Maine, Vermont and North Carolina are the destinations of choice – at least what we know of – for several of our Rhode Island athletes and teams as they continue to test their mettle against some high-level competition to prepare for the upcoming championship season
A week after its big victory at the Wickham Park Invitational where it beat some of New England’s finest, Bishop Hendricken will be back at it again on Saturday, taking on some of the east coast and nation’s best at the prestigious Great American XC Festival. The Hawks, who twice finished third in the race (2009 & 2018), are among the top schools entered in the featured Race Of Champions. (10:30 a.m.). Sophomore Colby Flynn has been the Hawks’ consistent No. 1 this season and is expected to be leading the way on the flat and fast 5K terrain of the WakeMed Soccer Complex.
Also returning to Great American is Narragansett’s Cole Francis and Pilgrim’s Keaney Bayha. Francis was RI’s top finisher in 2023, placing 30th among the field of 375 with a PR of 15 minutes, 34.20 seconds. Bayha was 26th in the girls’ race (10 a.m.) with a time of 18:03.40. The race attracted 320 runners. At a dual meet in mid September, the Patriots’ senior clocked a PR of 17:58.0 at Goddard State Park. That’s currently No. 1 in the state.
***
Belfast, ME is the locale for the 24th annual Maine XC Festival of Champions. A few of our RI schools will be making the long trek to Saturday’s meet at the Troy Howard MS Course. Red-hot Sean Gray of Portsmouth, a victor at last week’s Wickham Park Invite, is among the favorites in the boys’ race. Gray, who won Wickham in 15:47.0, is listed as the No. 1 seed. He’s among three other harriers that have broken 15:50 for the 5K distance. The PHS junior was seventh at last year’s race in 15:49.35. Portsmouth’s Allie Kaull is the top RI entry in the girls’ race. She’s listed as a seventh seed. Kaull was second in the Medium School race at Wickham last week. She is unbeaten against her state rivals so far this season, including winning her race at the Injury Fund Carnival in late August with a time of 18:49.65.
Mount St. Charles, the Wheeler School and Burrillville will also be sending squads to the FOC this weekend.
More Info. & Access To Results
***
Barrington, East Greenwich, Moses Brown and Ponaganset will be at Thetford, VT., for the 33rd annual Woods Trail Run. The meet is held on a challenging 5K at Thetford Academy, which has hosted the New England’s seven times in its history, including 2021.
All four of our state entries have strong squads this season. For boys, East Greenwich and Barrington, who are capable of placing high on the podium at the State Meet, their top seven runners will be in the seeded race, which is for harriers that have gone 18:30 or faster. In the girls’ competition, East Greenwich will have four of its runners in the top race. The criteria there is under 22 minutes. In all, there are five races, each requiring time standards. The high school races begin at 11:10 a.m., with the higher seeded races beginning first. The seeded races are scheduled for 3 p.m. (girls), and 3:20 p.m. (boys).
