So, what did Saturday’s Injury Fund Carnival reveal?
Mostly what we expected — with a little extra. In other words, it was business as usual under bright, sunny skies at Deerfield Park.
The usual suspects (our pre-race favorites) claimed most of the individual titles. Team-wise, it was much the same. Were there surprises? Of course. It’s high school cross country — did you expect any different?
(Cover photo by Sterling Vernon @rhodeandtrack)
Here’s a closer look at Saturday’s boys’ races.
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We’ll start with the meet’s finale: the Mark Skinkle Race. Defending state champion Marshall Vernon showed that the injury and illness that derailed his outdoor season are firmly behind him — and that his training is right on track. Vernon blasted both the field and the course record, clocking 15:17.66 to win by more than a minute. The Stanford signee admitted it was more like a fast time trial than an all-out race.
“I wasn’t really trying to go all-out today,” Vernon said. “I still had a lot left in the tank. I really just wanted to get that course record after I missed it last year by half a second. I wanted to get that done and really practice racing a little bit, not hammer it — work on new things today, new strategies, really get used to cross country again.”
For the record, the old course mark was 15:32.3, set five years ago by former Hendricken standout Evan Reynolds.
The Rams, predicted by us to finish third at this year’s State Meet, showed us plenty at Deerfield Park. La Salle rolled to the team title with 21 points, finishing 23 clear of runner-up Barrington
After Vernon’s win, the Rams locked down the next three spots with the senior trio of Eamon O’Brien (16:37.83), Will Souza (16:39.80), and Matt Lewis (16:41.13), all finishing within four seconds of each other. Noah Dos Reis rounded out the scoring in 11th at 17:51.54.
The Rams also displayed their promising future. Their ninth-graders captured the Frosh title, placing all five scorers inside the top 11 of a race that featured 128 finishers.
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PRs at the Injury Fund aren’t uncommon — most runners arrive with another year of experience under their belts. But slicing nearly a minute off your best? That’s rare.
East Greenwich’s Jeremiah Moon put himself in that uncharted territory with an exciting down-to-the-wire victory in the Nessa Molloy Race. The Avenger sophomore edged Cumberland’s Noah Brown at the line, clocking 16:33.61 — just 0.36 ahead.
Moon’s time was a personal best by 56 seconds. His top mark in 2024 was 17:29.36 from the fast Skee Carter Memorial/Bronco Invitational.
“This is a huge confidence builder,” Moon said. “Going into the state meet, I would really like to go sub-16 (minutes), maybe crack into the top 15, maybe top 10, and help my team make New Englands. This is a huge PR. Last year I ran 17:29, so almost a minute. I contribute it to the consistency this summer. Coach (Sean Connolly) also had some great workouts with mileage and quality sessions to get me here. I can’t wait for the rest of the season.”
While EG claimed the individual win, it was Cumberland that secured the team title. With Brown (16:33.97), Ethan Libby (16:41.92), and Jake Schonhoff (17:04.84) going 2-3-4, the Clippers built a slim three-point edge after six runners crossed the line. EG’s Andrew Parisi (17:09.20) and Jeremy Dru (17:13.76) finished fifth and sixth, but Cumberland sealed the deal with Brayden Rivello (11th, 17:31.30) and Colin Peterson (14th, 17:44.45) closing out the scoring.
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Different look, same determined runner.
Sporting a new hairstyle and color, a now blond-haired Colby Flynn would not be denied in the Danny Brennan Race. Flynn cruised to the No. 2 time of the day with a strong 15:43.14. Third at last year’s state meet, he took command late, even acting as a pacer for a few teammates in the early stages.
“The plan going into the race was to try and get a group of guys to go with me, just like we do in workouts,” Flynn said. “Throughout the race, I was trying to have them keep up with me. Oliver (Redmond, fourth, 16:27.07) stayed with me until about 3K, but then he dropped back. After that, I kind of just ran it in. I didn’t go that hard because it’s Injury Fund and it’s not supposed to be all-out. But I ended up with a good time, so I’m happy with it.”
An anticipated showdown between Flynn and Portsmouth’s Sean Gray never materialized — the Patriots’ senior, last year’s state runner-up, was away on a college visit to the University of Virginia.
After Flynn, it was a sea of green at the finish chute for the team championship. The Hawks did exactly what was expected, dominating the top spots to run away with a 15–57 decision over North Kingstown.
Just 46 seconds separated Hendricken’s next six finishers: Fred Russell (second, 16:11.84), Brayden Seraichyk (third, 16:12.43), Redmond (fourth, 16:27.07), Jacob Silva (fifth, 16:32.57), Shepherd Butler (sixth, 16:34.35), and Aaron Stockford (eighth, 16:56.65).
