Last cross country season was a dark time for the Newton North cross country team. What could’ve been a great season turned into one of the team’s lowest points in recent years. They had two seniors in their top seven, Max Badri and Luke Mantell, and while both started their seasons strong, they eventually had to pack up early due to injury. Without their two seniors, Newton North suffered some tough defeats. This included a one-point loss to Wellesley early in the season, as well as a disappointing showing at the Bay State Conference Championships, where they lost to Wellesley again, along with Walpole and Weymouth.
After their conference meet, though, Newton North started to reassemble itself. One of the major reasons was Ryan Costello returning to the lineup. Although he wasn’t at the same level he had been during track, he was still a solid front-runner for the team. This helped the squad have a breakout race at the Division 1A Championship, where they placed seventh to qualify for the All-State meet.
One week later, they went up to Devens and outperformed expectations once again. The team placed 14th overall, with their first through fourth runners all finishing within 16 seconds of each other. Their performance that day gives us hope for what they could accomplish this season.
On the track, this team also had plenty of success. We already mentioned Ryan Costello, but what we didn’t mention is that he enters the season with a two-mile PR of 9:12. Costello should hope to be in the running for not just the team title, but the individual title as well.
Behind Costello, though, is Newton North’s biggest strength. Enter William Kenneally, Lucas Allen, Alexander Daly, and Mathew Gallo. This Newton North pack should be a force to be reckoned with. All boasting two-mile PRs between 9:56 and 10:06, the four runners should be able to work off each other throughout the season. Although Lucas Allen only has a 10:04 two-mile PR, his 4:29 mile stands out among the rest. If anything, he might be a bit closer to Costello than the rest of the pack.
And don’t count out Jamie Evans. After running some crazy track PRs of 4:34 in the mile and 1:58 in the 800, he might also be able to connect himself to the rest of the Newton North pack.
Remember to keep this team in your head during the fall. Their tight pack and junior-senior-heavy lineup play to their advantage. They start their season soon against last year’s state runner-up, Natick. Let’s see if this team has something to prove.