By Cindy Peterson
Tavares Middle School Sweeps Lake County Cross Country Titles
Tavares Middle School turned in a dominant performance at the 2026 Lake County District Cross Country Championship, sweeping all four team titles and sending a large group of runners on to the state meet.
The Patriots won the varsity boys, varsity girls, JV boys and JV girls team championships in the 2-mile event, which featured 14 teams and roughly 350 runners.
Eighth-grader Alice Ilea led the way on the girls side, winning the varsity race in 11:53.45 and capturing another individual Lake County title.
Tavares also controlled the boys race, with team captain Alejandro Hernandez winning the 87-runner field in 11:28.15.
The meet also determined which teams and individuals would advance to the state championship Oct. 31 in Lakeland.
On the boys side, Tavares, Windy Hill, Lake Pointe and Minneola Horizons qualified as teams. Tavares, Windy Hill and Minneola Charter advanced in the girls competition.
Tavares also accounted for many of the individual state qualifiers.
Girls qualifiers included Alice Ilea, Lilliana Gutfreind, Kayla Santos, Amelia Hernandez, Meadow Sadlemire, Emma Williams and Hope Nesmith of Tavares, along with Adalynn Delgiorno of Aurelia Cole.
Boys qualifiers included Alejandro Hernandez, Gabriel Garback, Jack Ilea, Alexis Hernandez, Joel Cordero and Elijah Rivera of Tavares; Falcon Mesa and Peyton Clarke of Windy Hill; and Andrea Garcia Barrios of Minneola Horizons.
With the district sweep complete, Tavares now turns its attention to the state meet in Lakeland.
Photos provided
Cindy serves as Executive Editor of Style Magazine and is a multimedia specialist in journalism, photography, videography and video editing. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Communications from the University of Central Arkansas and produces Style Magazine’s Sports Hub Podcast and Style Podcast. Cindy also serves as a producer for Beacon College’s Telly Award-winning PBS show, “A World of Difference.” When she isn’t working, Cindy enjoys traveling to national parks with her husband, Ryan, and son, David, while photographing wildlife — especially squirrels.
