A fitting prelude to this Sunday’s Falmouth Road Race has always been the elite and high school mile races.
This year’s events, part of the Falmouth Track Festival, will be held on Friday night at the James Kalperis Track at Falmouth High.
Kicking things off is the Thomas Cochary High School Mile, which will feature top runners from throughout Massachusetts. In last year’s races, Northbridge’s Marcus Reilly and Newton South’s Amelia Everett earned the respective boys’ and girls’ title. Reilly, who will not be back this year, set the current record of 4:17.99. Everett was timed in 5:07.19 for her victory. The record for girls is held by former Natick standout Grace Connolly, who led two others under five minutes with a winning 4:56.33. She was followed by Tewksbury’s Rachel Sessa (second, 4:56.55) and Newton South’s Clare Martin (third, 4:59.84).
Who are some of the top runners that will be lining up for the 2023 version of the Cochary Mile? In the boys’ race, the field includes four runners that have broken 4:30. The No. 1 seed is Newton South’s Alex Friedman, who comes in with a best of 4:22.68, which he did to win the Division 1 title this past spring. Milton’s Alec Carew (4:24.14), Lexington’s Joseph Ryan (4:27) and Acton-Boxborough’s Anthony Cronin (4:29) are the next three seeds. Keep an eye on Dover Sherborn’s Matt Rooney, too. He won the 1,000m at the Meet of Champions and has a PR of 2:31 for the six-lapper. He has a best of 4:30 for the mile.
The overwhelming favorite in the girls’ race is Belmont’s Dana Lehr. The talented junior, who also competes for Emerging Elite, could challenge Connolly’s six-year-old mark. This past spring, Lehr finished third in the mile at the MOC where she cruised to her current PR of 4:56.81. She followed that race two weeks later by clocking 4:57.88 at the New Balance Nationals. Some of the other runners that could be battling for podium placements are Pentucket’s Kalie Dalgar (5:13), Barnstable teammates Ava Bullock (5:14) and Lily DeDecko (5:15), West Bridgwater’s Ella Dunbury (5:18 and Holliston’s Ella Bosselman (5:19).
(See Complete List of all entries below.)
Th Bay State will also be present in the Falmouth Elite Mile, which will have a total prize purse of $25,000, including $5,000 to the men’s and women’s winners. The mostly-professional field will also have star high-schooler and recent Pan Am U20 3K and 1,500m winner Ellie Shea. The soon-to-be senior from Belmont and Emerging Elite has a best of 4:14.40 for the 1,500m and all-time best of 4:40.01 for the mile. Former Concord-Carlisle great Thomas Ratcliffe and Seekonk alum and 3:49 miler Johnny Gregorek are entered in the men’s race.
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Thomas Cochary High School Mile
at Falmouth High School James Kalperis Track
Boys
Noah Brilliant, junior, Plymouth South
Alec Carew, senior, Milton
Anthony Cronin, senior, Acton-Boxborough
Sean Fleming, senior, Natick
Alex Friedman, junior, Newton South
Silas Gartner, sophomore, Falmouth
Nathaniel Gartner, Falmouth
Matt Rooney, senior, Dover Sherborn
Joseph Ryan, senior, Lexington
Girls
Ella Bosselman, Holliston
Margaret Bowles. senior, Dover Sherborn
Emila Smith, junior, Attleboro
Ava Bullock, junior, Barnstable
Kaylie Dalgar, senior, Pentucket
Lilly DeDecko, senior, Barnstable
Callie DeDecko, senior, Barnstable
Ella Dunbury, senior, West Bridgewater
Charlotte Huck, senior, Lincoln Sudbury
Dana Lehr, junior, Belmont
