GARDNER — A number of area runners and teams earned their spot at next week’s MIAA Division 3 Championship meet on Sunday during the state’s Div. 3 qualifying meet at Gardner Golf Course.
The meet was split into Div. 3A, 3B and 3C groups, with the top seven schools in each group, as well as the top 10 runners not on those qualifying teams, earning spots in the state meet — scheduled for next Saturday at Fort Devens.
The Frontier girls took third overall in the 3B group while the Mohawk Trail girls finished in fifth in the 3C group, securing both teams a spot in the state meet. The Warrior boys will also be going to states, finishing in sixth place in the 3C race.
“It’s exciting finishing third,” Frontier’s Leah Gump said. “It’s been really fun to go through a growth period as a team. We have two seventh graders who have stepped up and all of us have been improving the whole season which is exciting.”
Gump paced the Frontier girls, finishing sixth overall with a time of 21 minutes, 29 seconds. Abi Howard finished in 14th (22:21), Bianca Peura took 28th (23:03) and Sylvie DiBartolomeo earned 29th (23:06) to help the Redhawks take third as a team.
Gump said she was pleased with her finish on a tough terrain, with the rain pouring down throughout the race making the course muddy and slippery.
“I’m happy with my time,” Gump said. “It was a hard course and it was cold. You had to have the cross country spirit of just running and having a good time. This isn’t track. This is what cross country is about.”
Anya Read was the top finisher for the Mohawk Trail girls in the 3C race, finishing in 23rd with a time of 22:36. Natalie Lanoue (25th, 22:50) and Valeri Bzomowski (26th, 22:50) joined her in the top 30 to help secure a spot in the state meet for the Warriors.
Read was wearing regular running shoes during the race, which she said wasn’t helpful on the slick course.
“It was very slippery,” Read said. “I wasn’t wearing spikes so I thought I was going to face plant. I had to plant my feet a certain way while running. The course was beat up but we train a lot on hills. We came prepared for this one. Usually I have a tough time with my breathing but I didn’t today.”
Emmett Johnson was the top Mohawk Trail finisher in the 3C boys race, taking sixth overall with a finish of 17:18.
“I didn’t have the best time but I got a great place,” Johnson said. “I was hoping for top 10 so I’m very happy about that. The course was tough and really muddy with a lot of hills. I’m really excited to get the opportunity to go to states now.”
Fellow Warriors Vincent Gauthier (14th, 18:17) and Peter Healy (58th, 20:56) also helped lift the Warriors to a spot at the state meet.
The Frontier boys had to deal with adversity before the race even started. Luke Howard, the top Redhawks runner, got hurt be fore the race and was unable to participate.
Evan Hedlund stepped up, securing an individual spot in the state meet with a 17th place finish with a time of 18:44. Erich Brown (38th, 20:04) and Oliver Brown (52nd, 20:41) were the next two Frontier runners across the finish line.
“Our number one got injured right before the race started,” Hedlund said. “I just tried to run as hard as I could the whole time. These races are exhilarating. It’s really easy to pace as well. The course felt good, some of the mud made it difficult.”
Mahar also ran in the 3B race, taking 14th place. Jeffrey LaPlante was the top Senator finisher, taking 59th with a time of 21:01. Liam DiDonato (72nd, 21:53) and Marshall Ames (96th, 23:36) followed LaPlante across the finish line for Mahar.
“It was very muddy which was to be expected,” LaPlante said. “There were more hills than I thought. Considering the conditions I’m happy with my performance today. I like these big meets. It’s competitive but friendly.”
The Greenfield boys ran in the Class C race, with Jackson Caron taking 15th with a time of 18:20 to earn an individual spot in states, though he said he wasn’t all too happy with his time.
“It was awful on the first lap,” Caron said. “We came up the hill and the wind was in our face and there was so much water I couldn’t see. I wish I was faster time-wise but placement wasn’t awful. It’s fun at the big meets because you have more competition. During regular season meets I’m usually out in front running by myself. Here you have competition and it makes you do better.”
Alex Scotera (83rd, 22:18) and Dylan Breiwick (90th, 22:46) were the next two Green Wave runners to cross the finish line, with Greenfield taking 12th place as a team.