Last but not least, this is the last of our fall cross-country previews. Here we feature Division 3C boys and girls.
***
BOYS
Division 3C
Teams: Georgetown, Millis, Mount Greylock, Quaboag Reg., Bromfield, Wareham, David Prouty, Mystic Valley, Springfield International Charter, Boston Collegiate Charter, Maynard, Hopedale, Mahar Regional, Narragansett Regional, Tahanto Regional, Bartlett, Holbrook, Rising Tide Charter, Abby Kelley Foster, Salem Academy, Murdock, Southbridge, Lenox Memorial, Hampden Charter, Parker Charter, Renaissance, Lee, Palmer, Saint Joseph Prep, Hoosac Valley, Pioneer Charter, University Park Campus, John J. Duggan Academy, Sizer School, Mount Everett Regional, Monson, Pioneer Valley Regional, Pioneer Charter, Hopkins Academy, Gateway Regional, Pioneer Valley Chinese Immersion Charter, Mohawk Trail Regional, Paulo-Freire Social Justice Charter, Collegiate Charter School of Lowell, Academy of Notre Dame, Cape Cod Academy, North Brookfield, Pioneer Valley Christian Academy
Top Athletes: Henry Jacobsen, Parker Charter; Nathan Henshaw, Parker Charter; Jett Johnson, Parker Charter; Benjamin Harwood, Lenox Memorial; Conor Stach, Parker Charter
Outlook: The favorite for individual honors is Jacobsen, the defending champion. The Parker Charter senior, who was a runner-up as a tenth-grader, won the 2023 race with a 15-second victory over teammate Caleb Hatevig, who graduated this past June. Jacobsen followed that performance by taking fourth overall at the Meet of Champions. He had a 5K best of 15:33.3, an effort that placed him fifth overall at the Bob Glennon Twilight Invitational. Henshaw (sixth, 17:04.08), Johnson (seventh, 17:04.15), Harwood (eighth, 17:07.43), Stach (tenth, 17:23.06) and Leone (11th, 17:24.93) were all among the top finishers at last year’s meet and should be in the mix this year. Keep an eye on Johnson. As a seventh-grader, he made quite an impact for the Panthers. He was their No. 3 finishers at the MOC (19th, 16:55.7) and raced to a PR of 16:33.2 at Twilight.
Teamwise, defending 3C and MOC titlist Parker Charter appears primed to repeat the magic this fall. The Panthers lost just one runner from last year’s team that scored 26 points at the 3C meet, a comfortable 69 points ahead of second-place Lenox. Bromfield, Lenox and Mount Greylock are among teams that should be battling for the other top positions.
***
GIRLS
Division 3C
Teams: Sturgis Charter West, Sturgis Charter East, West Bridgewater, Frontier Regional, Oxford, Carver, Easthampton, Bourne, Innovation Academy, Sutton, Ayer Shirley, Douglas, Greenfield, Georgetown, Millis, Mount Greylock, Quaboag Reg., Bromfield, David Prouty, Mystic Valley, Springfield International Charter, Boston Collegiate Charter, Maynard, South Shore Charter, Hopedale, Mahar Regional, Narragansett Regional, Tahanto Regional, Bartlett, Holbrook, Rising Tide Charter, Boston Prep, Salem Academy, Brooke Charter, Murdock, Southbridge, Lenox Memorial, Hampden Charter, Atlantis Charter, Parker Charter, Renaissance, Lee, Palmer, Granby, Hoosac Valley, John J. Duggan Academy, Sizer School
Top Athletes: Cameron Davis, Oxford; Evelyn Wool, Bromfield; Avery Murphy, Murdock; Annabella Lamorea, Sutton; Rose Bradley, Bromfield
Outlook: Davis gets the favorite nod here come championship time. She had a sensational freshman campaign last year, one that was highlighted by a victory at the 3C meet and a third-place finish at the MOC. She also went sub-19 at both the Twilight Invitational (PR, 18:20.7) and Frank Mooney Invitational (18:29.8). The Oxford standout is already off to a great start this season, as evident by her third-place finish at the Vineyard XC Invitational on Sept. 7 where she clocked 18:27.0. Wool should be the top challenger to Davis. She was third at last year’s 3C meet and fifth overall at the MOC. Her best was an 18:27 effort at Twilight . She also raced to an solid 18:55.2 at the Kelley Invitational. Murphy (fifth, 20:13.25), Lamorea (sixth, 20:20.71), Bradley (seventh, 20:48.15) and Jackson (ninth, 20:56.39) all cracked the top 10 last year and be looking for high placements again this fall.
As a team, Bromfield won last year’s meet by scoring just 49 points. Look for the Blue & White to do it again this season as all seven of its harriers are returning. Lenox and Mount Greylock, who finished 2-3 at last year’s meet, appear to have the most talent to challenge for those spots again at the Nov. 9 meet.
