Division Favorites – South, Hanover, Hopkinton
Individuals to Watch – Matthew Giardina (Bishop Guertin), Sullivan Sturtz (Keene), Daniel Byrne (South), Jake Pitre (Sanborn), William Simard (Con-Val), Elijah Bodanza (Hillsboro-Deering)
Annually we pen a preview based upon information available to us. To try and figure out what we can expect, all the graduating seniors from the Division meets and Meet of Champions were removed. We also attempt to consider JV State Championships and Middle School State Championships. Even with all available data, generating a preview is difficult, so if you know of anything you would like to add, please comment below. That said, there are always a few breakout stars who throw a wrench in the formula of any guess for an upcoming season and that’s what makes the whole process fun! Special thanks to those who contributed to this post. Year after year we are reminded as to how incredible and unique our state is!
Note: All times referred to in Division previews are from the 2023 Divisional Championships at Derryfield, while times referred to in the MOC preview are from the 2023 MOCs.
Division 3
Last year, the Hopkinton Hawks on the strength of their two senior studs, Matt Clarner and Ben Daniels, threw the rest of the crew on their shoulders and willed their way to the championships. Much like Mascenic things will be different at the top, with Clarner and Daniels graduated, along with their #3 and #7, the Hawks will be left to rebuild this season. Senior Jorge Guerra, junior Adrian Whitenact and sophomore James Lavers will need to pick up the pieces and quickly. The addition of D3 fourth placer Max Goupil and Isaac Ohl from the middle school will help, but will it be enough is the question.
Behind the Hawks last year was Fall Mountain, who similar to Hopkinton lost their two studs in Ben Tetu and Ben Frithsen, changing the makeup of the squad significantly. If we were to score the first three returners, FM would have the upper hand, not to mention the addition of now freshman Matt Northcott, the Wildcats look to be in the driver’s seat.
The biggest climber due to graduation should be Mascoma Valley, returning their entire team. Led by seniors Gunner Currier and Trevor Maheu, the Royals are certainly the most well balanced team on paper. Add in now sophomore Carl Russell who developed this past spring, the Royals should be formidable this coming season. Another ascending team should be St. Thomas Aquinas, also returning everyone. With no breakout stars, the Saints have the best team spread of everyone save Mascoma. Led by junior Oliver Schartner with seniors Mason Ruger and Luciano Barbini, STA will need to improve individually in order to usurp the teams listed ahead of them here.
Looking to return to the top of the heap is Mascenic. While last year’s performance was less than stellar, the team was young and relied on just five individuals. This spring has seen vast improvement in their team leaders in senior Derek Somero and junior Dylan Callahan. With support from juniors Dylan Buttrick and Kelson Whitehouse, sophomore Logan Vaillancourt, and newbies Thomas Moran and Donovan Griffis, the Vikings might have the firepower to ascend to a top five spot and a shot at MOCs.
Other teams that might be in the mix are Portsmouth Christian, Gilford, Profile, Holy Family and Newfound, however if any of these teams is going to be in contention for an MOC berth they are going to need to bring along their back end, as all these teams either had athletes who will be scoring in the back third of the meet last year, or didn’t have enough on the team or graduated out too many to really gauge how good they can be. Newfound’s Colin Foster (#10) and PCA’s Chris Barnes (#13) lead their prospective teams and will have to provide some serious leadership for their teams to be in the running.
Not looking for anything to bite me in the butt, Sanborn’s moved up from D2 to D3, and there is not a very good way to guestimate how the move will affect final team standing. What we do know however is they have a good starting point with Jake Pitre, last year’s D2 number three finisher and would be top returner. At Meet of Champions he finished 5th overall, twenty seconds up on Hillsborough’s Elijah Bodanza.
Individually, expect the two mentioned above to be battling it out with Mascoma’s Currier and Monadnock’s Peyton Joslyn for that top spot. All of these guys had stellar spring’s so it will be interesting to see what the summer has produced. I also expect to see Kearsarge’s Dan Dalbec looking to break the party up, with Foster and Barnes looking to maintain their top ten status. Bring in freshman Matt Northcott and his brother David, Profile’s Isaac Reeder, Holy Family’s Max Williams, STA’s Shartner and Ruger, Newmarket’s Jaron LaBranche, Gilford’s Gunnar Marvel, Mascenic’s Callahan and Somero, and Mascoma’s Maheu and Russell and you probably have the top ten from these eighteen names. Time will tell.
–Mike Smith
Division 2
Hanover definitely looks like the team to beat in D2. They won last year with a big pack up front, and return 5 members from that squad. Seniors Ryan Faris and Andrew Valentino, and sophomore Ben Groves makeup 3 of the top 4 returners from last year’s D2 meet. Ben Hourdequin and Alexander Valentino round out their returning members. Hanover also won the D2 boys middle school meet last year, so they may be adding some strong newcomers. They seem to be a step above the rest of the field going into the season, but the other teams will look to make them work for it.
Coe-Brown and Oyster River seem to be in the next tier of teams on paper.
