Sometimes, Oakland Mills' Vicki Lang has trouble balancing her roles as parent and coach.
But on Saturday at Hereford High School, it was easy.
When Lang's daughter, Tiffany, crossed the finish line of the 2A state championship race in 19:47.9, good enough for second place, all she felt was elation.
"She ended it right where she wanted to, and as a parent and coach I couldn't have asked for anything more," said Vicki Lang, who coaches the Oakland Mills cross country team alongside her husband, Phil. "Tiff ran strong … and the girls team as a whole really came together this (fall) and made some nice accomplishments, so it was good to see them finish strong."
Every great athlete strives for the best, but there was no shame for Tiffany Lang in finishing second to Winters Mill's Hannah Oneda. The senior ran the 3.0 mile course at Hereford in 18:28.3, smashing the girls 11-year-old meet record by 24 seconds.
"I know her. We're really good friends, and I know she's awesome so I don't really count her when I think about (race strategy)," said Tiffany Lang, a senior.
Lang knew enough to not try to chase Oneda out of the gates. But she also knew that she would get a stiff challenge from Loch Raven senior Emily Ruppel, who won the 1A race last year.
"Our gameplan was running for second, we knew Hannah was untouchable and Emily was going to be a force out there," Vicki Lang said.
It didn't take Oneda long to build an enormous gap between her and the chase pack, and Ruppel had established second place midway through the race. With about a mile left, though, Lang and Ruppel were shoulder-to-shoulder in a battle for second place.
"I knew from the beginning it would be really close, so after a mile and a quarter into it I knew I would try to stay with her instead of pulling away, because I didn't want to pull away and then have her catch me right at the end," said Tiffany Lang, who won her first county title earlier this fall. "I was just hoping to be able to hold her off and coming up the dip we were together, I don't know, I was able to have a really strong finish."
Lang, who estimates that she has competed on the Hereford course almost 15 times, did finish strong, extending her lead over Ruppel with a strong kick down the final stretch, and finishing 13 seconds ahead of her.
"My last three races I've been really happy with, but this was my best state meet. I've never had a great race at states so it was nice to finally feel like I did," she said. "When I thought of this season that was my goal and it went the way I wanted it to, so I'm really happy with that … I'd just like to thank my parents and God again, they're all I need and they got me where I am today."
While Lang will graduate this spring, Glenelg freshman Julia Nardone may be the dominant girls cross country runner in Howard County for years to come after her performance on Saturday.
Nardone placed a strong fifth in the 2A race in a time of 20:23.
"As a freshman I didn't really have any expectations, so coming in fifth is better than I thought I could do," said Nardone, who had previously run a middle school race at Hereford. "As always I try to keep everybody in mind but I knew (Oneda) was a definite first place, so I tried to keep her in sight and that was my strategy … I was trying to stay in the same general area as (Lang), I knew she's a great runner and just being near her is an accomplishment."
Nardone said that she will not be running indoor track this season, but is looking forward to outdoor track and building on her cross country accomplishments next fall.
"This was a great season, it was better than I could have imagined and I'm just (excited) to see what happens next season," she said.
Boosted by Alyssa Hemler's 11th place finish, Oakland Mills finished seventh as a team. Glenelg, led by Nardone and senior Caragh MacDermott (17th), finished one spot behind, in eighth.
Marriotts Ridge junior Jacquelin Berges led the Mustangs to a 12th place finish in the team race with her 27th place showing.
2A Boys race
Oakland Mills' lead pack of Sam Andrews (10th), Tom Brumbaugh (16th) and Steven Cale (17th) all finished in the top 20 to help the Scorpions to a strong fifth place showing in the team standings.
"Three in the top 20 is a good start," Vicki Lang said. "Sam ran a respectable time, he ran a good race. Some days you've got it in the tank and some days you don't. Today he didn't quite have that last mile finish … but he hung in there and he was sprinting down that last stretch, he never gave up, so I'm proud of him for his effort."
Marriotts Ridge senior Connor Foley placed 15th, helping the Mustangs take ninth place.