2001 GIRLS STATE CHAMPS
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2001 GIRLS STATE CHAMPS |
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2006 BOYS SEASON IN
REVIEW
FAVC CHAMPIONS & REGIONAL FINALISTS
AWARDS AND HONORS MOST VALUABLE RUNNER Ryan Kiracofe MOST IMPROVED RUNNER Rob DiMartino FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR Nicholas El-Khoury 700 MILE CLUB Ryan Kiracofe, Kyle Rewick, Alex Polivka, Ben Wagner, Scott Gogolin
WeekOneMOELLERHenryJacquezChallenge
Scorching weather and a punishing, new course full of
hills pushed the Spartan boys to the limit in week one. The team
would finish a somewhat disappointing 4th, as several of the team's 10
varsity runners (Moeller features an expanded roster) were running in
their first-ever high school race. Ryan Kiracofe defended the
individual championship he'd won the year before, finishing in 16:34.
Kyle Rewick struggled with the heat and hills, on the way to finishing
6th in 17:09. Sophomore Drew DiSabatino looked more like a
seasoned veteran than a first-time varsity runner,
WeekTwoLAKOTAClassic The early season underperformance of week one would continue in week two for the Spartans, as they finished a dismal 6th out of 14 teams at Lakota. Battling illness, Ryan Kiracofe was punished by fellow '05 state qualifiers Taylor Williams (SYC), Mike Perry (WWDS), and Brad Meyer (MOE), and struggled to 5th place in 16:25. Kyle Rewick's early season slump continued, as he was 16th in 16:59. The only real positive point for the Spartans was the rapid dropping of times for the younger varsity runners: DiSabatino in 17:30, Rodriguez in 17:44, and El-Khoury in 17:49. Still, solid runs in the open race by Turpin's top 7 JV runners (Petro, Smith, Gogolin, DiMartino, Steller, Stuckey, Tucker), would leave coach Jim Gossett to ponder his roster options for the following weekend in Columbus.
WeekThreeMidwestMEETofCHAMPIONS Gossett was reminded that his team still had a pulse when they upset the state's #8 team, Dayton Carroll, at the Midwest Meet of Champions. On one of the nation's premiere regular season stages, Adam Baas would return from an early season suspension to push the Spartans to 8th place overall (Baas was 60th in 17:29). Ryan Kiracofe, still not completely healthy, battled hard and took 12th place in 16:12 (the third fastest race in THS history at that point). Kyle Rewick had the breakthrough that he'd been waiting for, finishing 25th in 16:38. Dave Rodriguez was 4th for the team, coming in 67th (17:38). Nick El-Khoury was 73rd (17:53), Drew DiSabatino was 75th (17:57), and Ben Wagner continued to struggle, as he was 80th (18:12).
WeekFourALLIANCEInvitational
Turpin's first half of the regular season seemed to wrap up with a
feeling of "one step forward, two steps back". The Spartans
stumbled (while debuting the
WeekFiveMIDDLETOWNDickHopperInvitational
Albeit against a relatively weak field at Middletown, the Spartans
recorded their first overall victory of the season, and got a much
needed shot in the arm heading into St. Xavier Week. Times were
slow, as the Middies' hilly course was soa
WeekSixST.XAVIERInvitational
AThe Spartans returned at St. Xavier to their same
old problem: lack of depth at positions three through five. Ryan
Kiracofe won his second race of the
WeekSevenCENTERVILLEStampede The team desperately needed some momentum heading into the postseason, and it got it with a strong 3rd place finish at Centerville. The Spartans were encouraged by finishing only 8 points behind favored Loveland; the close loss would set the tone for the rematch at Districts. Ryan Kiracofe won his second consecutive race, beating out Troy's Jake Enke in a season-best 16:05. Kyle Rewick set a personal best record of 16:30, finishing 6th. The improvement of Turpin's pack, which would be so crucial in the postseason, began at Centerville. Putting four runners between 17:30 and 17:45, the Spartans scored just 132 points in an 18-team meet. Drew DiSabatino was 37th in 17:30, Nick El-Khoury was 41st in 17:31, and Rob DiMartino was 47th in 17:37. Ben Wagner recorded his best time of the year, running 17:42 (56th place). Scott Gogolin ran an impressive 18:20 in the open race.
