Although our team rankings will only include the top 15 during the season, there are still plenty of other teams in the state that can make some noise. Many of these teams are either returning deep squads or have characteristics that aren't listed on paper. This article will cover some more of the top teams in the state and what you can expect from them this season.
Amherst-Pelham and Arlington both belong to this group of squads. However, we already talked about them in one of our rankings articles. If you wish to know more about those teams, you can find them here.
Read Preseason Rankings No. 15–11 →Billerica
In our opinion, heading into the season, Billerica probably has the best 1-2 punch in the state, with Mason Niles (9:18) having one of the better chances at making All-State champion. Niles was injured toward the end of last cross country season and didn’t compete in the postseason. However, he probably would’ve finished inside the top ten if he competed at the Meet of Champions. Sahil Gandhi (9:13) is right with Niles and actually holds a better two-mile PR, beating him at the Weston Twilight Invitational this spring. Their No. 3 runner is actually an incoming freshman. How do we know this? Because he ran a 4:38 mile in eighth grade. Dylan Kane enters the season and should easily be able to take down his 17:34 PR. Christopher Panzeri (17:35) and Hayden Headley (17:49) round out this squad as strong No. 4 and No. 5 runners.
Needham
After a few down years, the Needham program seems to be back with a strong pack of runners. It looks like the squad will be led by Austin Conti (16:35) and Connor Bobbin (4:39, 17:10). After that, there are several athletes who could take the next few spots. Although injured last year, Cash Lindsley (4:47, 10:16) and Kaden Hu (2:00, 1:28) both return to the lineup this year. Gabriele Mineo (17:24), Zayan Hussain (17:33), Duncan Alexander (17:41), and Harrison O’Garr (10:47) could also all be heavy hitters for the squad. Be on the lookout for incoming sophomores Caleb Gilberth and Adam Pfaff. Both had great freshman campaigns, and we’re excited to see what they can do this year.
Newton South
We didn’t go over the Dual County League on this account, but even outside of the top three there are still some top-tier teams. Newton South returns three seniors below the 17:00 barrier. Patrick Feng (16:44), Harry Danila-Schmidt (16:46), and Carl Munshi (16:54) all return to lead this squad. Junior Fran Tibau Martorall (17:06) is right behind and might even be able to stick with the trio in some races. Kavin Sundaram (17:44) anchors this squad. Although his time isn’t top-notch, we believe the top four will be able to negate this.
Belmont and Winchester
Next, the Belmont and Winchester rivalry should be an exciting part of Massachusetts running this year. Both have really similar teams and should hope to challenge each other in every meet they’re in together. Winchester probably has the edge over Belmont, but expect both teams’ top three runners to give each other a battle. Winchester returns Noah Damaske (4:41), Tyler Bernstein (9:50), and Noah Mannelli (9:46). Belmont is returning Noah Geiger (9:26), Ishaan Kanagaraj (9:56), and William Olmsted (10:03). Though Winchester's edge isn’t their top three, but their depth. Nikola Dimitrov (16:34) beats out Belmont’s No. 4 on paper, and Nate Bickford (17:01) beats out Belmont's No. 5.
Boston Latin Academy
Your defending Division 2 state champions aren't done yet. Although it appears this team is returning five of their top seven, one athlete, Terrance McGhee Jr., is actually transferring to BC High this year. Nonetheless, they are still a formidable squad and a team that knows how to perform in the postseason. Brandon Spiess (15:47) returns for his senior year ready to compete for some individual and team hardware. Spiess is the No. 3 returner from last year's Division 2 Meet of Champions. Adam Kramer (16:22) is back as a really solid No. 2 runner for the BLA team. Kramer also flourished on the track, running 4:31 for the mile. From there, they return two more runners who had run below the 10:00 barrier for the two-mile, Khalid Jama (9:46) and Nathaniel Iliff (9:48). Though the team’s main problem is they need to find a solid No. 5. On paper, Mason Mastrodicasa returns to round out the squad with a PR of 18:19. Can BLA go back to back?
Walpole
Walpole may return the most misleading statistics for any team in this article. Already they return three seniors below the 17:00 barrier, Asher Kingman (16:47), Owen Ahlfont (16:48), and Joseph Curran (16:59). After that, their next runner, Nate O’Neil, has very misleading times. He returns with a season best of 17:23 and a PR of 17:16 from his sophomore year, the year where he was leagues above Kingman, Ahlfont, and Curran. He also comes in with a 4:34 mile and a 2:03 800. There’s a high possibility we actually see O’Neil leading the Walpole boys this year. It also looks like Josiah Escobar (18:33) comes in as their No. 5. However, that's very misleading as well. Ethan Hamilton (10:46, 5:05) and Camden Triessel (5:06) have both never run a 5K before and had very strong spring track seasons.
North Andover
The boys from North Andover are easily the fastest squad on this list. They not only return five different runners below 17:05, but a squad that doesn’t specifically have a No. 1 runner. Tucker Larosa (16:15, 9:50) returns with the fastest 5K on the team but only the third-best two-mile. William Thomas (16:39, 9:49) and Liam Rand (16:51, 9:46) have shown much improvement over this past track season and are ready to challenge Larosa for the top spot. Thomas and Rand weren't the only ones to show massive improvement on the track. Their No. 4 and No. 5, Tristan Rand (17:02, 10:07) and Owen Desmond (17:02, 10:02), also have phenomenal two-mile PRs and show they can probably take a good amount off their 5K. The MVC should be scared of this team and what they can accomplish.
Xaverian Brothers
The Xaverian squad also brings back lots of talent. Although overshadowed by the tremendous skill levels of both the Catholic Conference and Division 1B, they still return a very deep squad. Jack Weintraub (16:32), although more known for the 800, leads the Xaverian squad in the 5K as well. Behind him are three more solid runners in Marco Petrino (16:43), Alex Armstrong (16:46), and Desmond Sullivan (17:05). Although it looks like their No. 5 is a bit farther back, Scott Feeney, coming in with a 17:53 5K, had an explosive track season where he ran a 4:40 mile and 1:57 800m. If Feeney can climb his way up the Xaverian squad, their team could look stronger than ever.
Lincoln-Sudbury
This is the fourth out of six teams in the Foley Division of the Dual County League that we will have our eyes on. Lincoln-Sudbury’s strength is their top end. They have a solid 1-2 punch in Brandon Ma (16:24) and Lukas Masiakos (16:25). On paper their No. 3 is a bit back. However, he was only a freshman last year and had some crazy PRs on the track, being Joshua Gamel (16:59, 4:29). Not to say their No. 4 or No. 5 aren't good runners, however, the team's top end is definitely their strength. Jackson Alderman (17:42) and Benjamin Scanga (17:44) both return to anchor this squad. We're excited to see what they can do against other teams in the Dual County League, specifically previously mentioned Newton South.
Wellesley
We talked a bit about this team in the BSC article. However, we never went fully in depth with them. Daniel Goldberg returns as a solid front runner for the squad after running a 16:04 5K last year at the Bay State Invitational. He's backed up by Nate Flynn (16:44, 4:44) and Solomon Jin (17:12, 4:43). Watch out for these two, as both runners had to wrap up their season before October, meaning their 5K times could go way down. After that, Conor Foley (17:25) and Peter Mahoney (17:37) round out this squad. Keep an eye on Mahoney, as he's coming off a big two-mile PR of 10:21. We also touched on this in the BSC article, but we’re excited to see where the team falls against previously mentioned Needham and Walpole.