Young Fairview Squad Gets It Done

2017 was a transition year for the Fairview girls. In 2016, the squad missed the state meet, falling to strong Lakeview and Union City squads at the District 10 Championships. But Fairview did send one girl, Lilly Myers to the state meet, and she nearly took home the win in the Class A, leading late in the race.

But Myers graduated and headed to the Naval Academy in Annapolis. Fairview returned six others from that '16 varsity team, but it would still have to deal with Lakeview and Union City, which returned full squads, too.

Then a pair of freshmen emerged. Maddison Hayes and Halle Myers, Lilly's sister, immediately became the team's top two. Fairview opened up at Lock Haven and took second behind New York's Elmira Express. Then came a win at Commodore Perry and then a fifth place finish against some strong AAA and AA teams at Sharpsville.

The team then took down Class A foe Vincentian Academy at Mack Cooper, proving they are the real deal. Then came another trip to Buhl Park for the District 10 Championships, where Fairview took the title with just 39 points.

The state meet brought a matchup with Saint Joseph's Catholic Academy, a team that won two consecutive Class A state crowns. They knew it would be close, and boy, was it ever.

Fairview trailed SJCA at the mile by 27, but at the two mile mark, the lead was trimmed to 14. Then the final results came through, and it Fairview earned the win by three points.

Hayes (sixth) and Myers (11th) took home individual medals. Juliana Robinson, a holdover from that 2016 squad, took 35th. Denise Zheng, a freshman who started her season off winning the JV race at Commodore Perry, was 51st. Junior Katie Sherwin added a 76th place finish.

The young squad stepped up on the biggest stage and earned a state title. Now with all seven returning, what does 2018 have in store?