LHS MAKES A STATEMENT AT MANCHESTER INVITE AGAINST NEW ENGLAND'S BEST
Meet Information
51st Annual Manchester Invitational
September 19, 2025
Derryfield Park - Manchester, NH
RESULTS
MANCHESTER, NH - 2026 marks the 50th year since Massachusetts made the decision to change its cross country championship schedule back before the 1977 season. That change meant that Bay Staters would no longer have the opportunity to test their mettle against the best talent in the region at the annual New England Championships, as they do during the winter and spring seasons. While Massachusetts was not alone in holding out from New Englands - Maine did not send teams until 2005 - the meet has soldiered on ever since, and hosted its 90th edition last fall.
All of this comes as the backdrop for this year's Manchester Invitational. For the first time in over two decades, Lexington traveled north of the boarder, and competed in a cross country race in the Granite State. The girls' race had particular intrigue as it featured the #1 ranked teams from Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont in the form of Lexington, Exeter, Cumberland, Champlain Valley. Not quite the New England Championships of old, but it was the closest cross country fans will get to see it this year. In the end, Lexington was everything the pundits projected. Dominant. They won by a final score of 62 to 87 over Cumberland, with Exeter's girls coming third with 101 points.
When the gun fired, the field charged up the opening stretch. Exeter star Alexis Paterna went to the lead early, on her way to a wire-to-wire win in a course record time of 17:56.7. That performance marked the first time a girl had broken the 18-minute barrier on the vaunted Derryfield Park course. While Paterna was lighting things up from the front, Lexington's one-two punch of juniors Amelia Whorton and Janie Conrad were shoulder-to-shoulder through the mile, in fourth and fifth place respectively.
Just past the mile mark at Derryfield Park, a long steep hill with loose dirt looms, waiting to test athletes as the pain of a quick opening loop sets in. That is followed by a narrow trail network with technical paths, which leads up to one final hill at the top of the McIntyre Ski Area before the two-mile mark. Experienced teams will tell you, this is where the race is won and lost at one of the toughest courses in the Northeast. While they may have lacked the experience, in fact, three of the six who competed for LHS were racing their first high school 5k, the Lex girls definitely played it right. Conrad and Whorton maintained their holds on fourth and fifth place to the the summit of the hill. Then, Conrad turned it on over the final 1.1 miles to earn the bronze medal with a sensational time of 18:33.5. Whorton, who was one of the girls making her 5k debut, hung on for fifth place with an impressive mark of 18:49.0.
Back in the pack, Lexington's strategy unfolded perfectly according to plan. The Cumberland girls were out fast, and took an early lead over LHS, but by the mile mark that score had flipped, with the Lex girls ahead 63 to 68. By the two-mile mark their lead had grown to 72 to 89. A big reason why, was the performance of LHS's three, four, and five runners. Junior captain Ella Tyson (19:34.0) was rock solid on the afternoon. She battled through the middle portion of the course, and crossed the line in 13th place. Fellow captain, senior Callie Glenn, ran a furious final 1.1 miles to move herself up into 19th place with a final time of 19:48.4. And, perhaps the biggest surprise of the day came from freshman Ophelia Charest. The young harrier was tremendous in her 5k debut, as she placed 24th overall with a time of 20:06.1. Along with the top-five, junior Natalie Bielat (20:52.5) came in 32nd overall in what was her first ever cross country 5k.
As was the case for the girls, Lexington's boys were missing a number of key pieces on Saturday, which meant new faces had the opportunity to emerge in New Hampshire. The Minutemen laid off the early hot pace, and were able to make moves through the tough middle section of the course. In the end, they finished a solid fourth overall with 112 points. Champlain Valley's boys took home the top prize with 56 points. Hanover (NH) was second with 78. While Pinkerton (NH) finished just ahead of LHS for the final podium spot with 109 points.
