LEX GIRLS FINISH RUNNER-UP; BOYS PLACE FOURTH AT DIVISION 1A CHAMPS
Meet Information
MIAA Division 1A Championships
November 9, 2024
Northfield Mountain Recreation Area - Northfield, MA
RESULTS
NORTHFIELD, MA - The most challenging course in Massachusetts. That, along with the best large schools in the Bay State is what was waited for The Minutemen at the MIAA Division 1A Championships. A course at which LHS had not competed on since 2018, Northfield Mountain features a brutal 300 feet of elevation gain in the second half of the opening mile alone. More than any course in Massachusetts, athletes who race here can be defeated before they even hit the mile mark. Despite the brutal terrain, Lexington came prepared with their best on Saturday. Ranked fifth among Division 1A teams in the coaches' polls coming in, the Lex girls turned in a phenomenal performance that landed them on the podium. Needham's girls won with 81 points behind an all-time performance from overall champion, junior Greta Hammer (18:13.91). However, LHS was right there to finish second overall with 86 points in what ended up being a tight three-team race. The Minutemen bested third place Weymouth by just three points. In the boys' race, B.C. High was simply dominant. The Eagles swept the top three spots en route to 57 points and their first divisional crown since 1968. The Minutemen turned in their best race of the season, and managed a hard fought fourth place finish with 135 points.
While Hammer took the race from the gun, LHS's freshman phenom Janie Conrad laid well back in the pack as she charged up the mountain. Through the mile-mark, Conrad was back in the pack with a 6:37 split. However, she covered the challenging rolling hills of the second mile in 5:58 to put herself in position for a big finish. As she appeared out of the woods with just over 1k to go, LHS's freshman harrier had moved up to fifth place overall. That position would hold as Conrad crossed the finish line in a stellar time of 19:14.92. While Hammer and Conrad were in, the race for the title was just getting started. Weymouth's top four were separated by just two seconds as they crossed the line in 12th through 15th. Lexington sophomore Callie Glenn ran a bold second half of her race to finished just behind that group in 19:58.73. Behind her was Needham's #2 and #3 runners, but right behind them were Erin Ehmann (20:05.48) and Alycia Charest (20:10.90) who placed 19th and 21st respectively. With the issue was still in doubt, Needham was able to seal the victory as their #4 and #5 runners came in the next two spots after Charest. Freshman Ella Tyson was the all-important fifth runner for The Minutemen. She delivered a great race to place 25th overall in a time of 20:26.85, which cemented the second place finish for her team. While the top-five scored the points, the captains played a major role in holding back Weymouth's run for some hardware. Junior captains Meghan Caldera (20:49.33) and Thayer DiCerbo (20:54.27) finished 32nd and 34th respectively, which moved the margin of victory from a single point to the eventual three. Both Caldera and DiCerbo were able to get ahead of Weymouth's #5 runner who finished just one-hundredth of a second behind DiCerbo. In the end it was an awesome performance from a group of seven underclassman. And, with their finish on Saturday, the Lex girls punched their tickets to the All-State Championships next week.
Final Girls Team Scores (Top 10)
1. Needham - 81
2. Lexington - 86
3. Weymouth - 89
4. Cambridge Rindge & Latin - 95
5. Newton North - 107
6. Braintree - 186
7. Wachusett - 190
8. Acton-Boxborough - 295
9. Andover - 298
10. Natick - 336
LHS's boys were led by the one-two punch of sophomores Patrick Noonan and Trevor Stevens. The two were stride for stride through much of the race. They hit the mile post at 5:39 and 5:40, before a blistering second mile had them at 10:39 for two miles. By that point both were in position to place in the top-10 overall. Noonan began to pull away with just over 1k to go, and gave everything he had over the final stretch to finish in eighth place with a time of 16:23.46. It was the exact same story for Stevens who left it all on the course to earn 10th place in a time of 16:32.80. Back in the pack, freshman Rhys Behling and sophomore Caleb Ford were running just behind sophomore Eric House when he suddenly had to drop out of the race. That left senior Nathan Cunningham in the position where he needed to step up for his team. Behling (17:15.44) and Ford (17:17.82) crossed the line in 36th and 38th respectively. Meanwhile, Cunningham battled his way through the final mile and was able to pass Newton South's fifth runner who faltered in the final stretch to place 43rd overall. That proved to be pivotal as The Minutemen and the Lions landed in a tie with 135 points. However, senior captain Max Zhang won the tiebreaker for LHS. As Lexington's sixth man, his 62nd place finish in 17:43.00 bested Newton South's #6, who finished 76th overall. With that, the captain helped earn The Minutemen fourth place outright. As was the case for Lexington's girls, the boys also earned their spot at All-States. In addition, the combined finished of second and fourth place was not only the best for any school in competition on Saturday, but the best LHS has finished at an MIAA Divisional Championships since 2019.
Final Boys Team Scores (Top 10)
1. B.C. High - 57
2. Brookline - 97
3. Andover - 126
4. Lexington - 135
5. Newton South - 135
6. Lowell - 169
7. Shrewsbury - 181
8. Saint John's Prep - 182
9. Cambridge Rindge & Latin - 186
10. Newton North - 288
Up Next
With Divisionals behind them, The Minutemen turn their eyes toward the MIAA Division 1 All-State Championships. As has been the case for the past two years, the best in the Bay State will travel to Fort Devens to compete at Willard Park. Action begins at 11am with the Division 1 girls' race, followed by the Division 1 boys at 11:45am.
