Left to right: senior Preston Haney, junior Katie Thompson, junior Bryce Phillips, junior Lauren Rakov, senior Lukas Greider, junior Khadija Sissoko, senior Lambert Edigin, junior Riley Gomez, sophomore Ben Labert, junior Lindsay Meadows, junior Roman Chapman, sophomore Kierston Haney, senior Ryan Studley, junior Grace Thompson and senior Logan Hamilton show off their first place Regional trophy at Bell Mills Park in Chesapeake, Va., on Nov. 4, 2023. Photo used with permission from Christine Rakov.

Boys and girls cross country placed first at the VHSL 5A Regionals on Nov. 4, at Bell Mills Park in Chesapeake, Va. 

Girls ended with a final score of 36 points, and boys earned 58 points. Senior Lambert Edigin was the highest placing runner for the boys team, placing third with a time of 16:32.85. For the girls, junior Grace Thompson placed the highest with a time of 19:30.97, placing second. 

Winning Regionals is nothing new for the Dolphins. Since 2000, boys cross country has won nine times, and girls have won 15 Regional titles.

Both teams will compete at States on Nov. 11, at Oatlands Plantation in Leesburg, Va. 

“Congratulations to Mike Nestor and his cross-country teams for winning the Regional title,” said Principal Claire LeBlanc. “A special congratulations to Coach Nestor, who has been coaching for Ocean Lakes for 30 years. In my opinion, Coach Nestor has built a cross-country dynasty at OLHS. Developing a sports dynasty is no easy task, but the more you put in as a coach, the more likely your team will return the favor by giving their all and performing to their best abilities.”