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New Smyrna Beach cross country runners set records at Shark Bite Half Marathon

myer lee, the daytona beach news-journal
·2 min read

Before the Shark Bite Half Marathon began last weekend, New Smyrna Beach junior Olivia Gardner set a goal to complete the 13.1 miles in an hour and a half.

She soon discarded that plan when the weather went from sunny and nice to windy and rainy. She decided, instead, to go out and have fun, and ended up achieving her goal anyway.

Gardner ran a 1:29:12, the fastest time ever for a female in the 15-18 age group in Shark Bite’s seven-year history.

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“I really wasn’t expecting it,” Gardner said. “It’s still super surprising.”

New Smyrna Beach runners Stella Marsch (left) and Olivia Gardner finished 10th and 1st, respectively, in their age groups at the Shark Bite Marathon.
New Smyrna Beach runners Stella Marsch (left) and Olivia Gardner finished 10th and 1st, respectively, in their age groups at the Shark Bite Marathon.

New Smyrna Beach cross country and track coach Ryan Lorow was speechless. Lorow said he was proud of Gardner and sophomore Stella Marsch, who finished with the 10th all-time fastest record in the 15-18 age group.

Gardner finished 28th overall in the marathon while Marsch placed 100th.

Marsch, who started running over the summer for her mental health, also enjoyed the race. She joined the NSB cross country team for the first time this year.

Lorow led both the girls and boys teams to the state finals last fall in only his second year as head coach. Both teams were fairly young, so Lorow expects the group to have a few more strong years ahead of it.

Gardner and Marsch will continue running this spring on New Smyrna Beach’s Track and Field team. Gardner said she felt confident about running smaller races headed into the season after her big victory at Shark Bite.

Lorow gave Gardner and Marsch all the credit for their success at the half marathon and appreciated their hard work during the off-season.

“If anything, it shows the culture for the New Smyrna Beach program is a love for running,” Lorow said. “They both obviously have a passion for running.”

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: High school cross country: New Smyrna Beach runners set Shark Bite records