Perfection is never guaranteed.

But, on Wednesday at the annual Schuylkill League Cross Country Meet, Mother Nature did her best to provide scenery about as close to perfect as one could find.

Competing on the grounds of White Birch Golf Course - one of the oldest golfer courses in Pennsylvania - harriers were testing their skills and looking to win medals.

The backdrop was perfect on a chilly mid-October afternoon as the leaves turned to their brightest colors, and the winners were shinning just as brightly after managing their way around the 3.1-mile layout - that fittingly started on hole 1 and culminated on hole 18,

There was no need to yell fore, as runners sped to the finish line in timed perfection at “The Birch.” When it concluded, the Tamaqua girls - a band of youth with hardly any seasoning - hoisting the team trophy.

Meanwhile, the Blue Raider boys came within a whisker of making it a double gold for the program, finishing just three points behind Minersville, 77-80. Also in the limelight on the boys’ side were Lehighton and Marian, collecting third- and fifth-place finishes, respectively.

“Coming in, I thought we had a really good chance,” said Tamaqua coach Tom Kanger, who routinely develops his teams into contenders. Not one senior dots the Tamaqua roster that is comprised of four freshmen and three sophomores.

“We really don’t have a No. 1 runner,” said Kanger. “But we run close and packed together. Some of our girls were really awesome the way they ran up the chute.”

Pacing the Raiders with a 10th-place overall finish was freshman Bailey Pliska. She was followed by sophomore Samantha Plasha, freshman Callie Frantz, sophomore Mollie Walker and freshman Lila Stegermerten.

The Tamaqua boys came close to Minersville, which used third- and fourth-place individual finishes to vault to the team victory. Tamaqua’s top finishers were Levi Kunkel and Tony Marchetti, who were ninth and 10th, respectively, with times of 17;16 and 17:17. Jesse Gormely was right on the tails of his teammates, crossing the line in 17:27 for 11th place. Rounding out the Raiders’ five were seniors Stephen Keiffer and Jonahtan Krell.

“I thought from the beginning it would be close,” said Kanger about the boys race. “Minersville, Blue Mountain, us, Lehighton and Marian all had a chance.”

Girls

Depth was the key for the Tamaqua girls, who train to run in packs. Coming into the race, Pottsville figured to be neck-and-neck with Tamaqua, but the locals were piling up points and won in a breeze, 49-72. Blue Mountain finished third with 75 points.

Plasha said she needed to do her best. “Coach just said go for it and do what you need to do, and that’s score points for my team,” she said.

The pace-setter for the winners was freshman Pliska. “We have a pretty good group of runners, and my teammates are very supportive,” Pliska said.

Frantz overcame some weary legs to help the team. “My legs started to get sore, but I pushed through the (pain),” she said.

Walker said the key was staying close.

“We ran really well as a team,” she said. “And I really liked the course ... it was a great day.”

Stegermerten, whose sister Grace was a standout runner for Tamaqua the last few seasons, said she enjoyed the day. “It was a perfect day for a run,” she said. “I started to get a little tired, but I kept pushing.”

Jim Thorpe had a pair of runners finish in the top 10, with senior Aubrey Bonner coming in fifth (21:53), and freshman Stacy Bos placing sixth (22:02). Marian’s Emma Ashfield claimed a ninth-place in a time of 22:31.

Boys

Three Times News teams area were in the hunt for the boys title, but it was the Miners, led by Klin Long (third), and Keegan Dube (fourth), who prevailed.

“We knew coming in that our biggest challenge was going to come from Tamaqua and Blue Mountain,” Jason Burges the Minersville coach pointed out. “The three of us have been battling all season.”

Marian’s Albin Petschauer had the top individual finish among area runners, placing second in a time of 16:39, 11 seconds behind the winning time turned in by Blue Mountain’s Francesco Carr.

“I was a little nervous coming into,” Petschauer said. “I wanted to win, but I also was shooting for a PR and I got that. So overall, I’m pretty happy.”

Lehighton’s Owen Serfass (17:10) and Elijah Pagotto (17:33) finished sixth and seventh overall, which brought a smile to head coach Erica Pagotto, who is also the mother of Elijah.

“We did some wonderful things out there,” said coach Pagotto. “We had four boys break 18 minutes, and seven boys under 20 minutes, which was absolutely incredible.”

