MANCHESTER – The cross country community didn’t think they could do it, but their coaches did.
Zach Procek and Ally Davis both saw the potential in their squads in the preseason, and at Saturday’s Division I championship, the Concord boys’ and girls’ cross country teams exceeded expectations by sweeping the team titles.
The Tide boys won their third straight title, while the Tide girls won their first cross country championship since 2003.
“I knew they had it in them,” said Davis, who was a member of the 2003 state champion team. “I knew since the summer when they were coming to run every day that we had some really talented girls, but its always scary when it all just comes down to one day, one race. I’m just so proud of them for taking all of their hard work and showing everyone what they could do today.”
Junior Eben Bragg finished third in 16:05 on the Derryfield Park 5K course to pace the Concord boys, while Brayden Kearns (eighth, 16:25), Ryan Devine (11th, 16:32), Ryan Ciesluk (22nd, 16:57), Sam Hilts (23rd, 16:58), David Cook (26th, 17:03) and Vose O’Sullivan (51st, 18:01) formed the rest of the championship squad.
For the girls, freshman Sophie Hopkins (19:52), Morgane Orcutt (19:53) and Katherine Kennedy (19:57) finished ninth, 10th and 11th, respectively, to lead the Tide, while freshmen Alexis Christie (18th, 20:12), Molly Nyhan (22nd, 20:25), Katie Watt (27th, 20:36) and the team’s lone senior, Katy McCoy (44th, 21:36) completed the varsity lineup.
The Concord boys had a disappointing end to their 2018 campaign when their aspirations for a New England title ended with a seventh-place finish, their head coach was replaced and their top three runners (who finished first, fifth and 11th in D-I) graduated.
But Procek has zero doubts about his team and saw a path forward, but knew it wouldn’t be easy.
“It was a tough season getting here, but the guys really worked hard for it,” said Procek, who coached the Trinity cross country team last season. “They put in long hours, lots of miles. They’re really dedicated to the sport. They knew it wouldn’t be easy coming into this year, knowing they had lost three of the top (11) guys from last year, but they had the heart to do it. They had the drive to do it. Today we just got it done.”
The girls’ team has been steadily improving, finishing eighth in 2016 and 2017 before coming in third last year, but with an already young team made even younger by the number of freshmen on the varsity team, the prospect of a title seemed to be a couple more years away.
Neither team was the favorite to win heading into Saturday’s race. The most recent New Hampshire Cross Country rankings had the Concord girls ranked behind Bishop Guertin and the boys trailing Keene, Londonderry and Pinkerton.
“We knew that there were a lot of really strong teams today contending for that top spot and we knew it could be anybody’s race,” said Procek. “So we went out there and ran as smart as we could. We paid attention to who was around us, moved up when we needed to.”
The Tide executed that plan to perfection, and despite Concord, Keene, Pinkerton, Winnacunnet, Londonderry and Nashua North all having at least three runners in the top 25 at points in the race, it was Concord that was able to best maneuver a crowded field to win with 67 points.
“This course is no joke,” Procek said. “They’re pretty well-versed on this course. They knew when to dig in. They knew how to pace that first mile and I was really impressed.”
Keene (83), Pinkerton (91), Winnacunnet (107), Londonderry (119), Nashua North (137) and Merrimack (195) rounded out the top seven teams that also qualified for next weekend’s Meet of Champions.
Keene’s Jake Velasquez won the individual title in 15:32. The top 30 individuals also qualified for MOC.
The girls’ field of potential champions was a little less crowded, but Concord knew Bishop Guertin, a team that boasted the defending champion (Caroline Fischer) and defending runner-up (Caroline Towle), would be the main competition.
Fischer (18:17) and Towle (18:53) once again finished 1-2, but the Tide used its depth and pack-running strategy to its advantage.
“It was definitely close, but we’ve been running as a team and that close-knit pack that we have really gave us the big win today,” Davis said. “I was stoked to have three come in 9-10-11. They get this team aspect of cross country that’s hard to explain. They have it all figured out. They look out for each other, they push each other, they work together.”
“It makes it so much more fun to come to practice every day, always knowing that there’s girls right behind your back in every race,” said Orcutt, who has been the top runner on the team for the past couple of seasons. “To look back and know there’s five girls right behind you, it makes you go faster because you’re motivated to work harder.”
The order of the Tide’s top seven has been fluid all season, and today it was Hopkins, a freshman, who led the way.
“I have no words,” Hopkins said. “I’m so excited. It was an epic day.”
Kennedy, a sophomore, was another runner Davis highlighted as someone who had a particularly impressive day, finishing higher than her “typical” place in the order.
“She really stepped it up today when we needed her to,” Davis said. “A few of the girls really pushed it at the end. Collectively, they passed several people. … I think that drive made all the difference today. Collectively, their willingness to never let up. Sometimes you see the clock and you’re like ‘I’m running a good time for me, so I’m just going to stay.’ They don’t think that way. They think ‘I need to pass these girls. I need to pass them for my team.’ ”
In the end, Concord passed enough runners to offset Bishop Guertin’s 1-2 finish, beating the Cardinals, 70-82.
Exeter (114), Keene (131), Bedford (158), Nashua South (169) and Londonderry (194) rounded the girls’ teams advancing to MOC.
While the coaches had confidence in their athletes, their athletes were also confident in each other, despite being underrated heading into Saturday’s championships.
“We came into this with confidence,” Kearns said. “(Defending the title) is amazing. There’s no better feeling.”
“It was a roller coaster this season, emotionally, with the team and training,” said Bragg, “but we came together and it really worked out well. There’s no better feeling. It’s the best feeling I’ve ever had honestly.”
Now the Tide looks towards next Saturday’s Meet of Champions held at Nashua High School South and Mines Falls Park.
The top 25 individuals and six teams in the boys’ and girls’ races advance to New Englands, which will be on Nov. 9 at Wickham Park in Manchester, Conn.
“It’s exciting how next week will look, getting to continue our season with these girls and getting to build on that for years to come having this under their belts,” Davis said. “I think it shows that they have the talent in them and the ability to really fly.”