Maplewood senior Derek Armstrong and McDonald senior Jenn Wenhold each placed in the top 10 at this

Maplewood senior Derek Armstrong and McDonald senior Jenn Wenhold each placed in the top 10 at this year's state meet.
By JOE SCALZO
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
Derek Armstrong was just a freshman soccer player three years ago when his friends first started prodding him to switch to cross country.
"They showed me all the awards Maplewood had in track and running and that made me want to try out," Armstrong said.
Good decision.
The Maplewood senior, who admitted he didn't even take running seriously until last year, transformed himself into the area's best runner, winning the Division III regional title and leading the Rockets to their first state championship since 1997.
"We worked the whole year for that race," Armstrong, The Vindicator boys cross country runner of the year, said.
"It was the greatest feeling knowing that you're finished and you just came away with biggest victory that you can get.
"I just sat there and let it be in my head that we were the best."
Different path
McDonald senior Jenn Wenhold, The Vindicator girls cross country runner of the year, took a different path to excellence.
She began running in middle school and won her first Trumbull County title in eighth grade. She would go on to win four more -- the first area girls runner to do so -- and earn all-Ohio honors all four years of high school.
"The thing I enjoy most is running with my teammates," she said. "The best thing about the state meet is that you're running in a pack and there's a lot more people watching. That's pretty cool."
Armstrong placed ninth at this year's state meet to lead the Rockets, who only lost once all year -- finishing second to McDonald (the defending state champions) at the Suburban League Championships.
After finishing second at last year's state meet, Armstrong and his teammates devoted their offseason to finishing first this fall.
"We have one of the best coaches in the state [Ted Rupe] and a really great program," Armstrong said. "[Rupe] turns every average runner into a great runner. I've grown so much respect for the sport since my sophomore year. I didn't realize how much hard work and pain it took to be the best until this year."
Future plans
Armstrong wants to keep running in college and has narrowed his choices to three -- Mount Union, Kent State and Ashland. He will major in graphic design and hopes to someday get a job in computer animation.
Wenhold isn't sure if she will run in college -- "I guess I'm going to run, although I was thinking that I'd have a lot more free time if I didn't," she said with a laugh -- and has narrowed her college choices to Toledo, Ohio Wesleyan and Ohio University. She plans to major in pharmacy.
The Blue Devil senior placed fourth at this year's state meet to lead McDonald to a third place finish in Division III.
Like Armstrong, she will also run track this spring.
Armstrong started training again last week, but Wenhold is still enjoying a rest after a long cross country season.
"I'm taking a break right now," she said.
scalzo@vindy.com