When Georgetown’s Alex Jarvis took a run at the leaders, the Milton District runner went with her.

“I kind of gave up actually because they were so far ahead,” said Gabel, who was running in fourth at the time. “I thought there was no way, but then Alex started picking up the pace so I knew it was good to hop on her and catch her and it worked. If it wasn’t for her I don’t think it would have happened.”

Gabel not only caught the leaders, she also kept up with Jarvis and outsprinted her at the finish to win the junior girls race at the Golden Horseshoe Athletic Conference (GHAC) cross country championships in Dundas Thursday. She finished the four-kilometre course in 15:48 seconds, posting a six-second victory over Jarvis for her first victory of the season.

“Melissa’s a great sprinter,” said Mustangs coach Davida Hardie. “She was on the track and field team last spring and she runs shorter distances as well, so that kind of pulled her through because a lot of the distance runners don’t have the sprinting.”

That final push usually doesn’t come until the last 100 metres as Gabel tries to chase down the leaders. Thursday she heard people telling her Jarvis was right behind her so her final sprint kicked in a little earlier.

“She’s got the endurance and the speed,” Hardie said.

While the speed comes from running shorter distances in track, the endurance is from an unlikely source — dancing. Well, maybe not that unlikely. Senior champion and last year’s OFSAA junior champ Colleen Hennessy of Oakville’s St. Thomas Aquinas also credits a dance background for her success in cross country. “It helps a lot with stamina and building your muscles,” Gabel said. Gabel’s victory qualified her for the OFSAA championships in Sarnia this Saturday. Joining Gabel at the provincial high school meet will be Bishop Reding’s Connor LeDrew, who placed fifth (in 19:14) in the midget boys’ race — edging Burlington’s Kurt McClure by three seconds for the final individual qualifying berth.

Milton District’s Jen Wormald was 14th in the midget girls’ race and Drury’s Robert Green was 17th among the midget boys.

Just back from a broken collarbone and far off last year’s OFSAA qualifying mark, Scott Dermott of BR placed 21st in the senior boys’ race.