Marblehead’s girls cross country runners made their way to Goddard Park to compete in the Brown Invitational last Saturday. Marrietta O’Connell secured 11th place in the girls championship 5K (92 runners) with a time 19:06.4.
“Marri O’Connell had her first true test of the season and walked away very happy with her result,” said Marblehead coach Will Herlihy. “Despite the slow course, Marri finished 11th
against some of the very best runners in the region and beat all but one runner from an impressive California team.”
Evelina Beletsky shined in her 5K debut. In a field of 252 runners, she placed 84th with a time of 23:30.9.
“Running 23:30 on a slow course is a great sign for the sophomore, who has been having an outstanding first season,” Herlihy said.
The freshmen race (4K) featuring 84 runners saw Ruby Assa, Evie Becker, Mary Donnellan, and Anna Cruikshank deliver strong showings.
“Marblehead had two runners win medals: Ruby Assa in 13th and Evie Becker 25th… these two should be thrilled with their performances,” Herlihy said. “Mary Donnellan had a bold start to the race and battled all the way to the finish to a very solid 47th-place finish, keeping her average mile under eight minutes… Anna Cruikshank rounded out Marblehead’s freshmen with a 65th-place finish. All of these young runners have so much to be proud about, and this race was just another great showing for the future of this program.”
On the boys’ side, they traveled to Warwick, Rhode Island on Saturday to compete in the Ocean State Invitational. They finished ninth in the championship division.
The Magicians received strong performances from Nate Assa (7th, 16:03) and Will Cerrutti (15th, 16:17). Jacob Szalewicz, Will Cruikshank, and Jonah Potach also ran well, according to coach Brian Heenan.
In the junior varsity race, David Alpert came home with a medal for his 19th-place finish. In the freshmen race, Victor Pechhold also brought home the gold for his 18th-place finish.