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Crystal River newcomer sets pace

CRYSTAL RIVER -- The only reason Holly Van Sicklen ran cross country this season was to get in shape for soccer. But if she keeps it up, soccer might become an afterthought.

Since joining the Crystal River team in August, the freshman has been nothing short of sensational. On Wednesday at the Citrus County meet, only her third high school event, Van Sicklen claimed her second title, winning in 21 minutes, 31 seconds.

"I didn't think I'd be a runner," Van Sicklen said. "I'm really doing it to be conditioned for soccer."

Lecanto, which had four top five finishers, won the girls title by 17 points over Crystal River. Citrus was third. Behind individual winner Tony Lyons, Citrus (20) easily won the boys division over Lecanto (46) and Crystal River (83).

Van Sicklen never ran cross country until this fall, but has played soccer since the third grade. Last weekend, she was second at the prestigious Lecanto Invitational. Her nearest competitor Wednesday was 2001 all-conference runner Deirdra Witherspoon of Lecanto, who was 51 seconds back. Lecanto's Nicole Mailloux was third.

"I was just trying my hardest and hoping to beat them," Van Sicklen said. "I'm really enjoying (cross country). I love it. I come home from practice and it really puts me in a good mood."

Lecanto's depth was too much for Crystal River to overcome. The Panthers also had strong finishes from Santana Huggett and Annemarie Saxer, who were fourth and fifth. After Van Sicklen, Crystal River's next finisher was Denise Jay in sixth. Mandy Smith led Citrus with a 10th-place finish.

Lyons' win came as little surprise. The senior, who placed sixth at the state meet last year, finished in 16:58.

"It was so hot out there," Lyons said. "There were some places where there was shade but after the first mile, it started getting a lot hotter."

Clayton Bristol of Crystal River (18:04) was second. Citrus runners Justin MacDonald, James Lopiccolo and Matt Baum rounded out the top five. Wayne Saxer, who placed sixth, was Lecanto's top runner.

"It was a super workout," Citrus coach Bruce Nelson said. "I thought it was a wonderful course."

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