And now onto the finale – the last two races in what’s sure-to-be an exciting and competitive night of racing at the Bob Glennon Twilight Invitational. Saturday’s Large School races at the Cape Cod Fairgrounds appropriately concludes with our boys’ and girls’ Varsity races. Below is the talented harriers we believe will create the most electricity in the popular nighttime extravaganza.
***
BOYS – 8:30 p.m.
The one-year-old course record of 14:56.1, set by recent Westford Academy graduate Jack Graffeo, appears safe, but the lead among our top contenders is anything but. Expect a tight battle up front, with a pack of four or more likely to trade surges for much of the looped course.
Based on the seed times, the leading contenders include Landon Sarney of Oliver Ames (15:26), Sean Finnegan of Hopkinton (15:30), John Bianchi of Natick (15:47.3), Brookline’s Theodore Butty and Liam Hartman (16:03.6), and Daniel Goldberg of Wellesley (16:04.4). There are a few others you can’t ignore, too.
Our pick is Bianchi, who placed third in this race last year with a PR of 15:22.0. The Division 1B runner-up last year ran a season-best 15:47.3 a few weeks ago to take fourth in the Championship race at the Ocean State Invitational, three seconds ahead of Slaney, who finished fifth.
Sarney ran his PR in the Pirates’ season opener with Mansfield back on Sept. 9 and, aside from Ocean State, hasn’t been challenged this fall. In five races, including a solo 15:41.0 victory over Canton this past Monday, he’s dominated his competition.
Meanwhile, Finnegan has been unbeaten in all four of his races. His sub-16 effort came on Sept. 24, where he ran unchallenged and finished 42 seconds ahead of his closest pursuer.
For most of our top seeds, this will be their toughest race yet — and they’ll likely be given the green light to let loose on the generous 5K. Don’t count out Butty, either. We saw the senior shock the field in the two mile at last spring’s Division 1 Championships, where he clocked a massive PR of 9:05.17. He’s only raced one 5K this season, placing second to Sully Sturtz of Keene (NH) at the Amherst Invitational on Sept. 20 — just ahead of Hartman. Butty ran his 5K best (15:45.2) at last year’s Twilight meet, and could easily mix it up again.
So what does all this say? Don’t be so sure who’ll break the tape. Coming off that final turn into the stretch, the winner may still be undecided. Our pick remains Bianchi, based on consistency and experience — but this could easily be a take-your-pick kind of race.
***
GIRLS – 8:55 p.m.
It’s not the Division 1 race of the Meet of Champions, but it’s certainly going to feel like it. You couldn’t ask for a better way to close out Day 1 of the two-day meet.
The top two seeds in this race also happen to be the top two runners in the state — Needham’s Greta Hammer and Westford Academy’s Abby Hennessy — who will go toe-to-toe on Saturday. It’s still early in the season, but both have already shown that we’re in for something special this weekend.
Hammer, the defending champion, comes in with a season-best 17:34.9 from her league opener on Sept. 3. She was also a convincing winner at the prestigious Manchester Invitational a few weeks ago.
In her debut this season, Hennessy clocked a PR and seed time of 17:35.7 while earning her second straight victory at the Ocean State Invitational.
Hammer set the current course record of 17:40.1 last year. With calm winds and mid-50s temperatures expected, we anticipate both runners will be well under that mark on Saturday. We’re predicting a fast, aggressive race from the gun, with separation between the two no more than a second or two for most of the way.
Races like this are where these gifted harriers shine brightest. Hammer followed last year’s Twilight victory by running the table against her Massachusetts rivals — winning the Division 1A title, the Meet of Champions, and qualifying for Nike Cross Nationals with a runner-up finish at NXR Northeast. She also swept the two-mile at both indoor and outdoor MOCs.
Hennessy, meanwhile, is coming off a spectacular spring campaign that included state titles in the 800m and mile, capped by a third-place finish in the mile at New Balance Nationals. She told us her goal is to break 17 minutes by season’s end — and it may not be far-fetched to think that could happen this weekend, or at least come close.
While this race is expected to be a two-person showdown for the individual crown, the depth behind them is impressive — and the battle for those next few spots should get fierce.
Twin sisters Emily and Abby Flagg enter as the No. 3 and No. 4 seeds with season bests of 18:09.6 and 18:18.3, respectively. Emily, last year’s Small/Medium School champion as a sophomore, capped her season as the Division 2C titlist and as well as taking the crown at the Meet of Champions. This fall, she’s claimed victories at the Vineyard XC Invitational and Highland Park Invitational, and placed third at Ocean State, where she recorded her current seed time.
Abby, meanwhile, finished runner-up to her sister at both Vineyard and Highland Park, clocking her season best at the former. She also won the Varsity 2 title at Ocean State in 18:29.6 — despite losing roughly 20 seconds after taking a wrong turn midway through the race. Expect both Flaggs to be chasing sub-18 performances this weekend.
In total, 15 runners in this field have broken 19 minutes this season — a testament to its depth and quality. Among those likely to challenge for top-10 positions are Naomi Witt of Wachusett (18:24.4), Kelsey Kwiatek of St. Mary’s (18:24.4), Emma Tuxbury of Wellesley (18:29.2), and Claire Sullivan, an eighth-grader from Notre Dame Academy-Hingham (18:33.5).
