by Brett Larner Click photo for video highlights. Thanks in part to outstanding performances from the identical twin Akamatsu sisters on the final two stages, Kojokan H.S. took its second-ever national title at the 2010 National High School Girls Ekiden , holding off two-time defending champion Toyokawa H.S. by 16 seconds after battling the strong Suma Gakuen H.S . throughout the ekiden. Kojokan's Katsuki Suga got the team off to a good start, winning the 6 km First Stage by a margin of 6 seconds. Suma Gakuen's Risa Yokoe caught up on the Second Stage, running a stage best to finish the leg dead even with Kojokan's Miyuki Oka . Suma Gakuen's Third Stage runner Mika Kobayashi likewise turned in a stage best, giving the school an 8 second lead after Kojokan's Manami Takehisa finished only 9th on the stage. Everything turned around on the 3.0 km Fourth Stage. Kojokan's Hiroka Akamatsu , the lesser-known of its star Akamatsu twins, seized back the lead, taking...
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