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Under clear skies and cool autumn conditions, Ottawa’s best high school runners converged on the Hornet’s Nest in Blackburn Hamlet Thursday for the NCSSAA Cross Country Championships — the final stop before next weekend’s OFSAA Championships in Brampton. The Ottawa Lions Track and Field Club turned in another outstanding collective effort, with 29 athletes punching their ticket to provincials.

Leading the charge were Charlie Mortimer and Kyra Lauter, a pair of Grade 12 standouts who swept the senior boys and girls titles.

Lauter headlined a dominant showing in the senior girls 6km race, leading a full Lions sweep of the podium. The Franco-Ouest student cruised to victory in 21:41.3, more than 70 seconds ahead of last week’s East Conference champion Laila Lebel of Colonel By (22:54.1). Edie Petrescu-Comnene of Nepean secured bronze in 23:24.6, while Emily Munro of Hillcrest (5th – 23:41.5) and Riley Daniels of The Element (6th – 23:53.2) also booked their spots at OFSAA.

Behind the individual success, Nepean captured the senior girls team title, edging Colonel By 75–85 in the final standings thanks in large part to Petrescu-Comnene’s podium finish. Among those advancing as part of Colonel By’s runner-up squad was Lions athlete Sophie Edwards.

On the senior boys’ side, Mortimer earned redemption after last week’s narrow defeat to Colonel By’s Owen Siderius. The Hillcrest standout ran away with the victory over the 6km course, winning in 19:08.5, nearly 18 seconds clear of Siderius. Fellow Lions Aidan Snow (Paul-Desmarais) and Jackson McKercher added strong runs, placing fourth (19:58.5) and sixth (20:03.3), respectively to book their tickets to OFSAA.

In the team standings, Louis-Riel claimed the senior boys city crown, powered by consistent efforts from Lions teammates Mikely Fortier (8th), Olivier Young (10th), and Matisse Joly (60th), edging Glebe 65–72 for the win.

The top of the results sheet for the junior girls race was littered with Lions athletes, as they claimed six of the top nine positions, including two podium finishes. Reve McInnes of Glebe came within two seconds of the title, clocking 18:56.9 for silver, while Alexandra Harris of John McCrae took bronze in 19:00.6. Additional qualifiers included Charlie Fee (Nepean – 4th), Charlotte Eccles (Nepean – 7th), Helena Winkel (Nepean – 30th), Leonie Ravard(Glebe – 10th), and Kira Coldrey, who advanced via her 6th-place finish (20:01.6).

In the junior boys 5km, Brody Charbot was the lone Lions qualifier, placing third overall in 17:30.6, just 11 seconds shy of silver.

For the second week in a row, Glebe freshman Roan Gerth stood atop the podium, cruising to victory in the novice girls 4km. Gerth’s winning time of 14:09.2 put her more than 23 seconds clear of the field. Keira Ganton (Maplewood – 3rd, 14:35.9) joined her on the podium, while Saoirse Hoogenraad (Longfields-Davidson – 6th, 14:50.7) secured the final individual qualifying position. Nepean’s Priya Bilcock (11th) and Anne Henniger (25th) helped their team to a second-place finish, ensuring a trip to OFSAA.

In the novice boys division, Kai Lebel continued his strong season with a third-place finish (12:48.9), leading Colonel By to a second-place team result. Just behind him, Jaiden Taft (AY Jackson) finished fourth (13:08.9), while Patrick Badgley (Sir Wilfrid Laurier) claimed the final individual qualifying spot in 8th (13:42.3).

Rounding out the Lions contingent, Jacob Gauthier earned his spot at OFSAA in the Para category, placing fourth overall (21:38.8).

With 29 Lions advancing, the club will be well represented when the OFSAA Cross Country Championships get underway next weekend in Brampton, where athletes will look to close out the high school season on a high note.

The Hornet’s Nest in Blackburn Hamlet played host to the NCSSAA East Conference Cross Country Championships on Thursday, welcoming athletes back to a familiar course that has staged multiple OFSAA Championships over the years. Competing under cool fall conditions on the rolling trails, Ottawa Lions athletes produced a number of standout performances, including two individual victories.

