Manchester Invitational Meet Hub!
HERE WE GO!!! The 2026 Manchester Invitational! You ready??? We are!!! Loaded races both with number of state ranked teams and some of the best individuals in the nation! Visit our MI51 Meet Hub as our center for everything Manchester Invitational over the past several years!!! We have race videos, interviews, articles, photos! It will also be THE place for this year’s NewHampshireCrossCountry’s coverage!
Use the link below as Millennium Running will have live results and splits!!! All event info including course maps, box info, etc can also be found on their website.
Millennium Running’s Live Results
As with every year, Manchester Invitational is a FESTIVAL of XC with teams coming from all over New England to not only race uniforms from other states but to also take on the challenge of Derryfield Park. This usually contributes to some incredible racing and great experiences. Each varsity race has its own story. MI has become very much a border clash if you will between NH and Vermont with top teams from all the other New England states sprinkled in. Even though the season is young, we will do our best to preview each race as accurately.
Girls Small School @ 12:10
On what looks like a great weather day for one of the first high level invitationals in New England the Small School girls race features seven ranked teams from NH, CT and VT. This one looks like it could be a close one and could come down to the 4th and 5th runners for each team. Adding to the intrigue this season is a number of teams have only raced one time or may not even have had their first race yet. Haddam Killingworth was the team champion last year but they are not attending this year so we know that we will have a new champion in 2026. In fact with only one of the top 5 teams coming back (York) it could be an entirely new top 5.
One of the top team to watch should probably be CT #6 East Lyme. They have a solid group of 5 and will be led by Kathryn Wren and Soph Mia Cordes. Wren should be in the front pack to help them get a low number up front. With this race possibly coming down to the 4th and 5th runners their #5 runner has the best 2026 season time of the teams in contention.
Joining East Lyme in the tussle for the top is NH #3 Lebanon. They had a solid opener at the Bobcat Invite and will be powered by their 9th grade duo of Jill Campbell and Brooke Nelson. At Bobcat, Campbell finished 2nd and Nelson finished closely behind in 4th. They also have already shown that they can handle the challenging terrain with their performances earlier this season.
NH #4 Oyster River is a team that is always in the conversation. They finished as the second team at Bobcat and were led by Olivia Kavanagh in 6th place and Haley Bezanson in 7th. Both runners will be able to rely on their experience at Derryfield to help put Oyster River into the mix.
Two teams that will try and stick around and see what they can do are VT #4 BFA St Albans and NH #5 Hopkinton. BFA is a young team and a number of their runners will be experiencing MI for the first time. They will be led by 9th grader Lydia Phillips and Jr Tristan Martin. Hopkinton looks like they will be without phenom Maddy Lane so that definitely changes their team prospects. They will still have one of the race favorites in Jr Maisie Emerson. Maisie should be in the mix for the top spot and teammate Rose Afflerbach will be looking to give Hopkinton a couple of low numbers to keep them in the team race.
Also in the small school race are NH #8 Coe-Brown and NH #9 Alvirine. Both teams will be looking to use this race to build their teams toward the end of the season. Coe-Brown is the definition of a pack running team and Alvirne will be led by Olivia Cartagena who will be looking to stay in that top pack and battle for a top 10 spot.
-Scott Bliss VTXC.com
Boys Small School @ 12:50
Looking at entries, New Hampshire’s ranked trio seems to lead the way. #5 Oyster River immediately jumps out. Oyster River brings plenty of experience to Manchester. Ryker Andersen and Simon Lamb are juniors, while Brendan Banafato, Levi Clapp, Cian Elly, Oliver Lehman, and Siddharth Sanjay are seniors. Look for Lehman and Clapp to be up front providing the valuable low sticks. The closer Banafato and company can stay to the top 10-20, the better off the Bobcats will be!
But #8 Souhegan won’t be far from the conversation. The Sabers were seventh in the NHCC preseason rankings and currently sit eighth statewide with a group of seasoned solid harriers. They bring four seniors to Manchester in Thomas Arnoldy, Keenan Burke, Aaron Coleman, and Ryan Quinn, along with junior Jacob Spencer, sophomore Joel Habert, and freshman Brady Webb.
