Hengst chooses winning course
McDonogh senior wins 3rd straight title, announces commitment to Ole Miss
Dalton Hengst slowed moments after winning Wednesday’s Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association championship race at Oregon Ridge. He jogged over to where some McDonogh teammates stood, and someone handed him a hat that read “Ole Miss.”
Hengst promptly put it on to complete his bit of multitasking — he had just won his third straight MIAA cross country title while informing everyone of his college choice. The McDonogh senior, who is among the top runners in the nation, will go to Mississippi to run next fall.
The other big news from this meet came from Loyola Blakefield, which broke Mount Saint Joseph’s two-year hold on the A Conference team title, edging the Gaels by seven points and winning for the first time in three years.
Hengst quickly took command in this race, breaking away from the pack early and cruising to a victory in 15 minutes, 35.6 seconds, beating Eric Gibson from Gilman (15:44.6) and Hunter Petrik (15:45.0) of Mount Saint Joseph. The McDonogh senior badly wanted to three-peat and fulfilled his wish.
“It’s just special,” Hengst said. “This is the most important one to me. It means a lot to my coach. It means a lot to me. It means a lot to my parents.”
The college choice proved a tough one for Hengst. Oregon, Boise State and Ole Miss were his final choices, and he informed the Rebels’ coach of his decision Tuesday night.
“I want to go to college and be the best runner I can be,” Hengst said. “I’m happy and the coach is happy.”
McDonogh coach Jeff Sanborn was thrilled with the whole thing — the three-peat and Hengst locking up his college choice.
The longtime coach at McDonogh, Sanborn said Hengst has been a special runner. The only time Hengst didn’t win the MIAA race, he finished third three years ago as a freshman.
“The kid’s incredible,” Sanborn said. “There’s a lot of pressure, and it just doesn’t bother him. Henever misses a beat. He’s the best we’ve ever had.”
Meanwhile, Loyola bounced back and did just enough to reclaim the A Conference team title. The Dons finished with 60 points thanks to five runners finishing in Dalton Hengst the top 20.
That proved enough to beat Mount Saint Joseph (67). The Gaels landed five runners in the top 22 but came up a bit short.
“We ran very well,” Loyola coach Jose Albornoz said. “We were just looking [to stay in] position.”
Camden Gilmore led the Dons with his fourth-place finish while Connor Verrett was the other top-10 runner (sixth). Kyle Clarke (11th), Ronan Sullivan (19th) and Dan Quets (20th) rounded out the Dons’ scorers.
Petrik and Andrew Brinker (seventh) led the Gaels, who came up short in their bid for a third straight title.