The George Stevens Academy cross-country running team finished its season with a fifth place finish at the Class C State championship in Belfast on October 27. Here, GSA runner Nyamh Wolf runs that same course a week earlier at the Class C Regional championship. By Monique Labbe
Blue Hill—The 2018 cross country running season is in the books for George Stevens Academy.
The boys team finished in fifth place out of 14 teams in Class C at the State championship meet in Belfast on October 27, while the girls competed for individual times.
Head coach Todd Eckenfelder said his runners not only met the goals they had set for themselves going into the State meet, but exceeded them in very cold running conditions.
“We thought given the times from the season, we would have a solid chance at winning if we ran as fast as we did, but kudos to the other programs for stepping up their performance as well,” said Eckenfelder. “It was cold, but all my runners ran with a lot of tenacity and gumption.”
Eckenfelder added that though the girls team was not big enough to compete for team points, the four runners who took part in the race ran “as well or better” than they expected.
On the boys side, junior Caden Mattson was the top finisher for the Eagles, coming in 15th with a time of 18:09. Andrew Szwez finished behind him in 21st place with a time of 18:24, while Clark Morrison rounded out the top 30 for George Stevens Academy with a 27th place finishing time of 18:39. Ian Renwick, Sean Schweizer and Nyamh Wolf were the other runners competing for the Eagles, placing 35th, 52nd and 79th, respectively, out of 114 runners.
“Individually, [Morrison] came along a lot faster than we had thought. He has a bright future if he dedicates himself to improving. [Mattson] was Mr. Consistent. [Schweizer] gave us great consistency in the middle of the team as well,” said Eckenfelder of his runners’ performances throughout the season.
Tess Williamson recorded the best finish for the George Stevens Academy female runners, finishing in 31st place with a time of 22:25, just five seconds out of the top 30. Lanny Zentz came in 39th with a time of 22:56, while Susannah Jakub crossed the finish line in 42nd place. Oshi Ragot took 42nd place out of 81 runners, finishing in the middle of the pack.
“Our three senior girls, Williamson, Ragot, and Jakub gave us more than we had expected, and were rock solid consistent,” said Eckenfelder.
The team graduates a total of five runners this season, but Eckenfelder said he expects his team to be even better next season.
“If those who are planning on coming in as 9th graders next year do as they have suggested, we will most likely be faster next year than we are right now,” he said.