By Mike Lewis, Staff writer

FELTON - Jim Solomon, the cross country head coach at Dover High, had been waiting a long time for Charles Gibson to show his true potential over a 3.1-mile race.

Solomon got what he wanted Saturday at the 45th annual Lake Forest Invitational at Killens Pond State Park as Gibson nipped C.R. Thomas from Lingmore (Md.) by two seconds to win the Boys A (large schools) race.

"I knew he had it in him," Solomon said. "It was just a matter of him getting past that wall and staying with the top contenders."

Gibson, who won in 16 minutes, 44 seconds, was one of three Senator runners to finish in the top 10 in the A race. Rich Worley (16:55) finished third and Patrick Boyle (17:15) finished ninth for Dover, which finished second overall in the Boys A team standings to Salesianum.

Gibson, a junior, said the victory also gives him added confidence for the Nov. 9 state championship meet, which will also take place at Killens Pond.

"I think I have more of a chance now," Gibson said. "I have a whole lot more confidence."

Those sentiments were also expressed by Kashante Codner of Caesar Rodney, whose second-place individual run (20:23) in the Girls A led the Riders to a first-place finish in the team standings.

"We like to get as much running on the state meet course as possible," said CR coach Charlie Bell. "If it's going to be upstate and hilly, you want to go up there to get used to it. If you're going to be on a flat course, that's where you want to be."

CR placed three additional runners in the top 15 in the Girls A race. Liz Paul (20:47) finished sixth, Kasheka Codner (21:17) placed 12th and Jenay Friend (21:31) finished 14th. Brandywine's Jess Leitsch (19:58) captured the individual title in the Girls A race.

The meet attracted 39 participating schools to the unique Killens Pond layout, which includes a mixture of sand, woods, uphill climbs and a wide-open final stretch, with hundreds of fans cheering the runners on.

"It helps me a lot more to see the finish line and know that you're almost there," said Gibson of the long stretch to the finish. "It adds an adrenaline rush to your body. It makes you forget about everything else and just think about winning."

The tradition and timing of the event are also key factors for the large number of schools who participate, said Jim Blades, the athletic director at St. Thomas More in Magnolia and a former athletic director and cross country coach at Lake Forest.

"The longevity of it is special, it's the site of the state meet in alternating years and it's also early on in the year, when teams like to see where they match up."

Cape Henlopen coach George Pepper agreed.

"You can see how you stack up with everybody else and it's a good indicator of how your training is going," he said.

Greg Swift, one of Pepper's Vikings, placed fourth in the Boys B (small schools) race with a time of 17:16, two seconds ahead of fifth-place finisher Chad Carpenter of Milford. On Wednesday, Carpenter had beaten Swift by seven seconds in a dual meet.

"I came in today trying to stay with Chad the entire time," Swift said. "Hopefully I would out kick him at the end and I did exactly what I wanted to do."

Carpenter's time of 17:18 tied his personal best for the Killens Pond course.

"It's a great way to open the season," Carpenter said. "When you get 22 teams in your race, that's always fun. Greg's a good runner. I got him at the dual meet but he caught up with me on this one and got me in the last 100 meters. I'm looking forward to racing him again."

Archmere's Pete McBride (16:57) won the Boys B race while Smyrna's John Warrall placed eighth with a time of 17:37. In the team standings, Cape finished third, Milford placed fourth and Lake Forest finished sixth behind team winner Archmere.

In the Girls B race, Seaford's Caitlin McGroerty (21:21) finished in 10th place to lead the Blue Jays to a fifth-place team finish. Tower Hill's Lisa Klein (19:20) won the Girls B race, while Maryvale Prep (Md.) won the team competition.