MIAA Division 1A Championships
November 9, 2024
Northfield Mountain Recreation Area - Northfield, MA
RESULTS
NORTHFIELD, MA - The most challenging course in Massachusetts. That, along with the best large schools in the Bay State is what was waited for The Minutemen at the MIAA Division 1A Championships. A course at which LHS had not competed on since 2018, Northfield Mountain features a brutal 300 feet of elevation gain in the second half of the opening mile alone. More than any course in Massachusetts, athletes who race here can be defeated before they even hit the mile mark. Despite the brutal terrain, Lexington came prepared with their best on Saturday. Ranked fifth among Division 1A teams in the coaches' polls coming in, the Lex girls turned in a phenomenal performance that landed them on the podium. Needham's girls won with 81 points behind an all-time performance from overall champion, junior Greta Hammer (18:13.91). However, LHS was right there to finish second overall with 86 points in what ended up being a tight three-team race. The Minutemen bested third place Weymouth by just three points. In the boys' race, B.C. High was simply dominant. The Eagles swept the top three spots en route to 57 points and their first divisional crown since 1968. The Minutemen turned in their best race of the season, and managed a hard fought fourth place finish with 135 points.
While Hammer took the race from the gun, LHS's freshman phenom Janie Conrad laid well back in the pack as she charged up the mountain. Through the mile-mark, Conrad was back in the pack with a 6:37 split. However, she covered the challenging rolling hills of the second mile in 5:58 to put herself in position for a big finish. As she appeared out of the woods with just over 1k to go, LHS's freshman harrier had moved up to fifth place overall. That position would hold as Conrad crossed the finish line in a stellar time of 19:14.92. While Hammer and Conrad were in, the race for the title was just getting started. Weymouth's top four were separated by just two seconds as they crossed the line in 12th through 15th. Lexington sophomore Callie Glenn ran a bold second half of her race to finished just behind that group in 19:58.73. Behind her was Needham's #2 and #3 runners, but right behind them were Erin Ehmann (20:05.48) and Alycia Charest (20:10.90) who placed 19th and 21st respectively. With the issue was still in doubt, Needham was able to seal the victory as their #4 and #5 runners came in the next two spots after Charest. Freshman Ella Tyson was the all-important fifth runner for The Minutemen. She delivered a great race to place 25th overall in a time of 20:26.85, which cemented the second place finish for her team. While the top-five scored the points, the captains played a major role in holding back Weymouth's run for some hardware. Junior captains Meghan Caldera (20:49.33) and Thayer DiCerbo (20:54.27) finished 32nd and 34th respectively, which moved the margin of victory from a single point to the eventual three. Both Caldera and DiCerbo were able to get ahead of Weymouth's #5 runner who finished just one-hundredth of a second behind DiCerbo. In the end it was an awesome performance from a group of seven underclassman. And, with their finish on Saturday, the Lex girls punched their tickets to the All-State Championships next week.
Final Girls Team Scores (Top 10)
1. Needham - 81
2. Lexington - 86
3. Weymouth - 89
4. Cambridge Rindge & Latin - 95
5. Newton North - 107
6. Braintree - 186
7. Wachusett - 190
8. Acton-Boxborough - 295
9. Andover - 298
10. Natick - 336
LHS's boys were led by the one-two punch of sophomores Patrick Noonan and Trevor Stevens. The two were stride for stride through much of the race. They hit the mile post at 5:39 and 5:40, before a blistering second mile had them at 10:39 for two miles. By that point both were in position to place in the top-10 overall. Noonan began to pull away with just over 1k to go, and gave everything he had over the final stretch to finish in eighth place with a time of 16:23.46. It was the exact same story for Stevens who left it all on the course to earn 10th place in a time of 16:32.80. Back in the pack, freshman Rhys Behling and sophomore Caleb Ford were running just behind sophomore Eric House when he suddenly had to drop out of the race. That left senior Nathan Cunningham in the position where he needed to step up for his team. Behling (17:15.44) and Ford (17:17.82) crossed the line in 36th and 38th respectively. Meanwhile, Cunningham battled his way through the final mile and was able to pass Newton South's fifth runner who faltered in the final stretch to place 43rd overall. That proved to be pivotal as The Minutemen and the Lions landed in a tie with 135 points. However, senior captain Max Zhang won the tiebreaker for LHS. As Lexington's sixth man, his 62nd place finish in 17:43.00 bested Newton South's #6, who finished 76th overall. With that, the captain helped earn The Minutemen fourth place outright. As was the case for Lexington's girls, the boys also earned their spot at All-States. In addition, the combined finished of second and fourth place was not only the best for any school in competition on Saturday, but the best LHS has finished at an MIAA Divisional Championships since 2019.
Final Boys Team Scores (Top 10)
1. B.C. High - 57
2. Brookline - 97
3. Andover - 126
4. Lexington - 135
5. Newton South - 135
6. Lowell - 169
7. Shrewsbury - 181
8. Saint John's Prep - 182
9. Cambridge Rindge & Latin - 186
10. Newton North - 288
Up Next
With Divisionals behind them, The Minutemen turn their eyes toward the MIAA Division 1 All-State Championships. As has been the case for the past two years, the best in the Bay State will travel to Fort Devens to compete at Willard Park. Action begins at 11am with the Division 1 girls' race, followed by the Division 1 boys at 11:45am.