Leading the way was Colonel By’s Laila Lebel, who captured the Senior Girls 6km title in commanding fashion. Lebel crossed the line in 23:19.9, more than 23 seconds clear of her nearest challenger. Joining her on the podium was Hillcrest’s Emily Munro, who earned the bronze medal with a time of 24:12.0,.

The club’s second victory of the day came in the Novice Girls 4km race, where Roan Gerth of Glebe Collegiate delivered a dominant performance. Gerth stopped the clock at 14:45.3, finishing more than 37 seconds ahead of the runner-up to secure her place atop the podium.

The Senior Boys 6km race produced another dramatic finish, with Hillcrest’s Charlie Mortimer battling Owen Siderius down to the wire. The pair were separated by less than a second at the finish, with Mortimer ultimately taking the silver medal in 20:08.6. It marked the second consecutive year that the East Conference senior boys title was decided by the slimmest of margins, echoing Daniel Cova’s narrow win over Saul Taler in 2024.

In the Junior Girls 5km race, Glebe’s Reve McInnes impressed with a bronze-medal performance, clocking 20:06.7. The Grade 10 standout led a dominant Glebe team effort, as the Griffins packed four athletes into the top eight to run away with the team title, finishing with an outstanding 22 points.

Also standing out on the day was Colonel By’s Kai Lebel, who grabbed silver in the Novice Boys 4km. The Grade 9 runner, who has excelled in Athletics Ontario Championship races, crossed the line in 13:23.7 to add another podium finish for the Lions.

Rounding out the Lions medalists was Jacob Gauthier of Consortium Jules-Léger, who earned a silver medal in the Para 4km race. Gauthier, who is legally blind, finished second overall and was the top performer among visually impaired athletes. He clocked a personal best of 20:47.0, an impressive improvement of nearly four minutes from his previous best, marking a memorable achievement on the Hornet’s Nest course.

Athletes will return to the Hornet’s Nest on Thursday, October 23 for the NCSSAA Championships, the final step on the road to OFSAA, which takes place November 1 in Brampton. The top two teams in each race, along with the top five individuals not on qualifying teams, will punch their ticket to the provincial championships.

Ottawa Lions athletes delivered dominant performances on Wednesday at the NCSSAA West Conference Cross Country Championships, winning four of the six races contested on the wooded trails surrounding Bell High School. The club’s athletes took top spot in both junior races and placed three athletes in the top four of both senior races, setting a strong tone heading into next week’s city championships.

In the Senior Girls 6km, Kyra Lauter (Collège Catholique Franco-Ouest) moved up two spots from her 2024 finish to capture the win in 22:53.3, nearly a full minute ahead of club mate Edie Petrescu-Comnene (Nepean), who clocked 23:50.6 for silver. Maya Allibon rounded out the Lions’ top finishers with a strong fourth-place performance in 24:34.7, helping the club secure three of the top four positions in the field.

The Senior Boys 6km race came down to the wire, with Owen Recoskie (Longfields Davidson Heights) finishing just 1.5 seconds behind the winner from Sacred Heart to claim silver in 20:06.1. Recoskie’s performance marked a strong improvement after placing fourth in 2024. Jackson McKercher (John McCrae) was close behind in third with a time of 20:10.1, while Dean Kontogiannis (Earl of March) secured fourth in 20:38.5, giving the Lions another trio inside the top four.

Brady Charbot (St. Francis Xavier) was in a class of his own in the Junior Boys 5km, crossing the line in 17:34.6 to win by a commanding 54 seconds. The victory marked his second straight West Conference title after winning the novice boys race last year. The Junior Girls race produced a Lions sweep, as Charlotte Eccles (Nepean), Alexandra Harris (John McCrae), and Charlie Fee (Nepean) went 1-2-3. Eccles led the charge with a winning time of 19:46.4, followed by Harris in 20:03.2 and Fee in 20:06.4, showcasing the club’s impressive depth in the age group.

In the Novice Girls 4km, Keira Ganton (Maplewood SS) edged out clubmate Saoirse Hoogenraad (Longfields Davidson Heights) in a tight finish, winning in 15:20.2 to Hoogenraad’s 15:22.1. On the boys’ side, Jaiden Taft was narrowly denied gold, finishing second in 13:30.6, just 2.1 seconds behind the winner.

All runners have advanced to next week’s NCSSAA City Championships, where they will look to build on their strong conference performances in pursuit of qualification for the OFSAA Championships set for Brampton on November 1.