For The Minutemen, the story of the day was senior captain Trevor Stevens. Like everyone else in a Lexington singlet, he had never seen the course before Saturday. Spectators would have never know it, though, by watching him tackle all that the Manchester Invitational had to throw at him. Through the first 500m, Stevens was back in 54th place. By the mile, the LHS senior had charged into 10th place, and had a look of calm on his face as he charged up the first hill. By the two-mile mark, the senior had caught the top pack, and was in a dual with Bishop Guertin's (NH) Ethan Fischer, Hanover's Ben Groves, and Champlain Valley's Benjamin Holoch. As the group raced downhill, Stevens took the lead with 1km to go. Fischer - an All-American in the 5000m outdoors - appeared to be waiting for someone to make a move on him, as he immediately responded, and unleashed a gear none of his competitors could match. He cruised through the final 1000m, and won the race in a time of 15:55.7. For his efforts, Stevens hung on for fourth place with a time of 16:13.9, and made a statement that he will be one to watch all fall.
Fellow classmate Patrick Noonan took a similar approach as Stevens. He used a pedestrian - by his standards - opening mile of 5:15 to settle into the race along with senior Alden Hall. 42nd at the mile, Noonan cruised over the heart of the course, and crossed the line 14th overall with a time of 16:43.3. Hall managed to move up to 31st place with a final time of 17:12.9. Ben Sbihli proved that his performance at Clipper Relays last Saturday was no fluke. The senior was spectacular in New Hampshire, as he cruised by the field throughout the latter portion of the race to finish 35th. And, while on a course as challenging as Derryfield Park, PRs mean little, the fact remains that Sbihli delivered the fastest 5k of his career on one of the toughest courses in the region. Senior Owen Ross rounded out the top-five for The Minutemen. His time of 17:33.8 landed him 42nd overall. Junior Jay Krishnan (18:13.3) and sophomore Andrew Dulgarian (18:16.3) finished 81st and 86th respectively.
Up Next
The Minutemen have a quick turnaround, as their home opener is this Tuesday, September 22nd against Arlington. The Spy Ponders will offer the boys a tough test, as these teams last three duals have all been decided by five or less points. Action begins at Lincoln Park at 4:15pm.
51st Annual Manchester Invitational
September 19, 2025
Derryfield Park - Manchester, NH
RESULTS
MANCHESTER, NH - 2026 marks the 50th year since Massachusetts made the decision to change its cross country championship schedule back before the 1977 season. That change meant that Bay Staters would no longer have the opportunity to test their mettle against the best talent in the region at the annual New England Championships, as they do during the winter and spring seasons. While Massachusetts was not alone in holding out from New Englands - Maine did not send teams until 2005 - the meet has soldiered on ever since, and hosted its 90th edition last fall.
All of this comes as the backdrop for this year's Manchester Invitational. For the first time in over two decades, Lexington traveled north of the boarder, and competed in a cross country race in the Granite State. The girls' race had particular intrigue as it featured the #1 ranked teams from Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont in the form of Lexington, Exeter, Cumberland, Champlain Valley. Not quite the New England Championships of old, but it was the closest cross country fans will get to see it this year. In the end, Lexington was everything the pundits projected. Dominant. They won by a final score of 62 to 87 over Cumberland, with Exeter's girls coming third with 101 points.
When the gun fired, the field charged up the opening stretch. Exeter star Alexis Paterna went to the lead early, on her way to a wire-to-wire win in a course record time of 17:56.7. That performance marked the first time a girl had broken the 18-minute barrier on the vaunted Derryfield Park course. While Paterna was lighting things up from the front, Lexington's one-two punch of juniors Amelia Whorton and Janie Conrad were shoulder-to-shoulder through the mile, in fourth and fifth place respectively.
