FHSAA Class 4A Region 3 cross country, Wednesday, November 11, 2026, Ed Radice Sports Complex, Tampa.
Sunlake won the Class 4A Region 3 girls title at Ed Radice Sports Complex on Wednesday morning with 59 points, 37 ahead of Lakewood Ranch. Wiregrass Ranch won the boys with 83, 15 ahead of Newsome.
Natalia Gaona-Zelaya of Wiregrass Ranch won the girls race in 17:10.2, 9.3 seconds ahead of Riverview (Sarasota) junior Madison Muller. Jaxon Kiper of Strawberry Crest won the boys in 15:35.2, 6.9 seconds ahead of Newsome's Jonas Williams.
The boys state cut came down to a single point. Palm Harbor University and Sickles tied at 202 for seventh and eighth, and both go. Plant City scored 203 and finished ninth.
- Top eight teams and the top four runners not on those teams advance to the FHSAA state meet, Friday, November 20, at Apalachee Regional Park in Tallahassee.
- Full results for every finisher: 4A Region 3 results.
- What we expected: our 4A Region 3 preview.
Girls: Sunlake by 37, Gaona-Zelaya by nine seconds
Sunlake had three runners in the top 11: sophomore Ana Cecilia Maia Menard fifth, Ella Pope sixth and Anna Connett 11th. Jolynn Chen (24th) and Harshita Anne (27th) finished the scoring for 59 points.
Lakewood Ranch was second with 96, led by two freshmen who both ran season bests: Avery Webster eighth in 19:01.2 and Tatum Browne 10th in 19:10.3. Newsome took third with 138 without a runner in the top 15. Annabelle Phillips was 16th and the next four came in between 33rd and 42nd.
Riverview (Sarasota) was fourth with 141 behind Muller. Wiregrass Ranch (149), Sarasota (152), Plant (169) and George Jenkins (216) took the other spots. Steinbrenner was ninth, 32 points out. These are the same eight teams we picked; only the order moved.
4A Region 3 girls team results
| Place | Team | Points | Scoring places |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sunlake 4A | 59 | 5, 6, 11, 24, 27 |
| 2 | Lakewood Ranch 4A | 96 | 8, 10, 19, 25, 51 |
| 3 | Newsome 4A | 138 | 16, 33, 36, 37, 42 |
| 4 | Riverview (Sarasota) 4A | 141 | 2, 22, 30, 53, 55 |
| 5 | Wiregrass Ranch 4A | 149 | 1, 29, 45, 47, 50 |
| 6 | Sarasota 4A | 152 | 7, 38, 41, 43, 48 |
| 7 | Plant 4A | 169 | 3, 17, 28, 70, 73 |
| 8 | George Jenkins 4A | 216 | 35, 39, 40, 44, 90 |
| 9 | George Steinbrenner 4A | 248 | 13, 18, 72, 85, 88 |
| 10 | Sickles 4A | 274 | 14, 52, 61, 86, 91 |
| 11 | Land O'Lakes 4A | 275 | 20, 63, 65, 76, 83 |
| 12 | Venice 4A | 303 | 26, 58, 68, 89, 96 |
| 13 | Parrish 4A | 329 | 12, 66, 67, 105, 111 |
| 14 | Winter Haven 4A | 339 | 31, 71, 81, 95, 97 |
| 15 | Riverview (Riverview) 4A | 360 | 49, 56, 82, 103, 106 |
| 16 | Palm Harbor University 4A | 420 | 64, 74, 104, 107, 109 |
The orange line is the state cut: the top eight teams go to Tallahassee. Incomplete teams (fewer than five finishers): Armwood, North Port, Lennard, Strawberry Crest, Riverdale, Palmetto, Alonso, Plant City.
Gaona-Zelaya ran 17:10.2 and Muller 17:19.5. Plant junior Katherine Eudaly was third in 17:39.6. That's the same top three we had in the preview, in the same order.
Lennard freshman Analyse St John was fourth in 18:13.5, the fastest she has run this fall by more than 25 seconds. She goes to state as an individual with Armwood sophomore Jade Walker (ninth, 19:03.7, a season best), Parrish junior Kayla Hawk (12th, 19:20.3) and Steinbrenner senior Blake Peifer (13th, 19:25.5).
