It’s time to get ready for some intense competition this weekend with the MIAA Divisional Championships.
DIVISION STATE 1 CHAMPIONSHIPS
at Wrentham Developmental Center
Division 1A
Day/Time: Saturday at 2 p.m.
Teams: Acton Boxborough, Andover, Attleboro, Boston College High, Boston Latin, Braintree, Brookline, Cambridge Rindge & Latin, Framingham, Franklin, Haverhill, Lawrence, Lexington, Lowell, Methuen, Needham, New Bedford, Newton North, Newton South, Saint John’s, St. John’s Prep, Shrewsbury, Taunton, Wachusett Regional, Weymouth
Runners To Watch: Greg McGrath, Boston College High; Liam Hartmann, Brookline; Theodore Butty, Brookline; Colin Kurtz, BC High; Jack McIntosh, St. John’s Prep; Leon Ibanez Fraile, Cambridge Rindge & Latin
Top Teams: Lexington, Brookline, St. John’s Prep, BC High, Cambridge Rindge & Latin
Outlook: This race features our No. 2 through No. 6 teams in the rankings with the above mentioned squads. There’s no doubt this race will be fast — and fiercely competitively.
Individually, the favorite is clearly McGrarth, the defending champion. This is his race to win. The questions is how fast will the Eagle senior run? While he has been one of our top runners all season long, McGrath put himself front and center when he torched the field a few weeks ago at the Catholic Conference Championships (CCC). The Dartmouth commit joined a select few of runners that have broken 15 minutes at Wrentham with an eye-popping 14:43.50. When McGrath toes the line on Saturday, more than two weeks will have passed since that performance, meaning he’ll be well-rested and ready to deliver another scorcher against a talented field.
The closer race could be for second place. Hartmann clocked a PR of 15:04.80 to win the Small & Medium Schools race at the Twilight Invitational on the fast 5K at the Cape Cod Fairgrounds. The Brookline harrier also finished as a runner-up (15:36.80) at the Bay State Conference Championships at Wrentham on Oct. 25, just ahead of Butty, who placed third (15:37.90). Kurtz had a breakout performance at the CCC meet where he was second to McGrath with a PR of 15:21.80. In that same race, McIntosh (15:26.5) led a 3-4-5-6 finish by St. John’s Prep, the eventual team champions.
Teamwise, this one could be a grinder with a host a schools capable of bringing home the hardware. This really could be a take-your-pick kind of race with Lexington, St. John’s Prep, Brookline and BC High all with the potnetial to win this weekend. BC High and Brookline have a strong 1-2 punch with the respective duos of McGrath and Kurtz and Hartmann and Butty capable of a top-five finish and a strong supporting cast behind them. Lexington, with ML-12 runner-up Patrick Noonan leading the way, and St. John’s Prep, are capable of packing them in tightly with a gap around 40 seconds between their scorers.
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Division 1B
Day/Time: Saturday at 12:30 p.m.
Teams: Algonquin Regional, Arlington, Barnstable, Belmont, Beverly, Bridgewater-Raynham Regional, Chelmsford, Concord-Carlisle, Diman Regional Voc/Tech, Durfee, Everett, King Philip Regional, Lincoln-Sudbury, Lynn English, Marshfield, Natick, North Andover, North Quincy, Springfield Central, Waltham, Westford Academy, Winchester, Woburn, Xaverian Brothers
Runners To Watch: John Bianchi, Natick; Daichi Collins, Arlington; Dawit Kulubya, Woburn; Noah Geiger, Belmont; David Caggiano, Westford Academy; Charles MacDonald, Concord-Carlise, Brendan Quinn, Concord-Carlisle, Freddie van der Velden
Top Teams: Arlington, Natick, Concord-Carlisle
Outlook: Bianchi has the edge on the field in this one. The Natick senior, runner-up to Westford Academy’s Jack Graffeo at last year’s race, has had his typical strong season. It’s been highighted by a fourth-place finish (15:47.30) at the Ocean State Invitational, a silver medal (PR, 15:10.90) in the Small & Medium Schools race at Twilight and a victory at the Bay State Conference Championnships on Oct. 25, where he ran 15:26.30 at Wrentham. Look for the Natick standout to take control from the start and break from the pack by the time he reaches mile 2. Right now it seems Bianchi’s biggest threats could be MacDonald. The Concord-Carlise senior is coming off a big win at the Dual County League Championships where he ran 15:44 on a tough course at Franklin Park. Other top runners that could be contending up front are Westford Academy’s Caggiano, Belmont’s Noah Geiger, Woburn’s Dawit Kulubya and the Arlington trio of Daichi Collins, Patrick Kenneally and Owen Merrill.
In the team battle, top-ranked Concord-Carlisle enters as the favorite. The Patriots are just over a week removed from an impressive victory at the Dual County League Championships, where they defeated second-place Cambridge Rindge & Latin, 26–44. At the Oct. 24 meet, the Patriots’ five scoring runners averaged 15:57 and all finished among the top nine. Natick and Arlington also can’t be taken lightly this weekend.
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Division 1C
Day/Time: Saturday at
Teams: Agawam, Bay Path, Billerica, Bishop Feehan, Catholic Memorial, Central Catholic, Chicopee Comprehensive, Hingham, Malden Catholic, Mansfield, Medford, Milford, Milton, North Attleboro, Oliver Ames, Plymouth South, Reading Memorial, Sharon, Silver Lake Regional Somerville, South High Community, Stoughton, West Springfield, Westborough
Runners To Watch: Tim Connolly, Reading; Landon Slaney, Olver Ames; Anthony Malakidis, North Attleboro; Mason Niles, Billerica; Michael Upton, Catholic Memorial
Top Teams: Reading, Oliver Ames, Catholic Memorial
Outlook:Don’t be surprised to see several runners still in contention late in this race. We’re listing Landon Slaney as the slight favorite — but not by much. The Oliver Ames senior owns a season best of 15:17.20, set with his fourth-place finish in the Small & Medium Schools race at the Twilight Invitational. He was also impressive less than two weeks ago at Wrentham, where he captured individual honors at the Hockomock League Championships with a strong 15:31.60, averaging roughly five-minute pace.Not too much behind Slaney – just 1.30 seconds, to be exact – is Malakadis, who also could be a major factor in this race.
On the team side, the race appears wide open, with several squads capable of claiming the title. Arlington and Reading, ranked No. 8 and No. 9, respectively, in our latest power rankings, look like the frontrunners. Reading is coming off an upset victory over Arlington at the Middlesex League Championships, and there’s little doubt the Spy Ponders will be eager for redemption this weekend.
