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November 1, 2018 · 9:24 pm

Newburyport sweeps the CAL cross country championships

Lindsay MacLellan of North Reading (first)

Sam Acquaviva of Newburyport (first)

(Amesbury MA) The Newburyport Clippers had a big day at Woodsom Farm taking the Cape Ann League cross country titles in the boys and girls division.

Led by Sam Acquaviva and John Lucey, the Clippers added the CAL championship to their undefeated regular season.

“Sam is Sam,” said NHS coach Don Hennigar of his CAL championship repeat winner. “That was the best race of John’s life. To finish second in this league is so good.”

The misty/muddy conditions worried Sam although he ran most of the race alone. “There was a lot that could go wrong in the conditions. I always assume that the other runners will come back.”

On teammate John Lucey finishing second? “It was nice to have John behind me. It was unexpected. He had a great race.”

John Lucey (2nd)

Newburyport won the race by forty points: (1) Sam Acquaviva, (2) John Lucey, (6) Dreese Fadil, (9) Cam Lasson, (17) Peter King.

Other top ten finishers: (3) Tyler Stranc, (4) Peter Lopata, (5) Sebastian Gilligan, (7) Will Kenny, (8) John Astrofsky, (10) Keegan Ritchie.

The totals in the girls’ race were much closer: Newburyport (68), Triton (76), Hamilton-Wenham (80).

The point scorers for Newburyport were; Ellie Schulson (4^th), Lindsey Roberts (7^th), Lucy Gagnon (14^th), Olivia D’Ambrosio (20^th), Caroline Wilson (23^rd).

Clippers coach Don Hennigar: “Ellie Schulson (4^th) and Lindsey Roberts (7^th) were above and beyond today. This was probably the best race Lindsey has ever had.”

Junior Lindsay MacLellan of North Reading was the upset winner. Last year’s winner, Eva Feuerbach of Manchester-Essex, finished second.

Eve Feuerbach (2nd)

Don Hennigar: “That girl from Manchester-Essex doesn’t get beat very often and the girl from North Reading (Lindsay MacLellan) won by a lot. Most people would call that an upset.”

I asked Lindsay MacLellan how she won the race. “A lot of mud. A lot of heart. I’m a hilly person so this was the kind of course I like. I gained separation (from Eva Feuerbach) at 2.75 miles.”

The win by Newburyport avenged a meet loss they had to Triton during the regular season.

Other top ten finishers; (3) Ellie Gay-Killeen, (5) Phoebe Rubio, (6) Lana Crosson, (8) Ava Cote, (9) Jemma Shea, (10) Sarah Harrington.

The race was held at Woodsom Farm in Amesbury. Originally scheduled for Saturday at Bradley Palmer State Park but the weather forced a change. The weather actually wasn’t all that great at Woodsom today.

Second-place finisher John Lucey: “It was a tough race for everyone. I was able to plot the best course through the mud in some sections. Coming down the hills was dangerous in some places.”

John ran much of the race with no one near him ahead (Sam Acquaviva) or behind (Tyler Stranc). How do you stay tuned in? “I kind of get delusional. Then I keep going because I think someone’s right behind me.”

Excellent job done by Amesbury AD Glenn Gearin and his staff handling the parking and other logistical issues.

(All of the pictures above and below will enlarge if you click on them.)

Newburyport’s Katherine Sheehy and Annie Siemasko accept the first-place trophy

Girls start

Ellie Gay-Killeen (Triton) 3rd

Ellie Schulson (Newburyport) 4th

Phoebe Rubio (Pentucket) 5th

Lana Crosson (Masconomet) 6th

Lindsey Roberts (Newburyport) 7th

Ava Cote (Hamilton-Wenham) 8th

Jemma Shea (Hamilton-Wenham) 9th

Sarah Harrington (Triton) 10th

Boys start

Sam Acquaviva shows off the Woodsom Farm mud

Tyler Stranc (Triton) 3rd

Peter Lopata (Pentucket) 4th

Sebastian Gilligan (Masconomet) 5th

Dreese Fadil (Newburyport) 6th

Will Kenny (Manchester-Essex) 7th

John Astrofsky (Lynnfield) 8th

Cam Lasson (Newburyport) 9th

Keegan Ritchie (Triton) 10th

Newburyport boys and Triton girls stay undefeated in CAL cross country

(Newbury MA) And then there were two.

Three teams came into this afternoon’s boys/girls cross country meet undefeated.

Now only the Triton girls (7-0) and the Newburyport boys (8-0) are unbeaten.

Both squads dominated the top finishers at Old Town Hill in Newbury on a very hot/sunny Wednesday afternoon.

Ellie Gay-Killeen won by almost a minute

Sam Acquaviva wins another race

Ellie Gay-Killeen and Sarah Harrington were 1-2 for Triton while Sam Acquaviva, John Lucey, and Dreese Fadil were 1-2-3 for Newburyport.

The Triton girls won 25-30 while the Newburyport boys won 22-33.

“Our girls were tough in the heat,” said Vikings coach Joe Colbert. “The conditions were brutal. We run this course well. It was a great win for us because Newburyport (7-1) is a very good team.”

The 3.1 mile course gave the Clippers problems. “It was super hilly,” said 4^th place finisher Ellie Schulson afterwards. “The sun was in your eyes when you were going up the hill and you couldn’t see your footing. I fell down.”

Ellie Schulson

“They had those two girls up front that are tough to beat,” added NHS coach Don Hennigar. “If you go 1-2 it doesn’t seal it but it’s awfully tough to come back. On another day, at another place, it could all be different since the teams are that close.”

The race winner (Ellie Gay-Killeen) agreed with the consensus about the conditions: “It was a tough, tough race but I have always gained ground on the hills here. I was not on my best pace at all but we’re still undefeated.” Ellie finished nearly a minute ahead of teammate Sarah Harrington.

Coach Colbert said he wasn’t surprised by the 1-2 finish although he said that Newburyport runners (Lindsey Roberts and Ellie Schulson) pushed Sarah Harrington.

Coach Colbert gave credit to Kylie Lorenzo (5^th) and Kerry Powers (7^th): “Kylie and Kerry had huge days for us. They passed some girls in the end and it really made a difference.”

Senior Sam Acquaviva hasn’t lost a race in Massachusetts in a while and that run of top finishes continued today. “I wanted to get the lead early and keep it,” Sam told me afterwards. “The course was tough. As a team we wanted to win this one badly and we did.”

Sam told me that he had just taken a visit to MIT. “I like the cross country team there,” he said, “but to get into MIT is a task unto itself. I am interested in engineering, so it would be a good fit for me.”

Dreese Fatil finished 3rd

Getting the top three places was key for the Clippers. “They all stepped up,” said Coach Hennigar. “Dreese Fatil getting third was huge for us. To beat Triton on their course was special.”

Keegan Ritchie, Diego Fernandez, and Tyler Stranc finished 4-5-6 for Triton (6-2) but to win this meet they needed someone to break into the top three and that didn’t happen on this afternoon.

All sorts of side things went on during today’s meet. The heat caught up to several participants and several ambulances were put to use. There also was a vehicle accident on Newman Street during the meet.

(All of the pictures above and below will enlarge considerably if you click on them.)