Sickles junior Launi Blackford was the first runner out. She finished 14th in a season-best 19:28.1, 2.6 seconds behind Peifer. North Port senior Megan Taylor, who we had going, was 15th.
4A Region 3 girls, top 15
| Place | Runner | Grade | School | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Natalia Gaona-Zelaya | Sr. | Wiregrass Ranch | 17:10.2 |
| 2 | Madison Muller | Jr. | Riverview (Sarasota) | 17:19.5 |
| 3 | Katherine Eudaly | Jr. | Plant | 17:39.6 |
| 4 | Analyse St John * | Fr. | Lennard | 18:13.5 |
| 5 | Ana Cecilia Maia Menard | So. | Sunlake | 18:37.6 |
| 6 | Ella Pope | Jr. | Sunlake | 18:46.4 |
| 7 | Annabella Cicilioni | Jr. | Sarasota | 18:58.1 |
| 8 | Avery Webster | Fr. | Lakewood Ranch | 19:01.2 |
| 9 | Jade Walker * | So. | Armwood | 19:03.7 |
| 10 | Tatum Browne | Fr. | Lakewood Ranch | 19:10.3 |
| 11 | Anna Connett | Jr. | Sunlake | 19:12.7 |
| 12 | Kayla Hawk * | Jr. | Parrish | 19:20.3 |
| 13 | Blake Peifer * | Sr. | George Steinbrenner | 19:25.5 |
| 14 | Launi Blackford | Jr. | Sickles | 19:28.1 |
| 15 | Megan Taylor | Sr. | North Port | 19:30.6 |
* Goes to state as an individual (not on one of the top eight teams).
Going to state: Sunlake 4A, Lakewood Ranch 4A, Newsome 4A, Riverview (Sarasota) 4A, Wiregrass Ranch 4A, Sarasota 4A, Plant 4A, George Jenkins 4A. Individuals: Analyse St John (Lennard, 4th), Jade Walker (Armwood, 9th), Kayla Hawk (Parrish, 12th), Blake Peifer (George Steinbrenner, 13th).
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Boys: Wiregrass Ranch by 15, Plant City out by a point
Wiregrass Ranch did it with a front three: Bogdan Anghel fourth, Wade Pheffer 10th and Avi Bhatia 11th. Elijah Watson (29th) and Jaxon Maughan (39th) closed it out for 83.
Newsome was second with 98 behind Williams in second. Steinbrenner ran six and still took third with 109, on Jack Bronder in third and London Paladino in eighth. Sunlake was fourth. Wharton came from ninth on our list to fifth with 193, and George Jenkins was sixth with 200.
Then the tie. Palm Harbor University and Sickles both scored 202. Palm Harbor took seventh on the sixth-runner tiebreak and both teams go to state. Plant City scored 203. Noah Steed ran a season best of 16:08.4 for sixth and Mason Baker a season best of 16:26.7 for 14th, but the team finished ninth.
4A Region 3 boys team results
| Place | Team | Points | Scoring places |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wiregrass Ranch 4A | 83 | 4, 10, 11, 29, 39 |
| 2 | Newsome 4A | 98 | 2, 12, 16, 27, 51 |
| 3 | George Steinbrenner 4A | 109 | 3, 8, 15, 26, 67 |
| 4 | Sunlake 4A | 157 | 19, 25, 41, 44, 47 |
| 5 | Wharton 4A | 193 | 18, 35, 37, 60, 66 |
| 6 | George Jenkins 4A | 200 | 17, 38, 40, 50, 78 |
| 7 | Palm Harbor University 4A | 202 | 5, 49, 52, 58, 63 |
| 8 | Sickles 4A | 202 | 9, 24, 48, 54, 88 |
| 9 | Plant City 4A | 203 | 6, 14, 23, 82, 95 |
| 10 | Plant 4A | 210 | 7, 20, 55, 73, 75 |
| 11 | Cape Coral 4A | 243 | 32, 42, 56, 68, 72 |
| 12 | Lakewood Ranch 4A | 258 | 21, 22, 69, 77, 91 |
| 13 | Venice 4A | 298 | 13, 59, 76, 83, 94 |
| 14 | Parrish 4A | 309 | 46, 53, 71, 81, 89 |
| 15 | Gateway 4A | 310 | 36, 57, 62, 87, 100 |
| 16 | Riverview (Riverview) 4A | 346 | 34, 70, 80, 97, 98 |
The orange line is the state cut: the top eight teams go to Tallahassee. Incomplete teams (fewer than five finishers): Strawberry Crest, Bloomingdale, Ida Baker, Sarasota, Mitchell, North Port.
