Invite gets going, gets canceled

CELINA, Ohio — Sophia Fugiett had settled into sixth place after one mile.

Soon after a lightning bolt struck, halting her race.

A half hour later, with both girls races combined, Kallee Patch was out front and running at a career-best pace.

Chloe Will was three spots behind her in fourth.

Fugiett was seventh.

But a few seconds after Patch reached the mile mark, Mother Nature halted the race.

It was never resumed.

The Jay County, Fort Recovery and South Adams cross country teams all had their hopes of a solid early-season race halted Saturday as inclement weather forced the cancellation of the Celina Rotary Invitational at Wright State University Lake Campus.

“I was so upset,” said Patch, a Starfire junior. “When I stopped, our high school boys team was standing there and I was yelling to them that I was mad and I didn’t want to stop.

“It was kind of heartbreaking to be running a personal-best pace and have to stop.”

Fugiett, who qualified for semi-state as a freshman last year, was in sixth place during the first of two girls races when it was stopped.

The initial plan was to re-run the race after the second girls and both boys races. Instead it was decided to run both girls races when the delay was complete — approximately 9:45 a.m. — to keep the meet on schedule.

But at nearly the exact time the first race was halted, the second one suffered the same fate, this time with Fugiett one position behind where she was the first time.

“I was feeling good,” she said. “I had found my pace. My goal was to finish in the top seven and I was on track to do that.”

While Patch was frustrated by being in the lead and having her race end, Fugiett had to deal with two stoppages.

“I was pretty mad,” she said. “I wanted to finish it.”

The rains didn’t start until about 10:15 a.m., about the time almost all of the teams had bolted to their respective buses. With a constant downpour and thunderstorms, the meet was officially cancelled shortly after noon. The delay lasted more than two hours.

“I was pretty upset,” Patch said of not getting to finish her race. “I was in the zone and I wanted to start back up and get back after it, but I guess it wasn’t meant to happen.”