Saturday in Martha’s Vineyard featured strong winds, a bright sky, and some major performances from teams and individuals we did not feature in the preseason.
Girls Varsity 5K
For those in attendance, it came as no surprise when defending champ Emily Flagg emerged first from the Manuel Correllus State Forest for the win. Just six seconds later, spectators may have gotten a sense of déjà vu when Abby Flagg emerged to claim second. Fans of Cross Country, and distance running in general, have gotten used to the image of Emily crossing the finish first for Whitinsville Christian. However, we haven’t seen Abby on the grass and trails since 2023. A season in which she only raced three times.
What does this mean? It certainly shakes up the individual rankings in the Bay State, especially in Division 2, where Emily is the defending champ. In 2022, as an eighth grader, Abby won the Division 2C race and was third in the Meet of Champions. As it stands now, we could see the two repeat their 1-2 finish in November.
The team race continued the trend of nail-biting finishes from earlier this week. After falling to #5 Needham earlier in the week, #14 Weymouth defeated defending champs and #19 Amherst-Pelham regional by one point, 62-63.
The Wildcats and Hurricanes matched up well throughout the race. Sonia Souto of Weymouth was first across the line between the two, finishing eighth overall in 20:11. Weymouth’s top seven all finished in the top 35, while Amherst Pelham’s were in the top 40. Finishing first for the Hurricane’s was Nina Holden, in 10th at 20:33.
Jessica Harding and Natalie McInnis formed Weymouth’s first pack, and were shorty followed by Amherst Pelham’s Genevieve Dole, Marit MacDonald, and Lilly Pope.
Mia Manfredi of Weymouth and Quynh Ly of Amherst Pelham had the battle of the day, finishing neck and neck at 22nd and 23rd.
Breakdown of Weymouth’s Top 7:
Sonia Souto, 20:11.07 (5), Jessica Harding, 20:41.69 (8), Natalie McInnis, 20:52.95 (9), Mia Manfredi, 21:42.25 (18), Sydney Phillips, 21:52.29 (22), Evelyn Hieshetter, 21:56.36 (23), Leah Glavin, 22:30.24 (29)
Breakdown of Amherst Pelham Regional’s Top 7:
Nina Holden, 20:33.60 (7), Genevieve Dole, 21:00.77 (11), Marit MacDonald, 21:01.82 (12), Lilly Pope, 21:16.06 (14), Quynh Ly, 21:44.46 (19), Ella Jamate, 21:47.86. (21), Willa Hudson, 23:00.62 (33)
Also of note Saturday was #12 Norwell. While they did not field a full team, Katherine Murray and Audrey Birtwell finished 3-4 for the Clippers in 19:13 and 19:14. As of now, Norwell has Middleboro in a dual meet next week, and then the Frank Kelly Invitational on 9/20. We’ll have to wait until either of those meets to get a full look at their squad.
Boys Varsity 5K
The theme of resurgence continued in the boy’s race as Falmouth Academy’s Nathan Gartner topped Catholic Memorial’s Michael Upton in 15:47. Like Abby Flagg, we hadn’t seen Nathan on an XC course since 2023. We last saw him in the spring when he ran a PR of 4:16 in the mile at the New Balance National Meet. Marking his return with a win cements Gartner as a runner to watch and top contender this season.
Another runner to watch is Michael Upton. While he may have been disappointed to not defend his crown, his time of 15:51 was 20 seconds faster than last year, on day that featured strong wind and humidity. Any disappointment would have been short lived as he saw the cascade of red and white singlets finish soon after him.
Catholica Memorial put their entire top five in the top fifteen enroute to an outstanding first place finish with 29 Points. PRs would be the theme for the Knights, as their entire team would set their 5K best. Daniel Kaleba had the performance of the day, finishing in third overall in a 42 second PR at 16:30. Theo Fitzpatrick had a massive PR as well, running 16:45, a 1:20 best.
Here is a breakdown of their top 7
Michael Upton, 15:51.67 (1), Daniel Kaleba, 16:30.06 (2), Theo Fitzpatrick, 16:45.72 (6), Gerard Stock, 17:01.49 (9), Jude Kaleba, 17:11.17 (11), Oliver Genes, 18:59.29 (49), Roberto Gabriel Grafals, 20:17.32 (71)
Girls Junior Varsity 5K
Another Weymouth and Amherst Pelham battle took place in the girl’s Junior Varsity race, where Weymouth prevailed 22-33. Inez Smith of Whitinsville Christian took the win in 21:59, making it a banner day for the Crusaders. Her time would have been top 30 in the Varsity Race. Weymouth’s Abigael Lenihan was runner up, and was followed by teammates Christina Marshall and Audrey Connolly, all making their case for the Varsity Team.
Boys Junior Varsity
The Boys race had a great showdown between Brockton’s Declan Canniff and East Greenwich’s Quinn Connolly. Canniff got the win in 17:32 to Connolly’s 17:33. Both times would have been top 25 in the Varsity Race. East Greenwich of Rhode Island got the win.
Boy’s Freshmen 3K
Hometown hero Ben Fuller of Martha’s Vineyard edged Barrington’s Jack Williamson for the win, 10:30.38 to 10:30.84. Barrington’s Calvin Mentzer was third in 10:36, helping his team secure the win.
Girls Freshmen 3K
Bridgewater-Raynham Regional’s Mackenzie Rowan took the girls race in 12:31. Notre-Dame Academy of Hingham took the win in another nail-biter, with 31 points to Barrington’s 32.
