Churchill boys top dogs at OFSAA cross country
Churchill’s novice boys won OFSAA cross country gold, helping the school win the overall boys title. Submitted photos.
The recent Ontario Federation of Secondary Schools Association cross country championships in Sudbury went to the dogs, but in a good way.
The Sir Winston Churchill Bulldogs won team gold in the novice boys division and the overall boys title, captured team bronze in the senior boys division and came within a single point of capturing the overall boys and girls team championship.
Churchill wasn’t expecting to perform as well as it did at OFSAA.
“We did plan the entire season around trying to win the overall boys title,” head coach Benny Ralston said. “Three boys teams making it to OFSAA is so tough because SOSSA (Southern Ontario Secondary Schools Association) has some of the greatest competition.
“It takes three teams adding their point scores together to win an OFSAA overall title.”
Winning novice boys gold were Nate Rose, Marco Difelice, Mat Taubeneck, Rollo Walker and Maxwell Redding.
Garnering senior boys bronze were Eric Campbell, Sacha Schimmelpenninck, Taylor Mowat and Riley Coles.
Helping the Bulldogs win the overall boys gold with a sixth-place finish was the junior boys squad made up of Nelson Lachlan, Miles Walker, Nate Smyth, Jeff Dommasch and Janal Williams.
Since the new scoring system was implemented at OFSAA in 2010, the Bulldogs have won two overall boys championships. The last came in 2014 when the junior boys were team champions and the senior boys placed fourth.
With their 15th and 16th OFSAA team titles in 2019, Sir Winston Churchill is the third-winningest school in OFSAA cross country history. Saint Michael’s College in Toronto is No. 1 on the list after passing Georgetown a couple of years ago.
“There are too many teams to count, but we have had at least three or four teams make the podium at OFSAA every year since 2001,” Ralston said. “The stats are endless.”
At the SOSSA level, Sir Winston Churchill is on a run of 11 straight overall team championships in a very powerful association.
“Over the past 20-plus years, SOSSA has been well represented by every school in our region,” Ralston said. “Current and past powerhouse schools like Ancaster, Dundas Valley, Westdale, E.L. Crossley, Grimsby, Blessed Trinity, Beamsville, Lakeport, Collegiate, Eden, and Sir Winston Churchill have all gone on to reach the podium with top three team finishes.”
Churchill’s SOSSA and OFSAA success is the result of hard work.
The senior and junior teams started training for this season last November. Many Bulldogs play more than one sport and most runners still train four to seven days a week. Most of the athletes try to make every practice in September and October. Practices are held Monday to Friday at Churchill and Saturday at Runners’ Edge. On Sunday, the senior and junior teams meet on their own for runs.
“Churchill cross country is more than a team,” Ralston said. “It is a program dedicated to helping make a positive impact on the youth through training, motivation and guidance.
“For the past 30 plus years, Bulldogs have made lifelong relationships and friendships.”
Helping make the Churchill cross country program a success are: coaches Ralston, Barry Wills and Kelly Braun; student team managers Sadie Braun and Brianna Vermue; team captains Josh Bezanson and Lauren Brooks; principal Ann Gilmore; and, teacher advisors Jim Predovich, Jim Thibodeau and Wanda Cook.