NH is also repped by #9 Hopkinton. The Hawks have quickly established themselves as one of New Hampshire’s stronger teams this fall, holding ninth in the latest statewide rankings. Hopkinton enters Michael Crosby, Max Goupil, Finnegan Kovar, James Lavers, Jax Marshall, Jacques McCrillis, and Liam Tripod. Watch for Goupil and Lavers to provide the lower scoring places and similar to OR, but their ultimate team finish may depend on their back end scoring.
The Vermont contingent deserves plenty of attention.
VT #6 BFA-St. Albans is always a strong Vermont presence to the Small School race. With an experienced lineup featuring seniors Kenny Grey, Elijah Hazen, Hudson Root, and Jude Sato, junior Keiran Reilly, and sophomores Duncan Hadd and Garrett Soter, the Bobwhites bring plenty of veteran experience to Derryfield Park.
VT #7 Thetford Academy is particularly intriguing. The Panthers recently won an SVL meet with 30 points, beating Burr & Burton, Brattleboro, Hartford, Woodstock, and Bellows Falls. Peter Horan won that race in 17:36, Zac Amber was second in 17:49, and Ollie Emery finished eighth in 18:39. All three are entered at Manchester, along with Zac Adams, Micah Mahood, and Kai Slayton.
Connecticut’s East Lyme may be one of the bigger favorites in the entire race. The Vikings have Hisham Benjdid, Nico Cardello, Gio Carlone, Sloan D’Aquila, Trevor Hintze, Ian Hopkins, and Joey Papalia entered. Led by Cardello and Papalia, East Lyme has significant recent championship credentials. In 2025, the Vikings tied for second at the Connecticut State Open and finished runner-up to Xavier in Class MM. A Connecticut preseason analysis also highlighted East Lyme’s close battle with Xavier at the 2025 Class MM championship.
Individually, Oyster River’s Lehman and Clapp headline the New Hampshire contingent. At the Bobcat Invitational earlier this month, Lehman finished second in 16:38.3 with Clapp third in 16:48.1. Lehman also brings impressive track credentials, including a Division II 3200-meter championship last spring. Their teammate Banafato shouldn’t be overlooked after finishing ninth at Bobcat, giving Oyster River the potential to put three runners inside Manchester’s top ten.
Hopkinton’s junior Goupil has already demonstrated he belongs in this company. Goupil placed sixth at Bobcat in 17:05.4, putting him within 27 seconds of Lehman. Lebanon junior Ian Kiefer was eighth in that same race, giving him a valuable head-to-head performance against several of Saturday’s leading contenders. Souhegan’s Jacob Spencer is another Granite State runner capable of breaking into the lead group. Spencer ran 16:37.02 at the 2025 New Hampshire Meet of Champions as a sophomore and enters Manchester as one of the key runners for the eighth-ranked Sabers.
Perhaps the biggest challenge to New Hampshire’s frontrunners comes from Connecticut’s East Lyme. Senior Papalia and junior Cardello bring impressive championship and track credentials. Papalia finished 13th in Connecticut Class MM last fall, while Cardello was 16th. On the track, Papalia has run 4:21 for the mile, while Cardello owns a 4:15 1600 and finished fourth at the Connecticut State Open.
Vermont’s Thetford Academy brings two intriguing young challengers in sophomores Horan and Amber. Horan recently won a six-team Vermont meet in 17:36 with Amber second in 17:49. Their lack of upperclassman experience hasn’t prevented them from running at the front this fall.
That gives us a compelling core of top-ten contenders: Lehman, Clapp, Banafato, Goupil, Kiefer, Spencer, Papalia, Cardello, Horan, and Amber. But don’t expect the top ten to be limited to those names. This is the Manchester Invitational and there are always surprises!
-Tim Cox
Girls Large School @ 1:20
Well there aren’t 16 ranked teams like last year, but there is a quality field in the Large School girls race and this one could be a fun one. Defending champion Champlain Valley Union VT is back but they graduated 6 of their top 7 from last year’s NXN team. The turnover on their squad is opening this race up and there are a number of teams that could claim the top spot. The field consists of the #1 ranked teams from NH, MA, RI and VT. One team ranked #4 in the NXR Northeast rankings and two more that are on the watch list. In my opinion there is at least one other team that probably deserves to be on the watch list but isn’t so this race has the possibility to be a barn burner.