Coe-Brown lost their top 2 runners from last year’s runner-up team, but they return senior Luc Kerouac, who was 9th at D2s a year ago. He will look to lead a fairly young team, as Patrick Youngs and Ben Larson come up from Middle School looking to contribute right away, and join returning scorer from last year, Ben Jobin and Keegan Sousa. Oyster River finished 4th last year, and also graduated their top 2 runners, but they bring back a strong class of sophomores led by D2 3200 runner-up Oliver Lehman. He joins classmates Levi Clapp and Brendan Banafato, as well as senior Mitchell Keesee to form a solid group that could surprise some people. All 4 of them are in the top 20 returners from last year.
There are quite a handful of teams which could take those last 2 auto-qualifying spots.
It’s always a good idea to keep an eye on Souhegan. They lose a lot from last year’s 3rd place squad, but bring back a solid #1 in senior Dallen Noorda. He is joined by his classmates Kasen Fox and Michael Corrigan, and the Sabers will also look to draw from their strong JV and Middle School teams. Milford could be a team to watch, as they have the #6 and #10 returners from last year in juniors Logan Korthals and Will Whitley. I’m sure they have their eyes set on a repeat MOCs berth, and they could finish even higher if they can find a couple more guys to fill those remaining varsity slots.
Hollis-Brookline and Merrimack Valley will also look to contend for those final MOC spots, as both are young teams that return 5 varsity runners from a year ago. HB will be led by senior John Masiello, while MV led by senior Mychal Reynolds.
Individuals
The results from last year indicate that this title is pretty wide-open. The top 2 from last year graduated, and top returner Jake Pitre and Sanborn will be competing in D3 this year. I would pick William Simard of Con-Val as the favorite. He placed 6th at MOCs last year, and is coming off a strong breakout track season, where he ran 9:15 in the 3200. He will have plenty of company though, as Hanover’s Valentino, Faris and Groves will also be in the front pack as they chase the team title. I would expect Coe-Brown’s Kerouac, Milford’s Korthals, and Oyster River’s Lehman to also be in the mix. Don’t sleep on Souhegan’s Noorda, Milford’s Whitley, or Plymouth’s Tate Hayman either. All of these guys have a shot to be in the top 10. Like every season, I’m sure there will also be some breakout individuals and teams that play a big factor.
Division 1
The hottest summer I can remember in my life is quickly coming to its end which means it’s time to start thinking about the cross country season! I hope you all found a way to get out there despite the challenging weather and are going to make this fall another exciting one! This past fall, Nashua South won with authority scoring just short of half of what runner-ups Pinkerton had. Do they have the firepower to match what they did last year or could we see a new team on the podium?
1. Nashua South
In short, South looks well prepared to defend the championship this fall. At the top, they have the Byrne brothers of Andrew and Daniel who both look ready to be in the top 10 along with teammate Cameron Patronick. Having three returners in the top ten goes a long way in helping keep your score down, but things can quickly add up if there is a big gap to the next runner. That is most definitely not a problem for South as their fourth runner looks prepped to come in just outside the top ten with Ryan Duvarney as my #14 returner. Even going to five isn’t a problem for the Panthers as their entire top five should be in the top 25. Hard to beat a team with that kind of top five! Sometimes this type of team comes with the warning that they fall off after the fifth guy, but South avoids that concern also with some excellent former JV runners ready to make the jump and provide some real depth for the squad. It’s going to be really tough for anyone to beat the reigning champs!
2. Salem
The team with the best chance to take down South is definitely the Blue Devils, who are coming off the best season they’ve had in a long time AND get back almost their whole varsity losing only their seventh man. They’re led by the Chisholm brothers, who started last season a little slow, but quickly climbed the ranks as the season went on. Brody Chisholm looks like a top five returner who could be ready to compete with the top runners going into his junior season. Younger brother Elliot should compete to be in the top ten this fall while their third and fourth of Brock James and Lucas Gomez look likely to find their way into the top twenty. Four in the top twenty and a fifth in the top thirty is a really strong team. With most of them having raced at D1s last year maybe that experience will help them make the jump to take South down.
3. Pinkerton Academy
The Astros should be strong but their biggest challenge is going to be their lack of a top ten returner. It’s possible they could be the first team to have all five of their scoring runners in but still take third place because they’re just a little too far back. Their top three returners of Trainor Mailloux, Sean Hayes and Joe Gustavson are probably going to trade the leadership role from week to week primed to come in between 15th and 20th in the Division. They were missing senior Noah Daigle during the XC playoffs last year that could play a role in shaking things up for the Astros if he’s healthy. The Astros are also coming off a JV state meet victory so they’ve clearly got some guys ready to make the jump to varsity. I think what they’re really going to need if they want to move up is someone to take the lead and find their way into the Division’s top ten.
