In a season that gets better by the week, the Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School (MVRHS) boys cross-country team won the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) Division 2C championship on Saturday at the Gardner Municipal Golf Course. The Vineyarders finished with 62 points, comfortably ahead of second-place Norwell (108).
MVRHS senior Jonathan Norton topped the field of 172 harriers on the 5K course, finishing in 16:53, under perfect running conditions with temperatures in the mid-50s.
“The course did not run fast. It’s very hilly,” Vineyard Coach Joe Schroeder said. “In a division meet you’re worried about place, not time. Jonathan ran a really smart race, strategically.” Norton battled back and forth with second-place Steven Galatis of Austin Prep, but pulled away in the last mile.
The top 15 runners earned awards, and the Vineyarders had three in the top 12. Borja Tolay placed third in 17:03, and Daniel da Silva finished 12th in 17:33.
Sam Fetters ran 21st (17:54), Daniel Serpa 25th (18:01), Duncan Brown 40th (18:39), and Linus Munn, 68th (19:25). The top five Vineyarders finished just 1:08 apart. “That’s kind of key in a division or state meet, to have a tight pack,” Schroeder said.
With the win in the divisional meet, the Vineyard boys will run against 22 teams from across Division 2 (sections A, B, and C) in the state championship meet Saturday at the Wrentham Development Center. Seven Vineyarders will compete, and eight runners will train.
The Vineyard girls also performed well on the Gardner course. Wren Christy finished second (19:53) among 152 runners, behind Whitinville Christian’s Molly Lashley (18:50), qualifying individually for the state meet along with Alexa Schroeder, who placed 25th (21:13). Eloise Christy finished 73rd (23:32).
Looking ahead to the state championship and the nine MVRHS harriers competing, Coach Schroeder said, “We’re really excited. The kids have just really risen to the occasion.”
