The boys and girls cross-country teams kept up their winning streaks last week, starting with victories over Littleton on Wednesday, Sept. 27. The girls finished 16-44, and the boys 25-38. They continued their outstanding performances at the Frank Kelley Invitational in Wrentham, Saturday, Sept. 30.
Fay Park in Littleton boasted a well-marked course and beautiful weather for the Wednesday meet in which the girls crossed their top four runners before Littleton’s first runner approached the finish line. “The team is really strong up front with our top four runners (juniors Evelyn Wool, Emma Squire, and Isabel Jackson, and sophomore Rosie Bradley). Very few teams in our league have runners that can match them,” said girls cross-country coach Matt Lynde.
From left, Diesel Whitten, Charlie Gowel, Christian Johannesen, and Demetrios Kekis. (Photos by Kate Wool)
The boys had one goal for the meet against Littleton: Get as many runners in front of Littleton’s third runner as possible, according to boys coach, Marisa Steele. “Littleton’s top two guys are probably two of the best runners in the whole state, so we knew that we had to beat them with our depth. I was especially happy to see our number 6-9 runners come in ahead of Littleton’s fourth guy,” she said.
Saturday’s invitational at the Wrentham Development Center had everyone’s adrenaline pumping with the sheer number of racers and booming music at the start and finish lines, setting the stage for outstanding achievements. While the girls were unable to compete as a team due to not having enough runners, individually they took the course by storm.
Bromfield’s Evelyn Wool (left) and Rosie Bradley sail to first- and second-place finishes against Littleton.
Coming in seventh place in the girls championship 5K race was junior Evelyn Wool, while sophomore Rosie Bradley placed 20th. Junior Isabel Jackson took 14th place in the junior/senior 3K, and seniors Ruby Farough and Gretchen Day placed 14th and 61st, respectively. In the freshman/sophomore 3K, sophomore Helen Holzmann placed 50th, and freshman Gabriella Temps placed 73rd. The middle school girls had a strong showing as well. Eighth-grader Abby Wool came in first in the middle school 3K, with classmate Vivienne Cogan on her heels in ninth.
The boys faced fierce competition in the championship 5K. With 377 points, Bromfield placed 10th out of the 36 large schools that competed in the invitational. They came in third in the smaller-school division. “Coaches have different strategies on who they want to race in each event,” said Steele. “Last year, for instance, I had everyone race 3K in their respective grade levels. This year I wanted my guys to race in the most competitive division to prepare them for the bigger championship meets coming up.”
Coach Steele was pleased with her team’s effort on Saturday but said there is much work to be done in order to place among the top five schools at states later in the season. “The biggest takeaway for the weekend is that this year’s competition is much tougher than years past,” she said. That makes senior Jack Stahl’s 26th place and freshman Ben McWaters’ 27th in the championship 5K all the more notable. For the junior/senior 3K, junior Tighe Crowley placed 70th, while senior Demetrios Kekis was 76th. Freshmen Charlie Gowel and Shea Van Cleef came in 23rd and 68th, respectively, in the freshman/sophomore 3K. Not to be outdone, the middle school boys ran an intense 3K. Seventh-grader Graham Binnick took fourth place, and eighth-grader Kai Kemeza came in 10th.
Both teams were scheduled to face Quabbin at a home meet behind McCurdy Track in Harvard Park Wednesday, Oct. 4.
Julie Gowel is a Bromfield cross-country team parent.
Results vs. Littleton, Sept. 27
Bromfield girls (top 5 finishers)
- Evelyn Wool (22 minutes, 6 seconds), first place
- Rosie Bradley (22:07), second
- Emma Squire (22:30), third
- Isabelle Jackson (22:53), fourth
- Abby Wool (24:56), sixth
Bromfield boys (top 5 finishers)
- Jack Stahl (18:14), third place
- Ben McWaters (18:16), fourth
- Christian Johannesen (19:03), fifth
- Liam Kemeza (19:31), sixth
- Charlie Gowel (19:45), seventh
Results at Frank Kelley Invitational, Sept. 30
Girls championship 5K
- Evelyn Wool (18:55.2), 7th place
- Rosie Bradley (19:38), 20th
- Emma Squire (21:08.9), 52nd
Boys championship 5K
- Jack Stahl (16:28.8), 26th place
- Ben McWaters (16:29.1), 27th
- Liam Kemeza (17:43.7), 92nd
- Christian Johannesen (17:53.8), 102nd
- Harrison Binnick (18:22.7), 135th
Girls junior/senior 3K
- Isabel Jackson (12:18.9), 14th
- Ruby Farough (14:08.3), 61st
- Gretchen Day (14:27), 74th
- Arpi Mirzabegian (15:01.9), 92nd
- Camille Bradley (16:23.0), 138th
Girls freshman/sophomore 3K
- Helen Holzmann (13:37.6), seventh
- Gabriella Temps (14:11.4), 73rd
- Christina Kekis (14:34.7), 99th
Boys junior/senior 3K
- Tighe Crowley (11:16.7), 70th
- Demetrios Kekis (11:03.2), 76th
- Ralph Adams (13:30), 209th
- Yaxi Li (13:58) 228th
Boys freshman/sophomore 3K
- Charlie Gowel (10:44.1), 23rd
- Shea Van Cleef (11:30.8), 68th
- Bode Lee-Feinberg (12:05.5), 111th
