They might have wanted to finish a bit higher in the final standings, but the Cape Elizabeth girls cross country team had another fine showing at last Saturday’s New England Interscholastic championships in Cumberland. The Class B state champions had the best finish of any Maine team at the regional event, placing eighth out of the 30 teams in the competition.

“We were excited to run in Maine and we know this course well,” said Cape Elizabeth senior Erin Hatton about the 5k course at the Twin Brook Recreation Area, where the Western Maine regional meets also take place.

“I think we ran pretty well – I thought it was a good race,” said Emily Attwood, Cape’s top individual finisher. “I ran as hard as I could. You definitely need to get a good start otherwise you’ll get boxed in around some corners and it’s hard to maneuver with all those people.”

Attwood finished in 19th place with a time of 19:34.00. Not far behind were teammates Marita Stressenger (26th in 19:50.70), Kelsey Barton (60th in 20:46.70), Hannah Doss (94th in 21:12.80), Erin Gross (115th in 21:27.80) and Erin Hatton (136th in 21:49.70).

The winning team was a group of seven young ladies from Hanover, N.H., who made what should have been a competitive cross country meet into a one-team highlight reel on Saturday. The girls race became a showcase for the nationally ranked Hanover High School team as they placed six runners in the top 20 to easily out-distance every other squad.

Hanover senior Georgia Griffin raced to the front from the opening gun, and she finished well ahead of her nearest challenger, breaking the tape with a time of 18:06.50. (She also won the event in 2006 and she placed third in 2005.) Griffin’s teammates were close behind placing 5th, 9th, 13th, 15th, and 20th as the New Hampshire school totaled 43 points to take the top spot in the team competition.

The next best squad from Glastonbury, Conn., had two runners in the top 10, but they finished well back of Hanover with 175 points. La Salle Academy from Providence, R.I., also had two runners in the top 10 and they placed third with 195 points.

Juniors Matt Rand and Chris Flathers represented the Cape Elizabeth boys in the New England boys championship race. Rand finished 36th overall with a time of 16:45.90 and Flathers placed 152nd in 17:50.30.

“I wanted to finish in the top 25, but I was pleased with how I finished among the Maine runners,” said Rand. “I knew I had to get out fast and I wanted to stay as close to (Nick) Williams as I could, like I did in the regional.” Rand did indeed stay close to the Class B state champion from Poland as he finished with the third best Maine time – only five seconds behind Williams.

Maine’s top individual finisher was Ethan Shaw of Falmouth, the senior finished 24th overall with a time of 16:33.30. Maine’s top team was Class A state champion Lewiston. The Blue Devils finished 18th with none of their runners in the top 50.

The team from Danbury, Conn., won the boys championship, as they equaled the score of the Hanover girls. Danbury’s winning total of 43 points included three top 10 finishes and their best five runners all finishing in the top 15.

The best time of the day went to Donald Cabral of Glastonbury (Conn.). He completed the 5k course in 15:32.40 – 17 seconds ahead of his nearest competitor. Like Griffin in the girls race, Cabral was the defending New England champion.

Copy the Story Link