Members of the Lilaceae family,  lilies prosper with proper light and water, and when they’re firmly rooted in fertile soil. But one of the subfamilies – the Brubaker strain – apparently does best when it is on the move.

On Saturday afternoon at Annville-Cleona High School, during the contesting of the annual Lebanon County Cross Country Championships, Lily Brubaker got rolling, and enjoyed one of her finest moments as a student-athlete to date. Brubaker won the girls’ race and claimed the female individual championship at the event.

But what made it more impressive was the fact that the Elco sophomore was competing in her first country cross country championship ever, during her first season out for the sport. Brubaker covered the challenging 3.1-mile course in 20:08.8, to claim the title by almost seven seconds.

And Brubaker also accomplished the feat in dramatic – comeback – fashion.

Down by almost a hundred yards to Palmyra’s Ellie Keck through the middle portions of the race, Brubaker steadily closed her deficit over the final mile. Finally, with about a hundred yards to go, Brubaker  made her move and passed Keck with a strong kick on a small incline.

After that, Brubaker never looked back.

Her performance also helped the Raider girls to a third-place showing in the team standings.

– Jeff Falk