VIDEO, PHOTO GALLERY: Repeat winners Conte, McLees lead Raider teams to county meet success

By BRIAN CUNNIFF

CAPE MAY COURT HOUSE — Anthony Conte and Casey McLees were repeat winners at the Cape May County Cross Country Championships at county park Thursday afternoon.

The Ocean City High School seniors led the respective Raider boys and girls to team championships as well. 

Conte was at the front of a dominant pack of Raider runners in the boys meet, Ocean City taking each of the first six places.

Conte finished with a time of 16 minutes, 35.93 seconds. Teammates Max Kelly (16:36.46), Luke Kramer (16:37.16), Owen Ritti (16:37.69), Cameron DiTroia (16:40.76) and Frank Fabi (16:42.83) placed second through sixth, respectively.

Lower Cape May’s Zeb Hinker broke up the Ocean City top seven with a sixth-place finish in 17:09.19). The Raiders’ Mike Kelly was eighth in 17:43.86.

Lower Cape May’s Elijah Jackson placed ninth in 18:10.60 and Middle Township’s John Hargest rounded out the top 10 in 18:14.84.

Ocean City scored the minimum — 15 points — to win the boys team title for the fifth straight season and for the 18th time in the last 19 years. Lower Cape May was second with 64 points, followed by Cape May Tech (78), Middle Township (110) and Wildwood (115). Wildwood Catholic did not have enough runners to score as a team.

McLees scored a comfortable victory in the girls meet, posting a time of 19:02.65. Teammates Alexa Palmieri (19:29.32), Rebecca Millar (20:16.51) and Emma Sardy (20:22.68) placed second through fourth, respectively, and Middle Township’s Sofia Jurusz completed the top five in 20:26.77.

Sixth through 10th places went to, in order, Ocean City’s Erin Hanlon (20:34.83), Cape May Tech’s Lindsay Robbins (20:49.38), Ocean City’s Isabella Padula (21:16.27), Ocean City’s Reghan Handley (21:19.32) and Cape May Tech’s Jayne Seitz (21:26.63).

Ocean City, which won the girls meet for the 10th straight year, managed 16 points as a team. Middle Township was second with 69, followed by Cape May Tech (84), Wildwood Catholic (87), Lower Cape May (134) and Wildwood (161).

The meet was held under cool, windy conditions.

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