State of the Action: This was a battle for the ages, with the rematch already set.  Bella Burda (Arlington) and Jessica Lawson (Corning) had met twice before this season, including at States a week prior.  Each time, Burda's constant surging garnered her the win.  Lawson had let Burda get too far ahead in the muddy Canton, and was intent on that not happening again.  The pair separated early, fueling eachother up the hill.  They crossed the halfway mark together, then Burda began to roll.  She accelerated through the back hills, picking up more and more of a defecit.  When she emerged from the woods, she had gained a solid 75 meters.  But Lawson was closing.  Burda knew she had to stay away from Lawson's closing kick, which had gotten the best of Bella at Outdoor States in the 3000m.  The pair pushed in unison, with the lead slowly being whittled down.  Down the finishing stretch, Burda continued to push, and crossed the line to improve her course best, still at #5 All-Time, now at 17:50.  Lawson crossed the line as well, walking away with a new sophomore class record, breaking the mark Burda had set herself.  Both intend to compete at NXN-NY, and with the frozen ground, who knows who will cross first.

Behind the pair, familiar faces of Abbey Wheeler (Elmira), Anna Flynn (Ursuline), and Carly Benson (West Genesee) crossed the line.  While Wheeler fell behind the two at States, she proved why her PR at Bowdoin was the best of the bunch, finishing ahead of the pair this week.

A demonstration of the gap from the first two