Manchester will be the center of the New Hampshire Cross Country universe when the NHIAA conducts the Division Championships this Saturday. NH has been conducting a cross country state championship for boys since 1930 and for girls since 1975, so the runners of NH Cross Country will be making history with their feet!
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Boys
#1 Pinkerton Academy
The Astros came into this season looking like a team which was set to absolutely dominate this fall. Did it work out that way? Yes. Maybe the most interesting thing about the team has been the revolving door at the top spot, where Trainor Mailloux, Oscar D’Amelio, and Jason Robie have all taken turns as the team’s leader while putting in definitive sub 16:00 performances. Any one of these guys could challenge for the top spot in Division I, but the Astros are truly stacked through five. They have an insane 34-second spread, so there’s an actual possibility that Pinkerton could put five guys in the top ten of the race, which is something I’ve never seen before. Watch for the Astros to score under 40 points and win by a sizable margin.
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The individual race should be a fun one, with several runners having run statement races during the season, which should have them in consideration for the win. That said, Ethan Fischer is probably the guy to beat overall. He was awesome at this meet last year, and his win at a hilly Thetford course has him looking tough to beat. If anyone is going to take him down, it’s Sully Sturtz, who dipped under 15:00 at the Moonlight Madness race and has been one of the best runners in New England for three years.
The Pinkerton crew shouldn’t be counted out. Mailloux’s win at Nashua North saw him run away from Fischer over the final K of the race. D’Amelio has been Pinkerton’s top runner multiple times, and he has been in the top 10 of all the invitationals this season. Robie seemed to find a new gear this past weekend at CMI, running in the 15:40s and only losing to the nationally-ranked Mazzeo brothers from Pennsylvania. Don’t forget about Concord’s Josiah Conley; he’s flown under the radar a bit this fall, but when he’s on, he’s one of the best out there. Fitzgerald should also find himself in with all these guys, and on the right day, he’s got the speed to take down any of the guys mentioned.