4. Bishop Guertin
If there’s a dark horse to keep and eye on this season, it’s Bishop Guertin. They have the guy to beat in New Hampshire this fall with Matt Giardina the clear #1 not just for Division I but the whole state. After that, Carson Fischer will definitely be in the fight for a top five spot so they have probably the best 1-2 punch in the Division. Sam Prescott should be somewhere between 10th and 15th and that’s where things get a little more challenging for BG. Their fourth runner comes around 30th and then there’s a bit of a fall to almost 70th for their fifth. I’d be saying yikes except I know they’re getting a 9th grader in Ethan Fischer who competed at New Balance Nationals in the spring and broke 10 for the two mile. He looks ready to come in and immediately shake up the BG varsity squad. The big question is, how much and will it be enough?
5. Londonderry
Londonderry may end up in a little bit of a no man’s land this season where they’re not quite up with the top four teams but they’re also a ways ahead of the teams behind them. They have three excellent junior returners with Carson Fitzgerald looking ready to be in the top ten. Josh Twomey looked like he found a new gear this past spring where he was suddenly competing with some of the top runners in the Division. Jack DiBuono will likely be vying for a top twenty finish but things get a little less clear for the Lancers after that. They do have a freshman group coming in that are fresh off a Division I Middle School Championship, so maybe they’re going to get exactly what they need to join the top four teams.
6. Bedford
Bedford has a similar problem to Pinkerton where they have some excellent returners but they don’t have anyone who looks ready to crack the top ten this season. Their top returner is Jack Mortimer who this past spring looked really strong in the two mile and may be ready to climb the rankings toward the top ten. After that, Ethan Pulsifer and David Casado look like top fifty guys but they’ll need to improve if the team is going to try and catch Londonderry this fall.
Some other teams to keep an eye on are Keene and Alvirne who both have some excellent returners but will need to find some backup for them if they want to compete for a spot at the Meet of Champions.
On the individual side it’s kind of a one man show this year. Giardina is probably someone who will pull some national attention and may even find his way to one of the national level contests at the end of the year. Don’t be surprised if we don’t see him much early on if he’s training for those types of meets and will likely still be building up come the NH championship season.
If anyone has a shot at him, it’s Keene’s Sully Sturtz. Sturtz had an outstanding sophomore season end with a near sub 16 performance at Derryfield, an excellent 15:22 at MOCs and he was the top New Hampshire finisher at New Englands taking an impressive fourth place. He’s clearly not to be counted out! Nashua’s Daniel Byrne is the next guy to watch for but there’s a bit of a gap between him and Sturtz from last year’s results. The wild card of the fall is Concord’s Josiah Conley. When Conley is on he’s as good as anyone from the Division so look for him to run with the leaders once the season gets going. Other guys to watch are Brody Chisholm of Salem, Carson Fischer from BG, Patronick from South and Fitzgerald from Londonderry. Time wise these guys are a bit back from our front three, but sometimes guys make the leap and any of these guys could take it to the next level this season!
Can’t wait to see everyone out there in a few weeks! Good luck and be amazing out there!
–Ian French
MOCs
Disclaimer (once again) as to how difficult it is to preview a Meet of Champions in August, but we love prognosticating, so here we go. Based on returners and current information the favorite has to be defending champion Nashua South. As detailed above they return just about everybody while being a year older, wiser and stronger. They have the complete team with their lead scorers slated to score in the single digits while having a strong backend of a scoring line-up making them the most complete team in NH. Right now.
Toss up as to who may be next between Hanover, Bishop Guertin and Salem. While Salem and Hanover seem to be close, Hanover’s stronger top 3 from last year’s XC results perhaps give them the edge. However, Salem harriers made some big strides this past spring. It will all come down to who put in the best summers of training. If Salem can penetrate Hanover’s top three, their pack will launch them up the standings.
Bishop Guertin, led of course by defending individual champ and New Mexico signed Giardina is quite intriguing. Not only they will have the lowest of sticks, they return a strong supporting cast along with the addition of one of the fastest middle schoolers in quite some time. BG certainly has a high ceiling and if they can develop their 4-5 scorers, they could be in the mix to win it all.
After these 4 there will be a pack of unknowns (as far as strength of teams) vying for the next 2 New England qualifying slots and only a season of racing could shed light on the potential outcomes. Pinkerton, Londonderry, CBNA, Oyster River, Bedford, and Keene all seem to be in the mix and this is great for us. Having 6 solid teams looking at seemingly 2 spots will make for great cross country come the end of the season. As chronicled in the D1 preview, Pinkerton and Londonderry have similar questions in that neither have a top 10 or 20 finisher. They will have to rely on a strong pack and how far up in the results they all finish together. Oyster River had a great group of freshmen last year. As sophomores tend to make big jumps, expect the Bobcats to be in the thick of it. CBNA and Bedford will be leaning on runners with little experience but these types of teams have high ceilings by the end of the season. And finally, Keene has the low stick in Sturtz. Can they develop a strong 2-3 to compliment him???
Individually, obviously the favorite is Giardina with Sturtz doing his cross country thing for runner up. Don’t be surprised if Con-Val’s Simard or Sanborn’s Pitre are leading the chase pack which should also include Hillsboro-Deering’s Bodanza, South’s Byrne brothers and perhaps Mascoma Valley’s Gunner Currier, Monadnock’s Peyton Joslyn.
