WEST NEWBURY — The North Reading High School cross country program finished up their regular dual meet season in the Kinney Division last Wednesday with a solid effort against Pentucket at Pipestave Hill in West Newbury. The girls finished with a significant win of 20-39 against the Panthers and the boys finished with a 15-50 loss against a very strong Pentucket squad.
Senior co-captain Quinlan Kelly capped her undefeated regular season as she placed first overall to lead the Hornets in a time of 19:39 on the 2.95 mile hilly course. Junior Adelyn Kelly, 8th grader Sophia Garibotto and junior co-captain Riley MacDonald stepped up and took places 3, 4 and 5 in times of 20:53, 21:22 and 22:37, respectively.
Sophomore Chloe DeAngelis (7th, 23:36), 8th grader Bridget (8th, 23:38), junior Gabby Montanye (11th, 24:33), freshman Verity Modeen (12th, 25:28), junior Carolyn Ward (13th, 26:21), 8th grader Emily Cappella (15th, 27:15), freshman Ilma Gurda (19th, 30:58), freshman Ruby Davidson (21st, 31:21), sophomore Samantha Mejia (23rd, 38:14), junior Annalee Miller (24th, 38:20) and 8th grader Tabitha Begley 25th, 39:18) rounded out the victorious Hornet athletes.
“Our team had a tremendous day across the board,” said Hornets head coach Ryan Spinney. “Quin led the way as she has all season and our group of top 7 runners are really coming along. This could be a really special postseason if we continue to stay focused and healthy.”
The Hornets finished the regular season slate with a record of 3-1.
On the boys’ side, the Panthers had a very strong race as they took the top 8 places in the race to sweep the Hornets by a score of 15-50. Junior Jacob Ye was the top Hornet finisher with his 9th place effort in a time of 19:04.
Sophomore Cole Donohue (10th, 19:16), freshman Zachary Mahoney (11th, 19:29), 8th grader Aidan Steele (12th, 19:29), senior Gerard Jorda (13th, 19:36), junior co-captain Connor Abruzzese (14th, 20:02), sophomore Jason Hawley (17th, 20:48), sophomore Cooper Mascolo (18th, 21:03), sophomore Charlie Sarno (20th, 21:15), sophomore Mark Sorrenti (21:17), freshman Declan Walsh (26th, 25:08), freshman Cole Verdonck (30th, 25:36), 8th grader James Boesch (32nd, 25:47), 8th grader Hugo DaSilva (33rd, 25:48) and freshman Declan Goshey (36th, 28:42) rounded out the Hornet competitors on the day.
“The score doesn’t give the full picture about the race today,” said Spinney. “We had some really strong races from lots of the guys and we are proud of the effort they gave today.”
The Hornets finished their regular season with a record of 0-4 but are looking toward the postseason to make some noise.
The Hornets raced on Wednesday in a scrimmage event with Lynnfield and Amesbury. The next scoring competition will be on Saturday, Oct. 25 at the Cape Ann League Open Championship in Wrentham.