Time: 11:30 a.m.
Site: Ponaganset High
Teams: Coventry, Toll Gate, Tolman, Pilgrim, Mount Pleasant, North Kingstown, Bishop Hendricken, Hope, Cranston West, Cranston East, East Providence, Cumberland, Woonsocket, La Salle Academy
Athletes to Watch: Sam Henderson, Cumberland; Jack Moretta, Bishop Hendricken; Marshall Vernon, La Salle Academy; Ollie Ide, Bishop Hendricken; Will Olsen, Bishop Hendricken; Sam Zabbo, Bishop Hendricken; Connor Magill, Cumberland
Outlook: Henderson gets the favorite nod in this race. The Clipper junior has been strong and steady all season long. Along with winning his race in the season-opening Injury Fund Carnival, Henderson clocked an impressive 15:41.60 to finish sixth on a challenging 5K at the Manchester (NH) Invitational. He was also fourth in the Championship race at the 62nd annual Catholic Memorial Invitational where he was timed in 16:06.80 at Franklin Park. Henderson lost just once during the league season in the Northern Division, finishing second behind fellow top rival Jason Padula of Smithfield. The talented harrier was sixth at last year’s class meet and was eighth overall at the State Meet where he ran his bests at Ponaganset of 16:18.40. Based on what he’s done this season, the Cumberland standout proved he’s capable of going well under that time this weekend. The top challengers appear to be Vernon and Moretta. Vernon, a sophomore, went sub-16 at Injury Fund where he was second to Padula with a PR of 15:58.50. He ran 17:02.7 on a difficult course at the Bowdoin Park XC Classic and was second in his race at the Manhattan College Invitational in NYC where he was timed in 13-minutes flat for the 2.5-mile course. This will be the first time since Injury Fund that Vernon will compete in a statewide invitational or statewide meet. We expect he’ll come to shine on a day where the conditions are expected to be ideal. Moretta, a junior, is the No. 1 runner for Hendricken, which is favored to win its second straight title and the 33rd crown in the school’s history. The Hawk standout ran a best of 15:55.0 to win a Suburban Division matchup with Cranston East, Johnston and Pilgrim last month at Goddard State Park. He was fourth in his race at Injury Fund last month ad clocked 16:07.40 at Great American XC Festival in North Carolina on Oct. 7. Moretta, who has run 15:39 for 5K on the track, has the luxury of running on a team where 20-30 seconds often separates the top five or six. He’ll use that to his advantage this weekend. The Hawks’ Olsen, Zabbo and Ide all have the potential to crack the top 10. Magill, Boudreau and O’Shea are among others we expect to be fighting for those high placements.
With the ability to bunch all their varsity runners in the top 12 or top 15 positions, Hendricken is the clear-cut favorite to add more hardware to its already over-crowded trophy case. The question is are the Hawks untouchable? If they show up with their ‘A’ game, it may be difficult to dethrone them. But don’t count out Cumberland. Right now, the Clippers appear to be the only squad that can pull off the upset with a banner day on Saturday. The Blue & White’s top five should be under 17 minutes this weekend with Henderson likely to go sub 16. Like Hendricken, the four runners behind Henderson, which seem to be Magill, William O’Shea, Jake Schonhoff and Nolan Rogalski, will have to be close together to have any chance of a victory on the Chieftains’ covered-bridge trail. We all know, it’s all about pack mentality in meets like this. That will have to happen for Cumberland to have a chance at earning its first class title since 2003.
