Nashua North XC Invitational Meet Hub
Nashua North is a great early season preview of who came into the season ready to run fast this season. After getting the bridge replaced, the course has returned to its speedy ways and many kids get early season PR’s at Mines Falls. It also seems to be a race where any new runners who may be flying under the radar get to show everyone they’re going to be in the mix this year. Let’s dig into what we can expect to see.
Girls
The girls race might provide the best team battle of the day.
Start with Hanover.
The defending Division II champions entered the season ranked second in New Hampshire and remain NH #2 in the September 7 rankings. Hanover graduated some major pieces from last year’s championship team, but the cupboard is hardly bare. Aria Deeb, Alice Bell, Lila Marchetti and Grace Stewart give Hanover a formidable returning group, and as usual, Hanover appears to have found some young runners capable of contributing immediately.
Their depth was already evident at the Souhegan Relays, where Hanover dominated the JV race and displayed an impressive group of young runners. Freshmen Edie Rojansky, Madelyn Berk and Margaret Hourdequin, along with sophomore Lily Van Citters, were all near the front. That kind of depth could make Hanover extremely difficult to handle as the season progresses.
NH#5 Hopkinton may actually be the team with the best chance to challenge Hanover for the win Saturday. The defending Division III champions showed why they are among the state’s best teams last weekend at the Bobcat Invitational. Led by defending New England champion Madeleine Lane, who shattered her own DeMeritt Hill Farm course record with an 18:06 victory, Hopkinton put three runners among the first eight. Maisie Emerson was third overall in 19:32, while Rose Afflerbach gave the Hawks another important low number in eighth. Hopkinton ultimately finished third with 50 points, just one point behind Oyster River and 13 behind surprise winner Lebanon. The front-end combination of Lane and Emerson is arguably as good as any one-two punch in the state, and with Afflerbach emerging as a strong third scorer, Hopkinton has the ability to score extremely low through three runners.
Pinkerton enters ranked sixth in New Hampshire and has one of the best individual runners in the field in Sookie Folsom. The Astros graduated several important runners from last year’s team, but return Naomi Ebhaleme and Charlotte Boyington, among others. Pinkerton is one of those programs which always seems to reload, and Saturday gives us another chance to see how quickly its newest lineup is coming together.
Then there is Dover, perhaps the most intriguing team in the race.
Dover jumped into the latest statewide rankings at NH #9 after winning the Jamie Martin Invitational. And it wasn’t simply a narrow victory. The Green Wave scored 50 points and put three runners in the top ten scorers, led by Janelle Poulin, who ran 19:43 for second overall. Lily Fiorenza was eighth overall in 20:46 and Evalee James followed in tenth at 21:11.
That front three makes Dover dangerous.
Windham, currently NH #10, was only five points behind Dover at Jamie Martin. Hazel Perks led the Jaguars in 20:44, while Atia Mutai ran 21:31. Windham’s strength is its pack, and in a much larger field at Mines Falls, every runner displaced between opposing scorers could become important.
Don’t overlook Bedford, either. The Bulldogs began the season ranked ninth and have Grace Boll, Nora Buxton and Julia Malnar back from last year’s varsity group. Boll has the ability to run with the lead chase pack, while Bedford will be looking for its fourth and fifth runners to close the gap.
And then there are the hosts.
Nashua North entered the season as one of our sleeper picks in Division I, and Rosalie Neveau gives the Titans a legitimate low stick at the front of a big invitational. North returned most of its roster from 2025, making Saturday an important measuring stick against Hanover, Pinkerton, Dover, Windham and Bedford.
Hollis-Brookline also deserves attention. Hannah LaPointe ran 20:25 at Jamie Martin to finish sixth, while freshman Sai Inakollu made an immediate impact with a 21:10 ninth-place finish. H-B placed third as a team at Jamie Martin and suddenly looks like it may have another young runner capable of helping its Division II prospects. Don’t overlook St. Johnsbury VT who is ranked 9th in the Green Mountain State.
Individually, this should be the Maddy Lane show once again this weekend. She simply crushed one of the toughest courses in New England last weekend at Bobcat and is one of the best harriers in the country. Hanover’s Deeb has to be considered one of the favorites to be closest to Lane. She entered the season as one of the state’s top returning runners after an outstanding spring track season. Teammate Bell should also be in the mix. Pinkerton’s Sookie Folsom certainly belongs in that conversation as well. She entered the year as one of the leading Division I contenders.
Add Dover’s Janelle Poulin, Nashua North’s Rosalie Neveau, Windham’s Hazel Perks, Hollis-Brookline’s Hannah LaPointe and Pelham’s Addison Martin, and we have the ingredients for a terrific lead pack. Martin has already shown she belongs there, running 20:23 for fifth at Jamie Martin.
Boys
North should be a bit of a battle this year with five of the top ten boys teams in attendance. At the top, we’re going to get our first look at the Pinkerton and Hanover battle for the #1 ranking in the Granite State. Pinkerton started the season off with a win at Bobcat despite being short their top runner. They still had the individual race winner in Oscar D’Amelio and their top six were all in the top sixteen so they look ready to roll even without their #1. Hanover put on a similarly impressive performance at the Souhegan Relays where they had the four fastest splits and five in the top ten fastest times of the day. I think the two state heavyweights should duke it out pretty good, but I’m leaning towards Hanover taking the W as I know D’Amelio is not planning to race all out Saturday and Jason Robie is still out.
After these two, there should be an interesting battle between BG, Nashua South and Hopkinton for the third spot based on the rankings, but a look at Souhegan Relays says North is also a team to watch. If you broke the Souhegan Relays down to individual results it looks like North would have beaten South so they might actually be the next team up and give those rankings a bit of a shake up. Hopkinton looked really strong last week at Bobcat as well and it’ll be interesting to see how they match up. BG is the other team in the mix but I’m betting we don’t see their top runner Ethan Fischer at all as he’s got to be eyeing the end of the season going all the way to Thanksgiving or even December if things go well. Without him, I think BG may struggle to stay in the points mix with the other teams running their full squads.
One other fun team to watch is an out of state guest in Vermont’s St. Johnsbury. They’re currently ranked #4 in Vermont and returned their entire top five from last year so I’m wondering if maybe they’re a little under ranked. Their top runner Joel Thornton-Sherman is a guy to watch for sure and don’t be surprised if he’s racing all out and in that front group. He definitely belongs there.
Individually, with the teams coming it seems like we should see some of the state’s best get after each other. In short, be prepared for a let down. A lot of these guys are eyeing the regional races in late November and it sounds like they’re not planning to race all out or at all. Many of them are planning to really start their season next weekend at Manchester. With that in mind, who can we expect to see up front? If Fischer races, he’s the guy to beat. With him likely not going all out, eyes should be on Hanover’s Ben Groves and Isaac McNaughton to be in the winning mix. St. Johnsbury’s Joel Thornton-Sherman is a top ten in New England level returner and finished .8 behind Groves last year at the New England Championship. Pinkerton’s Joe Gustavson might be a middle distance monster but he’s still a real good XC runner and will likely be in the front group and try to play the “hold on and sprint” card. Londonderry’s Patrick Ramsey is another guy to keep an eye on as a now upper classman who ran really well at Nashua last year. Bishop Guertin’s Michael Studer is a top five returner from last year and would love to make an early season impression that BG isn’t a one man team. Don’t sleep on Elliot Chisholm who was also excellent last year.
-Ian French