If one team could dominate this race it would probably by MA #1 NXR #4 Lexington. They return their entire team from last season where they finished 6th at the NXR Northeast regional. That isn’t the only thing though. They have added two new runners to the mix. Lexington will be led by one of the favorites to win the overall crown in Jane Conrad. Ella Tyson was their #2 runner last year and they have added in Amelia Wharton who is a 4:45 miler. They have a complete seven and it will be fun to see where they are at starting the season. This will be their first race of the 2026 season, so we will need to see if the challenging Derryfield course comes into play.
Next up should be the two teams on the NXR watchlist. RI #1 NXR watchlist Cumberland returns after a solid 3rd place last year where they tied Hanover. VT #1 NXR watchlist Essex finished 8th last year and has been very solid through their first 2 races. Cumberland will be bringing in a young team but one that experienced a lot last year. They finished 2nd at the New England Championships and 5th at the NXR Northeast race. Cecelia Ludwig is the defending RI State Champion and finished 6th last year at MI. 9th grader Caylee Kurbec will be one to watch for them as she is the RI middle school xc state champion. Essex is led by a very strong top 3. Adrianna Bibeau should be in contention for a top spot in the race and was 12th last year as a 9th grader. She teams up with Emily Dall and Ruth Knox to give Essex a solid top 3.
NH #1 Exeter will be racing their first 5k xc race this season at MI. They are coming off some amazing accomplishments in their track seasons and it will be interesting to see how that carries over for them into the fall. They are led by one of the individual favorites in Alexis Paterna. Brianna Paterna will also be an important piece to the puzzle if Exeter is going to be in the mix for the team crown.
Two teams that have battled each other for a few years now will be looking to let everyone know that they are not going away quite yet. VT #2 CVU and NH #2 Hanover will be trying to make a statement that they still belong in the conversation. CVU is led by sophomore Eden Leckey and Jr Madeleine Deyo. Hanover will be led by one of the favorites for a top spot in the individual race in Aria Deeb.
A dark horse candidate to keep an eye on will be #6 MA Needham. They are led by Madison Roach and the strength could be the power of their pack. They have a pretty tight group at spots 3 – 5 and at races like this it could come into play.
Other runners to keep an eye on for the individual race are three runners from VT. Acadia Enman MMU has been 2-0 so far in her first 2 races. She has looked composed, strong and she should have no problem with the hills at Derryfield. Her teammate Fiona Repp has finished in the top 5 at her first 2 races and will be looking to stay in that top pack. Another from the Green Mtn State that could be around the top 10 mix is Hazel Vander Pyl of U32. She has one win on the season and a couple of top 10s to her credit.
The individual race should come down to Lexington’s Jane Conrad, Exeter’s Alexa Paterna, Cumberland’s Cecelia Ludwig and MMU’s Acadia Enman. These 4 most likely will be dueling it out on the back hills of Derryfield Park with Essex’s Bibeau, Needham’s Roach and Lexington’s Tyson trying to work their way into the mix. This race is shaping up to be a fun one. A number of teams who are starting their race seasons at MI and others who are trying to prove that they belong.
-Scott Bliss VTXC.com
Boys Large School @ 2:00
The large school race at the Manchester Invitational is one of the most competitive ones of the year that happens in New Hampshire. Schools travel from all New England to see how they match up with the best of the state. Let’s take a look at who’s coming and see if we can pick a winner!
Let’s start with some of the teams traveling in to keep an eye on. Vermont is sending 7(!) of their top ten teams to the large school race. Top of the list is Champlain Valley Union (CVU) who is led by one of the best in New England, Ben Holoch. CVU is coming off a win at the Burlington Invitational where they raced many of the other Vermont ranked schools. They came away handily winning with a score of 44 to U32’s 77. With four of their top five all under 17:00 and their fifth not far behind, CVU definitely brings a strong team to Manchester. Also keep an eye on U32 though, they had a great race led by a guy who nipped Holoch at the line in Cole Page. Both were well into the 15’s so they’re probably in the mix for a shot at the individual title. Other Vermont ranked schools include Montpelier(#3), St Johnsbury(#4)(will we see the Thornton-Sherman brothers??), Burlington(#5), Mt Mansfield(#9), and Essex(#10).
