For the past two years, Nick Williams has been one of the top runners at the New England Cross Country Championships.

Saturday he hopes a little home-course advantage will help him win the individual title.

The Poland Regional High School senior recently won the State Class B crown at Leavitt Area High School. He has also captured back-to-back regional titles at the Twin Brook course in Cumberland, the site of this year’s New England race.

“He tends to run well on (the Twin Brook) course,” said Poland coach Sean Gallipeau. “We’ve been running there two or three times a year. It has flat areas, rolling hills and fields.”

Williams’ style is perfect for the course.

“He has the combination of speed and strength,” said Gallipeau.

This will be the fourth time Williams has competed in the race. He has learned a great deal since his freshman year.

(Lake Region’s) Miles Bartlett and Kevin Floster advised Williams to just “stay with them” for the race.

Williams saw the duo a few starting boxes down and decided to run over toward them at the start of the race. He was quickly swallowed up in the mass of humanity and finished in 128th place.

“If you don’t get out in the front for the first 400 meters,” said Williams, “you’re not going to be out in front. You have 50 kids or more that can run at the same caliber as you.”

He finished in seventh and eighth place the last two years. He has become accustomed to the physical style necessary to be competitive.

“If (the other runners) want to get by you, they will,” he says. “They’ll lean into you and push you into trees. I’m not going to let them push me out of the way. If you run passive, it’ll throw you off your race.”

Williams loves the Twin Brook course.

“The course is my favorite,” he said. “It’s one of the most challenging courses and it’s a curvy course. I know how to run the course. The last hill is placed perfectly for me. It’s right there at the finish line and hills are my specialty.”

Another goal for Williams is to be the top Maine finisher. He had the top time for all classes at the state championship, but has never raced against Lewiston’s Mohamed Noor, who was the state’s lone undefeated runner this fall. Falmouth’s Ethan Shaw is another favorite to be the state’s top runner.

The defending individual champion is Donn Cabral of Glastonbury, Conn.

The Lewiston boys hope to be the top Maine team.

“That’s our number-one goal,” said Lewiston coach Ray Putnam. “We have to go out fast, that’s how we run.”

Noor will have his work cut out for him.

“There are some serious runners in this race,” says Putnam. “Mohamed can stick with anyone for two miles. The difference will be whether he can stick with them for two miles and then pull away.”

The top Maine runners in the girls’ division include Yarmouth’s Anna Makaretz, Falmouth’s Madeline Grygiel and Cape Elizabeth’s Marita Stressenger. But don’t count out Silver Hunt. The Mt. Blue sophomore has turned in her best two races of the year in capturing the regional and state titles in Class A. She turned in the fourth-best time overall in the state meet despite running on a chewed up course in wet conditions.