CUMBERLAND - Nick Williams had the kind of start he wanted.

As the mass of runners raced out of the starting area and began to ascend uphill, the Poland senior pulled ahead with Lewiston's Mohamed Noor keeping pace to his right.

"If you get to the trail behind a bunch of guys, there no way you're going to get past that," said Williams.

He wasn't able to keep that lead and quickly began to watch other runners pass him. Noor fell even further behind. By the time the 73rd New England Cross Country Championship Meet was over, Williams settled for 30th place.

"I slowed down to my more comfortable pace and people started passing me and passing me," said Williams, the Class B state champion. "I lost my focus. I wasn't holding myself together very well."

Noor, the Class A state champ who hadn't been beaten since preseason, finished 124th. He finished third on his team as the Lewiston finished 18th overall. Robbie Driscoll was Lewiston's top runner in 86th. Sadam Abdi finished 123rd. Both Abdi and Noor sought medical attention following the race.

"If all my kids go home healthy, I'm happy," said Lewiston coach Ray Putnam. "When you've got a kid in the ambulance, you stop worrying about the results in the meet and start thinking about the kids. Even though I push them hard and work them hard, I care about everyone of them like they're my own kids."

Putnam learned later that Noor had sand tossed into his eye by a spectator early in the race, and that was a significant factor in Noor's finish.

"It's ridiculous," said Putnam. "I don't understand how anyone could or would want to do something like that to one of the nicest kids I've met in my life."

Donald Cabral defended his championship with a win in the boys' race. The Glastonbury, Connecticut runner finished in 15:32.4. Matt Kane, of Fairfield, Connecticut and Ken Burnell of St. Johnsbury, Vermont followed.

Maine's top runner was Falmouth's Ethan Shaw in 24th. Williams was second in 30th. Cape's Matt Rand finished 36th while Fryeburg's Timothy Even was 37th.

Other locals finishers were Mt. Blue's Eric Marceau in 72nd, Winthrop's Danny Soltan in 110th, Mt. Blue's Kelton Cullenberg in 112th and Winthrop's Tor O'Brien in 115th.

Danbury, Connecticut won the meet with 43 points. East Greenwich was second with 148 and Con Val of New Hampshire was third in 149.

Lewiston was Maine's top team in 19th. Ellsworth was 24th and Greely 26th. Winthrop finished in 29th.

"We're definitely further back than we expected," said Putnam. "The top four guys were up in the top 70 or 80. Without Mohammed in the top five and losing that low number, you've got to have that low number to finish that high."

In the girls' race, Hanover, New Hampshire's Georgia Griffin won the race in 18:06.5. Jeanne Mack from La Salle in Rhode Island was second followed by Hannah Rowe, from St. Johnsbury, Vermont.

Maine's top finisher was Old Town's Hilary Maxim in 15th. Massabesic's Katherine Pierce was 21st and Waynflete's Adel Espy was 23rd. Cape's Emily Atwood was 32nd with Falmouth's Maddie Grygiel in 37th.

The top local runner was Fryeburg's Grace Miller in 165th.

Hanover, New Hampshire was the top team with 43 points. Glastonbury, Connecticut was second with 175. La Salle was third with 195. Maine's top team was Cape Elizabeth in eighth. Falmouth was 21st and Brunswick 25th.

Williams finished seventh and eighth in the New England's the last two years. Racing at the Twin Brook Recreation Area provided a potential home course advantage. Williams won back-to-back regional titles on that course. Though he got out to a good start, he watched the field pull away.

"I kind of lost track of my mental strength and my confidence was going down," said Williams. "I was like 'I can get back in the race slowly.' I slowly started to pick it up. I caught up with Noor about the second mile. Tim (Even) and I were running together pretty much the whole race. I was feeling stronger and stronger. I didn't use all I had because I still had too much left at the end."

Abdi said that Noor got something in his eye and had trouble seeing. Abdi said he felt good at the start but started to fade. Noor was wheeled to the ambulance in a chair following the race while Abdi sought medical attention as well but soon was walking around following the meet.

"I felt good," said Abdi. "Then I just lost it. I don't know what happened. I can't even speak right. I'm freezing."