It’s now time for Part 2 of the fall cross-country season. On Saturday, the best of the best from each division, from each sub division, will battle each other at their respective races at the MIAA Divisional Championships. We broke it down into capsules on who will be some of the top teams and athletes to keep an eye on this weekend.
We begin our previews with Division 1 girls, which includes Div. 1A, 1B and 1C.
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DIVISION STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS
at Northfield Mountain
Division 1A
Day/Time: Saturday at 11 a.m.
Top Teams: Weymouth, Cambridge Rindge & Latin, Newton North, Needham
Runners To Watch: Greta Hammer, Needham; Aoife Shovlin, Cambridge Rindge & Latin; Emelia Smith, Attleboro, Ciara Evans, Newton North
Outlook: This race could be an intense battle to the finish between two runners, Hammer and Shovlin. Hammer, the Rockets’ talented junior, appears to hold the edge. In their only head-to-head race this season, she posted an 11-second win over her rival at the Bob Glennon Twilight Invitational where she was timed in 17:40.11. Hammer blazed to a PR of 17:31.97 to grab the gold at the Bay State Conference Championship less than two weeks ago in Wrentham. She’s ready to explode again this weekend. But you certainly can’t ignore Shovlin in the rubber match between these two warriors. The CB&L senior is the defending champion and a Foot Locker finalist, who always comes to race when the chips are at their highest. She boast a PR of 17:51.13 from Twilight and ran 17:54.49 to take top honors at the Frank Kelley Invitational on Sept. 21. Smith and Evans are among several others that could be fighting for top positions with bests of 17:59.64 and 18:00.65, respectively, from their conference championships at Wrentham. Take your pick what team will win this one. Weymouth, Cambridge Rindge & Latin, Newton North and Needham are capable of getting it done. All just happen to be among the top 10 in the MSTCA Coaches Poll, too, with Weymouth at the top spot.
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Division 1B
Day/Time: Saturday at 12:30 p.m.
Top Teams: Wellesley, Marshfield, North Andover, Westford Academy
Runners To Watch: Charlotte Tuxbury, Wellesley; Macey Shriner, Plymouth North; Emma Tuxbury, Wellesley; Bridget Reidy, Wellesley; Evie Lauzon, Arlington, Abigail Hennessey, Westford Academy
Outlook: The two leading contenders in this race are Charlotte Tuxbury and Shriner. Tuxbury was third at the recent Bay State Conference Championships where she ran 18:10.13 at Wrentham. She went a low 18:02.67 to take the bronze in the Large School race of the Twilight Invite. Shriner won the Patriot League Championships with a PR of 18:04.30. She also went 18:25.72 to take runner-up honors at the Vineyard Invitational at the start of the season. If the race is close in the late stages, Tuxbury may hold the edge. She has 2:13 speed for 800 meters. Emma Tuxbury, Reidy and Lauzon are among a few that should also be battling for top positions this weekend. We put Hennessey on our list based on her past history and a sub-18 performance from her win in the Championship race at the Ocean State Invitational in late September. But we are not sure if she’ll be lacing up her racing shoes this weekend. Ocean State is the only race she has competed in this season. Teamwise, no one is touching Wellesley. We repeat, no one is touching Wellesley. The Red Raiders have a solid four that have all broken 19 minutes this season. Wellesley’s fifth runner is about a minute behind that quartet. That shouldn’t make a difference in the outcome. Westford Academy (w/Hennessey), Marshfield and North Andover appear to be the squads battling for the next three spots.
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Division 1C
Day/Time: Saturday at 2 p.m.
Top Teams: Billerica, Oliver Ames, Central Catholic
Runners To Watch: Gianna McGowan, Billerica; Madeline Courtemanche, Central Catholic; Molly Galgoczy, North Attleboro; Megan Moran, Westfield
Outlook: This race could get interesting. Courtemanche is coming off a big win this past weekend in the Large School race of the Frank Mooney Invitational where she ran a PR of 18:15.7, a best this season by nearly 50 seconds. She was fourth in this race last year. McGowan has competed in just two races this season, clocking 18:11.8 at Twilight and 18:44.9 at the Ocean State Invitational back on Sept. 28. Galgoczy was second at the Hockomock League Championships where she raced to an all-time best of 18:20 at Wrentham. Moran was a recent winner at the WMass XC Championships with an impressive 18:39.1 at Stanley Park. The lead pack should include a few, or all of these runners, for most of the race on Saturday. It could come down to the last stretch when a victor is prevalent. Billerica, ranked No. 2 in the coaches poll, and defending champion Oliver Ames, ranked No. 8, seem to be our top two teams fighting for that coveted hardware.