WeekEightFAVCChampionships
On an historic day for Turpin cross
country, the team won its first conference title since 1999, with an
eighteen point victory over defending champions Kings. Ryan
Kiracofe and Kyle Rewick cruised to their first 1-2 finish, with
Kiracofe taking Runner of the Year honors. The incredible
development of the Turpin pack was on full display at Harrison, and
personal-best times were recorded across the board. Drew
DiSabatino was 7th (17:20), Nick El-Khoury
WeekNineDISTRICTChampionships
Cold weather and a
muddy course slowed down times at the District Championships, but they
couldn't stop the Spartan boys from qualifying to their second
consecutive Regional Championship. Turpin was third out of eleven
teams, finishing behind St. Xavier and Sycamore, and beating fourth
place Loveland. Ryan Kiracofe's career-long struggles at Voice of
WeekTenRegionalChampionships
The poor conditions
continued the following Saturday, as the rain-soaked course at Troy
endured winds in excess of 40 mph. And although it would be the
final race of the season for the Turpin pack, the Spartans turned more
heads than ever before, even in defeat. The team finished 5th (the
top 4 advanced to State), but the feeling in the team camp
season. The season hadn't come to a close for all of the Spartan boys, however. Senior captain Ryan Kiracofe advanced to his second and last State Championship, as he struggled to a 10th place finish on the windy course (16:33). The day's true breakthrough came from junior Kyle Rewick, who ran what was most likely the greatest race of his fine career (Rewick is already #3 in Turpin's all-time rankings). He finished a fantastic 11th in 16:36, locking up his first-ever trip to Columbus.
WeekElevenStateChampionships
State was a fitting end for
Turpin's fastest runner ever, as Ryan Kiracofe earned All-Ohio honors in
his 21st place finish at Scioto Downs. Although he didn't meet the
lofty goal of top 15, the senior ran 16:03, tying his career best time.
Junior Kyle Rewick ran a great race himself, finishing just 3 seconds off
his personal best. He was 46th in 16:34. Rewick will be
Thanks to the parents, athletes, and supporters of Turpin Cross Country who made this season the greatest in school history. Congratulations on an awesome year!
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as he was 23rd in
18:05. Freshman Nick El-Khoury set the tone for a season which
would more prominently feature the team's oustanding young runners than
anyone would have expected. He was 30th in 18:23. Ben Wagner
was 34th in 18:32, the start out what would be a frustrating first half
of the regular season.
new white varsity jerseys) to an ugly 6th place finish on a muddy, slow day at Alliance.
Finally looking mostly healthy again, Ryan Kiracofe was 4th in 16:23.
Kyle Rewick ran the majority of the race with one shoe, and still
managed a fantastic 7th place finish in 16:44. Turpin's lack of
depth, however, was exposed as a possible Achilles' heel for the rest of
the season. Turpin's 3rd runner, Dave Rodriguez, was 48th in
17:56. Nick El-Khoury was 53rd (17:59), Drew DiSabatino was 54th
(18:00), Ben Wagner was 61st (18:11), and Alex Polivka was 82nd in
18:42. The JV team, however, enjoyed the emergence of a new
leader: Rob DiMartino. A transfer in 2005, the junior had the race
of his career, finishing 9th in 18:23. Sophomore Matt Petro was
hot on his heels, finishing less than a second behind, in 10th.
ked and muddy after an entire
day of rain. Ryan Kiracofe took 2nd overall, unable to finish off
'05 state qualifier Greg Roeth of Miamisburg. Kyle Rewick was 3rd.
season, in 16:11, and Kyle Rewick ran a 16:53 to earn 8th place.
From there, Drew DiSabatino was 42nd (17:39), and Ben Wagner was 52nd in
17:55. Junior Rob DiMartino made his first career varsity
appearance, and in scoring for the team, established himself as a
mainstay for the rest of the season. He was 60th in 18:10.
DiMartino got to "wear the white" due to the absence of Turpin's
SuperFrosh, who continued the team's tradition of great races in the St.
X Freshman competition. Nick El-Khoury and Dave Rodriguez went
1-2, finishing in 11:00 and 11:01, respectively. Alex Polivka was
8th in 11:15. 
was 8th (17:24), Dave
Rodriguez was 9th (17:28), Rob DiMartino was 10th (17:29), and Ben
Wagner was 12th (17:40). All seven varsity runners claimed All-FAVC
honors. As the Turpin girls also won the FAVC title, the team
completed its first sweep of any league since 1981.
America continued in his final race there; he was 4th in 17:01.
Kyle Rewick, on the other hand, had an exceptional race, finishing 5th
in 17:13. The story of the team's late season development
continued to be the performance of its young pack. Nick El-Khoury
narrowly missed qualifying to the Regional as an individual, as he was
18th in 17:54 (top 16 individuals advance automatically). Drew
DiSabatino was 23rd in 18:00, and Dave Rodriguez was 26th in 18:02.
Rob DiMartino and Ben Wagner were 30th (18:13) and 61st (19:36),
respectively.
after
the race was not one of disappointment or sadness, but surprise and
pride. The Spartans shocked traditional power Elder and upset
District Runners-up Sycamore, finishing thirty-two points behind 4th
place St. Xavier. As just two of the four teams to advance to
State were from Cincinnati, the Spartans' fifth place finish
cemented their title as
Cincinnati's #3 team. This was an astounding accomplishment for a
team that finished 12th in Troy a year ago, and ranked as low as 9th in
Cincinnati during the '06
regular 
back in Columbus next fall to improve on Kiracofe's accomplishments; he
can only hope that six other Spartans will be joining him on the course.
So although State ended the greatest season in Turpin boys' cross
country history, an undeniable feeling of optimism persisted; the
Spartans will have a great chance to rewrite that history in the fall of
2007.
