BELFAST, Maine — Over 60 schools and nearly 1,500 runners converged at the Troy Howard Middle School for the annual Maine Cross Country Festival of Champions Saturday, and local athletes were able to take a lot out of what is the largest high school running competition in the state.
The event features seeded and unseeded competitions as well as freshman races for both boys and girls.
Out of a field of 823 overall male runners, Chathu Karunasiri of the Vikings recorded his team’s top placement of 58th on the 3.1-mile course, with a time of 17 minutes and 36.75 seconds. The Vikings had two others finish among the top 100 and as a team placed 13th out of 64.
“Overall the kids did a great job,” said Caribou coach Roy Alden. “We were hoping to finish a little higher, but the seeded race had close to 300 runners and we got caught up in traffic, meaning each of our runners had to work through and pass 30 to 60 runners throughout the race, and that takes a lot out of you.”
Evan Desmond was 83rd in 17:43.63 and Caleb Hunter 93rd in 18:05.58 for the Vikings.
Presque Isle place 50th as a team but featured the top County runner in Jason Bartley, who took 63rd in 17:42. Trace Cyr, a freshman, grabbed the 227th position in 19:14.59.
The race, which featured teams from Rhode Island, New Hampshire and Vermont, as well as Prince Edward Island and several from througout the state, saw Osman Doorow of Lewiston come out on top in 15:50.05. Scarborough finished first as a team.
“We only had one Class B (York) ahead of us,” Alden said, noting that powerhouses Freeport and Greely did not attend. “We have a month to gain strength and confidence and learn to run together in a tighter group.”
For the girls, Caribou ended up 23rd and Presque Isle was 29th out of 54 schools with complete squads.
Leading the way for the Vikings was Julia Page, who was 102nd overall in 21:32.4. Teammate Simone Michaud was the next Caribou runner to finish, doing so in 21:59.37, good for 134th.
For Presque Isle, Mandy Graham had an exceptional performance as the senior crossed in 20:31.71, which was 51st out of 623. Freshman Madison Jandreau was also strong as evidenced by her 107th place finish and time of 21:37.55.
La Salle Academy of Providence, R.I. featured the three fastest competitors and four of the top five as they rolled to the team title. Eliza Rego of La Salle had the best time of 18:05.58.
The next race, which will feature all the Aroostook County cross country programs, is the Aroostook League championship at Washburn Friday afternoon. Caribou and Presque Isle will compete as individuals for All-Aroostook selection, but will not figure in the team results as they are already affiliated with the Penobscot Valley Conference.
Houlton, Greater Houlton Christian Academy, Limestone-MSSM, Fort Kent and the host Beavers will be competing for league supremacy.