Massachusetts is sending their #3 team in Lexington. Lexington looks to be kicking their season off at Manchester so it’s a little tricky to gauge exactly where they’re at but their top returner Patrick Noonan ran an impressive 15:12 ML-12 championships last year and was top 50 at NXRs. They returned five out of seven from an excellent squad last year so they are likely one of the strongest teams in the meet
New Hampshire is sending a contingent of its ranked schools into the Large school race. Starting at the top we’ve got #1 Pinkerton. The Astros got beat last week by #2 Hanover but notably their current top man Oscar D’Amelio did not race at full speed which we will see from him this week. Joe Gustavson has also had a strong start to his season with a couple of top five finishes in the early season.
Hanover will look to show last week was no fluke and top man Ben Groves is someone to watch as possible individual race winner after handily winning last weekend at Nashua Their second man Isaac McNaughton was also not far behind him!
New Hampshire’s third team is Coe-Brown and it looks like this is the first time this fall they’ll be racing their varsity. Don’t sleep on these guys though, they were one of the strongest teams in the state last year and they returned their entire varsity. Their top guys Patrick and Samuel Youngs are very likely to be towards the front of Saturday’s finishers so watch out for them individually as well.
Bishop Guertin is ranked #6 but it appears they’re only running three in the race. The good news, Ethan Fischer is one of those three and he’s one of the guys to watch as a potential race winner. #7 Nashua South has seen an outstanding start for their top guy Isaiah Rodriguez who is coming off an excellent third place finish at Nashua last weekend. Our final New Hampshire ranked team is #10 Exeter who are running their first 5K of the season and look to be led by Logan Poteet. I’d also watch Nashua North to jump into the rankings this week if they have another solid day on Saturday.
Of those teams, who’s going to win? If Pinkerton was at full strength I’d say them but they’re still missing Jason Robie which I think makes things real interesting. That Lexington squad looks really strong on paper with some really impressive returning times from last year. That said, all the times came from one race that seemed suspiciously fast compared to other times in their history and has me wondering if maybe it’s not a true 5K. Hanover is absolutely stacked at the top right now which I think really helps them, but their fifth man being a bit behind Pinkerton’s can really add the points up quick in a big competitive race like this one. CVU came out the door looking real good at Burlington so counting them out would be a mistake. I’m going to give Pinkerton the nod here after their excellent race at Bobcat a couple of weeks ago but honestly, this race feels like way more of a coin flip than I’d like to admit.
Individually, Bocelli Howland-Vlahakis from Phillips Exeter pounded the field last year but this year he’s taking his talents to the Choate Invitational in Connecticut. With that in mind, here’s an interesting list.
| Ben Groves | Hanover |
| Joel Thornton-Sherman | St Johnsbury |
| Benjamin Holoch | Champlain Valley Union |
| Ethan Fischer | Bishop Guertin |
| Treson McEnaney | Champlain Valley Union |
| Joseph Gustavson | Pinkerton Academy |
| Patrick Ramsey | Londonderry |
| Isaac McNaughton | Hanover |
| Oscar D’Amelio | Pinkerton Academy |
| Patrick Youngs | Coe-Brown Northwood Academy |
| Bryan Stocker | St Johnsbury |
Every single one of those guys is a top 25 returner from last year’s New England Championship that will be in the race. Throw in Cole Page from U32 who beat Holoch at Burlington in a battle to the line and Patrick Noonan from Lexington and you have the makings of a really really fun and competitive individual championship. A month from now I’d probably say that BG’s Ethan Fischer is the guy to beat but with this being his first race of the season I’m not sure he’s going to be sharp enough to beat Hanover’s Ben Groves. Groves looked awesome and controlled the whole race last week at Nashua is actually the top returner from last year. I have a feeling it’s going to be a really competitive race though with the winner probably not going to break it open until the final 400 meters.
In any case, if you like competitive XC racing the boys large school race should be a real fun one to watch!
–Ian French
