Valpo sweeps Chesterton sectional

Updated: October 11, 2011 8:31PM

CHESTERTON — It was a clean sweep for the Valparaiso cross country program, as both the boys’ and girls’ squads raced to first-place team finishes at the Chesterton sectional.

A trio of Vikings — Ari Coulopoulos, Peyton Reed and Landon Davison — finished in the top eight to propel the boys’ squad, who were once again without their usual No. 1 runner, Ahmad Aljobeh.

“We’re not overconfident, but our guys are very confident in what they’re doing,” said Valparaiso coach Mike Prow. “Having two guys in the top four of sectionals is always good … and Landon really stepped up for us today.”

There were six Vikings in the top 20, but none of them was able to best LaPorte’s Mitch Hubner, who defended his individual sectional crown with a time of 15:41. Hubner finished 20 seconds ahead of the field despite falling during the race.

“There was a muddy spot right before the hill. I came around the corner and my legs just gave out,” Hubner said with a laugh. “I’ve had it happen to me in track and sometimes. When you fall, it gives you a boost of energy because you’re mad. That might have helped me.”

The win was redemption for Hubner after he was defeated by Coulopoulos at the DAC meet earlier this month.

“I knew that if I ran my best race, I could get the win,” he said. “Last week was just a bad race on my part and that’s what made me lose.”

On the girls’ side, Valparaiso’s Katelyn DeVries won her third straight sectional championship, finishing with a time of 18:45.

But DeVries wasn’t alone near the front of the pack, as Valparaiso packed its top five runners into the top 13 places — including DeVries and teammate Alison Mundell as the top two finishers.

“About a mile-and-a-half into the race, Alison and I decided to take off,” DeVries said. “I think we did the same thing at last race; we just kind of knew when to do it.”

“Having five girls in the top thirteen is really exciting for us,” said Valparaiso coach Karen DeVries. “I don’t always know how well our team is going to compete in sectionals, coming after a week with no meets, but that was nice to see. They came out here and they competed.”

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