There’s only one other conference in the state that has the ability to compete with the Bay State Conference in terms of talent, and that’s the Catholic Conference. Even with fewer teams, it makes the top two shine even more. Just like last year, this conference will be defined by the battle between the boys from BC High and St. John’s Prep. This article will cover all aspects of the Catholic Conference and what to expect from them this season.
Key Individuals
- Colin Kurtz — BC High
- Owen Geagan — BC High
- Henry McDonnell — St. John’s Prep
- Leo Seltenrich — St. John’s Prep
- Joseph Hayes — BC High
- Sleeper: Mateo DeOrio — St. John’s Prep
If there’s a clear favorite for the conference, it’s going to be Colin Kurtz. He’s the No. 1 returner from their conference meet last year by over twenty seconds. He also has some solid track times of 9:24 and 4:28. However, if there’s any runner that will challenge Kurtz, it’s going to be his teammate Owen Geagan. Although injured last cross country season, Geagan comes into this year with track PRs of 4:23 and 1:56. If this comes down to a kick, Geagan clearly has the leg speed to finish.
This conference is different from all the rest. Until the top two, every team is pretty spread out and in their own world. Malden Catholic takes the last-place spot. Tyler Walsh (18:54) returns as their only runner under the 19:00 barrier. Their No. 3–5 runners then fall into the 20:00–24:00 range.
Just ahead of them is St. John’s (Shrewsbury). They’re not a bad team by any means; however, they are on the lower end of the conference. Holden Hallee (16:52) is back to lead his team. They then have four more runners between 17:00 and 18:05.
After St. John’s, we start to get into some really good teams. The boys from Xaverian just missed our rankings and are still returning a very talented team. The 800m specialist Jack Weintraub (16:32) is back and ready to lead his team. Behind him are two more runners below the 17:00 barrier and a returning sophomore who just missed it: Marco Petrino (16:43), Alex Armstrong (16:46), and Desmond Sullivan (17:05). This team is full of talent, and we’re excited to see what they can do inside the conference and at the state level.
Sliding into No. 3 is a very talented Catholic Memorial team. Although losing their top runner in Mike Upton, they return their next five runners. Daniel Kaleba (16:04), Gerard Stock (16:17), Jude Kaleba (16:32), and Theo Fitzpatrick (16:33) are all back and ready to challenge the Catholic Conference and maybe even D1C. Their strength is their pack. Having four runners within 30 seconds of each other is quite the accomplishment. On paper, Finn Rosenbaum comes in as their No. 5. Although he only boasts a 17:58 5K, he ran a 4:45 mile this past spring, so we believe he can get down below the 17:00 barrier this season. This team is ready to go and may even be looking to challenge Oliver Ames for a trophy at the D1C meet in November.
Now things get complicated. We may have originally misjudged the rivalry between St. John’s Prep and BC High. Looking back at the statistics, we believe that BC High might actually have the upper hand. With Owen Geagan fully healthy, he and Colin Kurtz are a dirty 1-2 punch. Although Henry McDonnell (15:47) and Leo Seltenrich (15:48) are two very strong runners, we believe Kurtz and Geagan have the more capable skill set.
Mateo DeOrio is also a huge wild card. He ran some crazy times in the spring, and we’ll see if he can convert it to the grass. However, luckily for BC High, Joseph Hayes (15:55) and Theo Weiss (16:02) come in right after that. BC High potentially has four runners in front of St. John’s Prep’s No. 3 or No. 4, which would be huge. Logan Barry (16:44), who is BC High’s No. 5, is a bit farther back; however, we believe their top end would negate the issue of him coming in after Prep’s No. 6.
Who will come out on top, BC High, or St. John’s Prep?