Just past the mile mark at Derryfield Park, a long steep hill with loose dirt looms, waiting to test athletes as the pain of a quick opening loop sets in. That is followed by a narrow trail network with technical paths, which leads up to one final hill at the top of the McIntyre Ski Area before the two-mile mark. Experienced teams will tell you, this is where the race is won and lost at one of the toughest courses in the Northeast. While they may have lacked the experience, in fact, three of the six who competed for LHS were racing their first high school 5k, the Lex girls definitely played it right. Conrad and Whorton maintained their holds on fourth and fifth place to the the summit of the hill. Then, Conrad turned it on over the final 1.1 miles to earn the bronze medal with a sensational time of 18:33.5. Whorton, who was one of the girls making her 5k debut, hung on for fifth place with an impressive mark of 18:49.0.
Back in the pack, Lexington's strategy unfolded perfectly according to plan. The Cumberland girls were out fast, and took an early lead over LHS, but by the mile mark that score had flipped, with the Lex girls ahead 63 to 68. By the two-mile mark their lead had grown to 72 to 89. A big reason why, was the performance of LHS's three, four, and five runners. Junior captain Ella Tyson (19:34.0) was rock solid on the afternoon. She battled through the middle portion of the course, and crossed the line in 13th place. Fellow captain, senior Callie Glenn, ran a furious final 1.1 miles to move herself up into 19th place with a final time of 19:48.4. And, perhaps the biggest surprise of the day came from freshman Ophelia Charest. The young harrier was tremendous in her 5k debut, as she placed 24th overall with a time of 20:06.1. Along with the top-five, junior Natalie Bielat (20:52.5) came in 32nd overall in what was her first ever cross country 5k.
As was the case for the girls, Lexington's boys were missing a number of key pieces on Saturday, which meant new faces had the opportunity to emerge in New Hampshire. The Minutemen laid off the early hot pace, and were able to make moves through the tough middle section of the course. In the end, they finished a solid fourth overall with 112 points. Champlain Valley's boys took home the top prize with 56 points. Hanover (NH) was second with 78. While Pinkerton (NH) finished just ahead of LHS for the final podium spot with 109 points.
For The Minutemen, the story of the day was senior captain Trevor Stevens. Like everyone else in a Lexington singlet, he had never seen the course before Saturday. Spectators would have never know it, though, by watching him tackle all that the Manchester Invitational had to throw at him. Through the first 500m, Stevens was back in 54th place. By the mile, the LHS senior had charged into 10th place, and had a look of calm on his face as he charged up the first hill. By the two-mile mark, the senior had caught the top pack, and was in a dual with Bishop Guertin's (NH) Ethan Fischer, Hanover's Ben Groves, and Champlain Valley's Benjamin Holoch. As the group raced downhill, Stevens took the lead with 1km to go. Fischer - an All-American in the 5000m outdoors - appeared to be waiting for someone to make a move on him, as he immediately responded, and unleashed a gear none of his competitors could match. He cruised through the final 1000m, and won the race in a time of 15:55.7. For his efforts, Stevens hung on for fourth place with a time of 16:13.9, and made a statement that he will be one to watch all fall.
Fellow classmate Patrick Noonan took a similar approach as Stevens. He used a pedestrian - by his standards - opening mile of 5:15 to settle into the race along with senior Alden Hall. 42nd at the mile, Noonan cruised over the heart of the course, and crossed the line 14th overall with a time of 16:43.3. Hall managed to move up to 31st place with a final time of 17:12.9. Ben Sbihli proved that his performance at Clipper Relays last Saturday was no fluke. The senior was spectacular in New Hampshire, as he cruised by the field throughout the latter portion of the race to finish 35th. And, while on a course as challenging as Derryfield Park, PRs mean little, the fact remains that Sbihli delivered the fastest 5k of his career on one of the toughest courses in the region. Senior Owen Ross rounded out the top-five for The Minutemen. His time of 17:33.8 landed him 42nd overall. Junior Jay Krishnan (18:13.3) and sophomore Andrew Dulgarian (18:16.3) finished 81st and 86th respectively.
Up Next
The Minutemen have a quick turnaround, as their home opener is this Tuesday, September 22nd against Arlington. The Spy Ponders will offer the boys a tough test, as these teams last three duals have all been decided by five or less points. Action begins at Lincoln Park at 4:15pm.