Top runners Katherine Anton and Ady Ngawati battled stride for stride in the Northland women's cross-country championship over a tough 5km course at Barge Park on Saturday.
Both running for Whangarei Athletics, they continually exchanged the lead over the first 4km, with Ngawati using her strength to push the pace up
the hills and Anton edging past on the downhills and flats.
"I found that I was strong on the hills because that's the sort of running that I like - my endurance is there," Ngawati said.
But in the final kilometre Anton increased the tempo, making a break on Ngawati and taking the title by 16 seconds.
"I used the tailwind and the flat in the last kilometre to pick up the pace," Anton said.
Amy Burke, an unregistered runner, finished third and Hatea Harriers' Bronwyn Dyer was fourth.
Unregistered runner Leigh Ruddock - Ngawati's sister - comfortably headed off the masters women's field, followed by Christine Fraser, Denise Limby, Janice Powell, Jane Sweeney and Judith Bradshaw.
Hatea's Eryn Lovell took the women's under-20 title, while Whangarei's Alyse Hart won the under-17 title.
In the combined men's 7.5km race, Hatea's Steve O'Neill shot out to an healthy early lead over Whangarei's Ian Calder.
"I felt that he went off too fast and I thought I'd just try and keep my pace even," Calder said.
Calder's tactic paid off in the final lap, when he passed the tiring O'Neill and ran away, taking honours by 1min 20s.
However, both men won titles - O'Neill, the senior men's title and, Calder, the masters' title.
Hatea runners Kim Jepsen and Jason Trass took second and third respectively, in the senior men's championship.
In the masters championship, Mike Gowing - who was third overall - took second, ahead of Richard Blogg, John Kent, Stuart Slater, Steve Trass, Max Smith, Tony Langton and Colin Smith.
Dylan French took command in the under-20 men's 5km race from the gun, beating Tim Riddell by 22 seconds, while in the under-17 section Travis Connelly ran strongly, finishing well clear of promising Hatea youngster, Zak Sinclair.
Rising stars in the combined boys and girls' 2.5km race showed their potential, with Ethan Carter securing the under-14 boys' championship in a fast 9min 30s. Tayla Going won girls' under-14 title. And in the under-12s, Lewis Miller and narrowly headed off Callum Prime, while Lakiesha Cummings triumphed.