Kiper won it in 15:35.2. Williams (15:42.1), Bronder (15:55.6) and Anghel (16:05.7) were next. Palm Harbor's Matthew Hood was fifth, and sixth through tenth were separated by three seconds.
Kiper's Strawberry Crest team did not finish five, so he goes to state as an individual. So do Steed of Plant City (sixth), Antonino Pipia of Plant (seventh, 16:08.9) and Venice senior Nolan Heaney (13th, 16:21.3).
The first runner out was Plant City's Baker in 14th, 5.4 seconds behind Heaney. Plant City had the next runner in line for an individual spot and missed the team cut by a point.
4A Region 3 boys, top 15
| Place | Runner | Grade | School | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jaxon Kiper * | Sr. | Strawberry Crest | 15:35.2 |
| 2 | Jonas Williams | Sr. | Newsome | 15:42.1 |
| 3 | Jack Bronder | Sr. | George Steinbrenner | 15:55.6 |
| 4 | Bogdan Anghel | Sr. | Wiregrass Ranch | 16:05.7 |
| 5 | Matthew Hood | Sr. | Palm Harbor University | 16:08 |
| 6 | Noah Steed * | So. | Plant City | 16:08.4 |
| 7 | Antonino Pipia * | Jr. | Plant | 16:08.9 |
| 8 | London Paladino | Sr. | George Steinbrenner | 16:09.2 |
| 9 | Landon Watkins | Jr. | Sickles | 16:10.4 |
| 10 | Wade Pheffer | Jr. | Wiregrass Ranch | 16:11.4 |
| 11 | Avi Bhatia | Sr. | Wiregrass Ranch | 16:16.3 |
| 12 | Johnathan Robison | Sr. | Newsome | 16:18.9 |
| 13 | Nolan Heaney * | Sr. | Venice | 16:21.3 |
| 14 | Mason Baker | Sr. | Plant City | 16:26.7 |
| 15 | Oliver Day | So. | George Steinbrenner | 16:30 |
* Goes to state as an individual (not on one of the top eight teams).
Going to state: Wiregrass Ranch 4A, Newsome 4A, George Steinbrenner 4A, Sunlake 4A, Wharton 4A, George Jenkins 4A, Palm Harbor University 4A, Sickles 4A. Individuals: Jaxon Kiper (Strawberry Crest, 1st), Noah Steed (Plant City, 6th), Antonino Pipia (Plant, 7th), Nolan Heaney (Venice, 13th).
How our preview did
Girls: all eight of our teams made it, and our top three individuals finished first, second and third in that order. Two of our four individual qualifiers made it: St John and Walker. Palmetto's Annika Zimmerman was 23rd and Taylor 15th.
Boys: seven of eight teams (Wharton in, Plant City out by the point). Our top pick, Kiper, won. Two of our four individuals made it (Kiper and Pipia). Wharton's Derek Cook goes with his team, and Strawberry Crest's James Nolan was 28th.
Reader supported
Free to read, no paywall. If you followed the region meet here, a coffee keeps the results database and the state preview coming.
About these results
- Times and places are as TRC Race Management posted them on RunSignUp on Wednesday morning. FHSAA posts the official state qualifier list after the region meets.
- Team scores count each team's top five finishers; the sixth runner breaks a tie.
- A season best here means faster than any 5K that runner has in our database this fall.
Every finisher is in the full results, and every runner's season is a click away in the Florida XC results database. See you in Tallahassee.
