SCOTT TWP. – Jack Zardecki went out so hard he made winning his first District 2 Class 2A individual title look easy.

It wasn’t.

“I really didn’t feel that great,” said Zardecki, who waited a year for his chance to return to Lakeland High School where he finished the 3.1-mile course in 16:18.19 to win by almost 11 seconds and lead Dallas to its third straight team championship.

Zardecki gave the indication from the start the race would be his, breaking away from the pack early.

“My legs were heavy,” he said. “Everybody’s legs get heavy, so there’s no excuses.

“At the two-mile, I knew I wasn’t feeling like myself and I just started doing more strategy, working the downhills, pushing the flats.”

Although he may have felt like he was battling, Zardecki’s lead was never tested.

His team was even more dominant.

The two-time defending state champion Mountaineers turned in what was probably their best performance of the season while blowing away the field.

Dallas beat out Holy Redeemer, 32-64, for the team championship. Both schools will represent the district in the state meet Nov. 4 in Hershey. A year ago, the Mountaineers beat the Royals, eventually the 10th-place state finishers, 50-69.

“I think we can run a little bit better, but we are definitely heading in the right direction,” Dallas coach Matt Samuel said. “That’s an absolute.”

The Mountaineers placed five runners in the top 13.

“I’m really excited about that,” Zardecki said after learning Mitchell Rome had placed third, Josh Wyandt sixth, Adam Borton 12th and Josh Jarden 13th for the low team score.

Rome fought for second place with Berwick’s Mitchell Martin, who lost only to Zardecki in WVC competition this season, for most of the race.

All five earned district medals.

Zardecki led the way, securing the gold medal for the first time on the district level.

“It felt awesome,” he said. “I’ve been dreaming about it for about four years.”

Tunkhannock, with 183 points, and Lake-Lehman, with 230, placed seventh and eighth out of 18 teams.

Lake-Lehman’s Riley Newman finished 21st, missing out on a medal by one place.

Leighf Brown, Ben Tidball and Peter Sayre finished 25th, 26th and 28th to lead Tunkhannock.

Dallas’ Jack Zardecki, center, leads the pack en route to winning the District 2 Class 2A boys cross country championship at Lakeland High School in Scott Township Wednesday afternoon.
https://www.mydallaspost.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/web1_TDP102917XC-Districts_1.jpg.optimal.jpgDallas’ Jack Zardecki, center, leads the pack en route to winning the District 2 Class 2A boys cross country championship at Lakeland High School in Scott Township Wednesday afternoon. Bill Tarutis | For Dallas Post

By Tom Robinson

For Dallas Post

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