg, junior
Briana Grose, William Byrd, junior
Sharon Huppert, Christiansburg, senior
Jessica Webber, William Byrd, freshman
by CNB