Usually it happens later in the race, about midway into it, when a coach can sense his team is on their game.
For longtime Hamilton Wenham coach Steve Sawyer, he could sense it nearly from the start of Saturday’s Division 3 race at the MIAA Meet of Champions.
“Absolutely,” he said. “The first time within the first quarter mile, I had three in the top 15 and my other two young girls were in the middle of the pack, and moving up. I knew then that we were off to a strong start.”
That strong start turned into a dominating victory for the Generals on a perfect day for racing at Fort Devens. An expected tight battle between schools like Norwell and Bromfield, turned into a convincing victory for Hamilton Wenham. The Generals defeated Bromfield, 89-133. Norwell was fourth with 162 points, five behind Mount Greylock, the bronze-medalist.
Hamilton Wenham had two runners in the top 10 – sophomore teammates Grace Rich (sixth, 19:33.64) and Asa Labell (seventh, 19:38.41) – and just about a minute gap was the difference between its next three scoring runners.
“On paper, I thought maybe 20-25 points,” Sawyer said. “I thought Norwell would be there and Bromfield. But 40-plus points, almost 50, scared me. I had no idea how my girls ran so well. Like I told them, they were race ready, they knew they were going to run well and they did.”
As she’s done throughout most of the season, Oxford’s Cameron Davis took a solo trip around Fort Devens, coasting to a time of 18:20.12, nearly 200 meters ahead of second-place finisher Evelyn Wool of Bromfield, who was timed in 18:55.57. Norwell freshman Katherine Murray was third at 19:23.36.
“I felt really good, I felt loose, there was definitely some tricky parts to the course, there was a little wind here but you just try and push through it the best that you can,” Davis said.
The Oxford standout, who was third in this race last year, will be back on the trails on Nov. 30 when she competes at Franklin Park for the Foot Locker X-C Northeast Regionals. Her last time at the iconic park was the FLXC Northeast as a frosh in 2023.
“Last year we ran it just to see where I was,” she said. “I definitely feel stronger this year. I’m (looking forward) to see what I can get.”
Needham’s Greta Hammer didn’t disappoint in Div. 1 against a talented field that had seven runners under 19 minutes. For nearly the first two thirds of the race, Hammer ran among a lead pack that featured Billerica’s Gianna McGovern (second, 18:16.44), Wellesley’s Charlotte Tuxbury (third, 18:22.53) and defending titlist Aoife Shovlin (fourth, 18:32.26).
The pre-race favorite, who has four sub-18s to her credit this season, took charge right before the two-mile mark and breezed across the line in 18:02.02, the fastest time of the day.
“There was a lot of talented, really-good runners in this race,” said Hammer, who will compete with her team at the Nike Cross Regionals Northeast on Saturday. “i was hoping I could stick with those runners and if I was feeling good I could go out and take the race. I was able to do that pretty well.”
In somewhat of an upset, Westford Academy proved victorious in the team competition. The Ghosts edged runner-up Lexington, 118-122. Wellesley was third with 127 points.
Going into the meet, Westford Academy was ranked No. 5 in the recent MSTCA XC Poll.
“We came here today to have fun,” said Emily Wedlake, who finished fifth overall (18:40.03) and was the team’s top finisher. “If we got the title, that was awesome. We really just wanted to showcase the hard work that we did.”
Behind Wedlake, just 41 seconds separated their two through five finishers, beginning with freshman Diya Shrestha, who was 21st overall with a time of 19:27.99.
Continuing her unbeaten season, sophomore Emily Flagg cruised to the Division 1 title with a time of 18:16.66. In typical fashion, Flagg took command early and was never seriously challenged the remainder of the way. Defending titlist Maggie Kuchman secured the runner-up spot in 18:39.4. Marietta O’Connell of Marblehead was third at 19:18.71.
Next up for Flagg, is the Foot Locker Regionals.
Westwood concluded an outstanding fall campaign on the dirt trails by taking the team prize with 123 points. Amherst Pelham was second with 154 points. Tea Pagnotti was the No. 1 harrier for the Wolverines, finishing fifth overall with a time of 19:32.12.