VENUE ... After years at Tuscarora State Park, the Schuylkill League moved the meet to The Birch last year, a move that has been well received by coaches and athletes.

SAD TO GO … “I wish we weren’t leaving. I love being in the Schuylkill League,” said Pagotto about the fact that Lehighton and Jim Thorpe will be a part of the Colonial League next fall.

KUDOS … The Kurzinsky family - owners of The Birch - were gracious hosts, and league officials praised their cooperation.

UP NEXT … The District 11 race is on tap for next Wednesday at DeSales University.

YOUTH ABOUND … Both Jim Thorpe (Bonner) and Marian (Ashfield) have just one senior on their girls rosters.

RESULTS

BOYS

Team Standings and legend

1. Minersville (Min) 77, 2. Tamaqua (T) 80, 3. Lehighton (L) 95, 4. Blue Mountain (BM) 114, 5. Marian Catholic (MC) 134, 6. Tri-Valley (TV) 138, 7. Nativity BVM 184, 8. Weatherly (W) 249, 9. Jim Thorpe (JT) 252*, 10. Schuylkill Haven (SH) 252*, 11. North Schuylkill (NS) 263, 12. Pottsville (P) 268, 13. Mahanoy Area (MA) 309, 14. Shenandoah Valley (SV) 322.

INDIVIDUAL

(top 5 plus other locals in the top 50)

1. Francesco Carr (BM) 16:28, 2. Albin Petschauer (MC) 16:39, 3. Kolin Long (Min) 16:44, 4. Keegan Dube (Min) 16:52, 5. Jude Scheidel (BM) 16:53, 6. Owen Serfass (L) 17:10, 7. Elijah Pagotto (L) 17:13, 9. Levi Kunkel (T) 17:16, 10. Anthony Marchetti (T) 17:17, 11. Jesse Gormley (T) 17:27, 14. Alex Porambo (MC) 17:36, 15. Bradley Yenser (L) 17:39, 16. Carlos Otero (W) 17:39, 21. Wade Eroh (MC) 17:48, 22. Stephen Keiffer (T) 17:51, 23. Kyle Kuznicki (L) 17:57, 28. Jathan Krall (T) 18:14, 29. Sebastain Williams (W) 18:30, 34. Bowden Chicarelli (JT) 18:45, 35. Evan Rosenbrook (JT) 18:46, 38. Brody Boyce (T) 18:52, 41. Adam Schock (T) 18:58, 44. Varick Peiffer (L) 19:07, 46. Bayto Cokrlija (L) 19:14, 47. Achillies Fitzpatrick (MC) 19:16.

GIRLS

Team Standings and legend

1. Tamaqua (T) 49, 2. Pottsville (P) 72, 3. Blue Mountain (BM) 75, 4. Schuylkill Haven (SH) 82, 5. Jim Thorpe (JT) 113, 6. Marian Catholic (MC) 126.

Incomplete Teams

Lehighton (L), Panther Valley (PV).

INDIVIDUAL

(top 5 plus other locals in the top 50)

1. Anna Schaeffer (SH) 20:15, 2. Lucy Scheidel (BM) 20:37, 3. Kaylee Senglar (MA) 20:50, 4. Isabella Hughes (SH) 21:31, 5. Madison Eroh (P) 21:34, 8. Aubrey Bonner (JT) 21:53, 9. Stacy Bos (JT) 22:02, 10. Bailey Pliska (T) 22:15, 12. Samantha Plasha (T) 22:26, 13. Emma Ashfield (MC) 22:31, 14. Cali Frantz (T) 22:35, 15. Mollie Walker (T) 22:37, 17. Lila Stegemerten (T) 22:43, 21. Madelyn Schaefer (T) 22:58, 28. Isabella Jones (T) 24:07, 35. Julia Smith (L) 24:54, 39. Olivia Serfass (MC) 25:12, 40. Mikayla Yuricheck (PV) 26:10, 41. Ava Fritz (MC) 26:17, 42. Aubrey Wirth (JT) 26:24, 45. Leah Grabosky (MC) 26:55, 46. Elizabeth Troutman (L) 27:00, 48. Madison Biros (MC) 27:37, 49. Alyssa Porambo (MC) 28:14.