The Bromfield boys and girls cross-country teams tested the terrain at Stanley Park in Westfield last weekend, Oct. 23, at the Dick Atkinson Invitational. The course is the one the Trojans will run at the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association sectional championship in November, and the field of runners gave Bromfield one last chance to face some of its toughest Midland-Wachusett C Division competitors before next weekend’s championship.
The Stanley Park course is flat and fast, similar to the Twilight course teams competed on the previous Friday, but with more open space, fewer tight turns, and less congestion. Coach Marisa Steele, who was coaching both teams this week while Coach Matt Lynde was away, described the first kilometer as “pancake flat,” followed by about another 600 meters of downhill. The middle section is a flat woods loop, and the final section takes runners through the first 1,600 meters in reverse, up a section of hills and into a large field for the finish.
Sophomore Jack Stahl stepped up in the absence of Bromfield’s usual top runner, senior captain Julian Iverson, to lead his team with a 41-second personal best. His time of 17 minutes, 6 seconds put him 11th in a field of 123. Next up, and also collecting a personal record, was senior Nick Russo (17:46) in 27th, followed by eighth-grader Harrison Binnick, who also slid in under 18 minutes, running 17:57 for 33rd. Eighth-grader Christian Johannesen was two places back (35th) in 18:03, and freshman Ethan Russo took 46th in 18:31 to round out the team score of 119 points. Seventh-grader Ben McWaters (18:39) and sophomore Diesel Whitten (19:25) were 50th and 71st, respectively.
Steele was less concerned with the boys’ times—which, in cross-country, are highly dependent on the difficulty of the course, race day conditions, and level of competition—than with the way the team stood up against post-season rivals. “In [cross-country] it’s really about placement and how you fare against your competition rather than the times you ran,” she wrote in an email to the Press. “In fact, college coaches rarely use [cross-country] times in the recruiting process.”
The team was fourth of 17, placing behind West Springfield High School (40), Tyngsborough High School (86), and Seekonk High School (99). Springfield finished three runners ahead of Bromfield’s first finisher, and each of the other two schools claimed two slots before the Trojans could put their first points up. Still, Stahl had runners from all three schools in his sights, coming in less than 10 seconds behind Springfield’s third, Tyngsborough’s second, and Seekonk’s first two runners.
With Iverson back in the mix for next week’s league meet, Steele says the boys will make a formidable opponent. The meet will give the team another chance against Tyngsborough High School, which it also fell to 26-31 in its last dual meet of the season.
The girls team was originally planning for a bye week, but ultimately opted into the Oct. 23 race to take advantage of the opportunity to preview the sectional course.
In the girls 5-kilometer varsity race, the Trojans were led by eighth-grader Cate Corbett, who shaved another 19 seconds off the personal record she reset the week before. Her time of 19:39 put her fourth in a field of 97. Freshman Emma Squire followed Corbett’s example and trimmed down her own personal record to run 19:55 for sixth. Filling in Bromfield’s third and fourth spots were eighth-grader Rosie Bradley (20:53) and freshman Isabel Jackson (21:55) in 18th and 28th, respectively. Finalizing the Trojans’ team score with her 64th place finish was sophomore Abigail Ames, running 24:05. Freshman Ally Becker was right by Ames’ side coming through the finish and also clocked 24:05 to snatch 65th.
The team score of 99 points put it second to Whitinsville Christian School, which placed six runners in the top 15, to boast just 26 points. Still, Steele said she was impressed with how the Trojans fared against Whitinsville, which she says is one of the top teams in the state. Bromfield also bested Tyngsborough High School (fifth), one of its strongest league competitors, by 58 points.
The Trojan boys also raced a team in the junior varsity 5K. Eighth-grader Liam Kemeza led the squad in 18:58 to take fourth place. Junior Shaan Patel and sophomore Demetrios Kekis followed in seventh and 10th, running 19:14 and 19:21, respectively. Seniors Cam Milliken (22:24) and Zach Schoenberg (22:45) came through the line 49th and 54th to round out the team score at 92 points. The number put the Trojans third, behind North Andover High School (25) and Hopedale High School (85). Bromfield’s sixth and seventh slots were filled by junior John Zobbi (23:18) in 64th and freshman Adrian Erdogus-Brady (23:41) in 66th.
The teams are scheduled to line up again Oct. 30 for the Midland-Wachusett C Division League championship, where they will face Hudson, Quabbin, Littleton, Murdock, and Tyngsborough high schools at Hollis Hills Farm in Fitchburg.
