2023 cross country preview capsules

DIRIGO COUGARS
Coach: Gunnar Bradbury (second year)
Conference: MVC; Class: C South
Last year’s results: Girls: Fifth at C South regionals, third at MVCs
Returning athletes: Boys: Sophomore — Wyatt Perham; Girls: Sophomores — Ella Cote, Phoenix Lee, Sophia Archer, Amelia Mallet.
Key losses: Gage Lee, Brooke Buotte (running for Bentley).
Promising newcomers: Boys: Freshmen — William Morris, Stetson Thurston, Mitchell Wolf, Salem Remington, Tomlin Suttles, Hayden Robbins; Girls: Freshmen — Aurora Breau, McKenzie Boyle.
Season outlook: Bradbury has high hopes for both the boys and girls teams, who each have big enough squads to compete as a team for the first time in recent memory. “Both of those teams, I believe, will be in the running for the Mountain Valley Conference championship,” Bradbury said, noting that the boys team inherits some strong runners from the middle school program that won almost all of its meets last year. Both the boys and girls teams have a goal of qualifying for states.

EDWARD LITTLE RED EDDIES
Coach: Katie Byrne (second year); assistant: Gretchen Slover (first year)
Conference: KVAC; Class: A North
Last year’s results: Boys: Eighth at A North regionals, eighth at Class A KVACs; Girls: Sixth at A North regionals, sixth at Class A KVACs
Returning athletes: Boys: Senior — Jaden Baril; Juniors — Gavin Anderson, Owen Doucette, Declan Howe, Joseph LeBlanc, Quinn St. Peter Scott, Kai Thistle; Sophomores — Tristyn Chapman, Calvin Vincent; Girls: Senior — Katharine Garcia; Junior — Leilani Mitchell, Nora Condit.
Key losses: Payton Bell, Emily Quinnell, Dru Hyndman, Elijah Morgan.
Promising newcomers: Seniors — Johnathan Monaghan, Shirome Coy; Juniors — Samira Awil, Solana Coy, Azaraya May, Payton Newson; Sophomores — Ahmed Ali, Finn Kunas; Freshmen — Nathaniel Bigos-Lowe, Madeleine Hawley, Carter Hill, Thomas LeBlanc, Gabriel Newson.
Season outlook: The Red Eddies continue to add numbers, depth and strength, according to Byrne. And with a new school, running track and fitness center, the team can diversify its training plan, she added. Calvin Vincent and Katharine Garcia were state championship qualifiers last year, but Byrne said the top seven on both the boys and girls team could be shaken up with the addition of newcomers this season.

GRAY-NEW GLOUCESTER PATRIOTS
Coach: Adam Zukowski (16th year)
Conference: WMC; Class: B South
Last year’s results: Boys: Ninth at B South regionals; Girls: 11th at regionals
Returning athletes: Boys: Seniors — Carter Libby, Preston Gerry, Peter Curcio, Tony Reiling; Junior — Gavin Gerry.
Key loss: Alex Strattard.
Promising newcomers: Boys: Junior — Colby Mitchell; Sophomore — Jackson Libby; Girls: Freshman — Vanessa Parlin.
Season outlook: Reigning Class B state champion Carter Libby gives the boys team a top front runner as the Patriots look to qualify for this year’s state meet. Preston and Gavin Gerry had some stellar summer training, according to Zukowski, which will allow them to compete with the WMC’s best. And newcomers Colby Mitchell and Jackson Libby round out a strong top five.

LEAVITT HORNETS
Coach: Jen Perron (second year)
Conference: KVAC; Class: B South
Last year’s results: Boys: 10th at B South regionals, third at Class B KVACs; Girls: Eighth at Class B KVACs
Returning athletes: Seniors — Gabe Durazo, Dominick Toscano, Noah Brisson, Linsday Bates; Juniors — Charlotte Brooke, Annabelle Chabot; Sophomores — Reed Petin, Cambirelle Poole.
Key losses: Logan Ouellette, Jake Maheu, Kenzie Cote.
Promising newcomers: Freshmen — Addyson Turmel, Max Cilley.
Season outlook: Durazo takes over as the “guiding force” for the boys team, according to Perron. The Hornets boys have their sights set on a KVAC title after finishing third last year, and they are striving to qualify for states. Addyson Turmel brings promise as a freshman to the girls team, which also is looking to improve its place at KVACs and qualify for the state championship.

LEWISTON BLUE DEVILS
Coach: Craig John (first year); assistants: Vicky Crouse, John Sinclair
Conference: KVAC; Class: A North
Last year’s results: Boys: Ninth at A North regionals, seventh at Class A KVACs; Girls: Eighth at regionals, eighth at Class A KVACs
Returning athletes: Madison Binette, Annie Spurr, Amelia Wooten, Katelyn Lynch, Evan Brosseau, Gage Oliver, Clive Haverkamp, Ethan Fortuna.
Key losses: Adam Bilodeau, Feysal Abdiraman, Danny Zhang.
Promising newcomers: Enzo Giampaolo, Lily Douglass.
Season outlook: John is calling this a rebuilding year, and some returners will have to fill the gaps of last year’s graduating seniors. But he expects breakout seasons from Binette, Spurr, Giampaolo and Brosseau. Binette and Brosseau are the captains for this year’s team. “We all like to win, but we are focusing on our athletes training hard, having fun and supporting each other,” John said. “So far, we are accomplishing all that and more.”

LISBON GREYHOUNDS
Coach: Jeremy Williams (ninth year)
Conference: MVC; Class: C South
Last year’s results: Boys: 12th at Class C states, seventh at C South regionals, fourth at MVCs
Returning athletes: Boys: Junior — Layne Williams; Sophomores — Kylan Dugal, Malachi Ganong, Ryan Hanlon, Liam Kuhl, Sam Liudvinaitis, Isaiah McDonough, Isaac Scribellito.
Key losses: Chase Mailhot, Aubrianna Bright.
Promising newcomers: Boys: Junior — Devin Kolarik; Sophomore — Eric Soucie; Freshmen — Ethan Ferro, Brody Hall, Autumn Fox, Kendel McGehee; Girls: Freshmen — Elly Blake, Adaya Ganong, Lauren Moreau.
Season outlook: The Greyhounds are young on both the boys and girls sides, though the boys have what Williams called a veteran sophomore group who helped lead Lisbon to a Class C state championship qualification a year ago. The girls, meanwhile, will compete as individuals, and they will be looking to develop throughout the season into the championship meets. Williams coached all the incoming freshmen at the middle school level, and he said they show great promise for their first high school season. “Don’t count out what this young group is capable of doing through the trails. I feel they can surprise a lot of teams throughout the season,” he said.

MT. BLUE COUGARS
Coach: Kelley Cullenberg (31st year)
Conference: KVAC; Class: A North
Last year’s results: Boys: Fourth at Class A states, fourth at A North regionals, third at Class A KVACs; Girls: Ninth at states, A North runners-up, third at Class A KVACs
Returning athletes: Boys: Seniors — Ben Daku, Daniel Dalton, Owen Heseltine, Andrew Robinson; Juniors — Noah Civiello, Eli Hoeft, Henri McCourt; Sophomores — Luke Doscinski, Ben Hatch; Girls: Seniors — Lucinda Carroll, Natalie McCarthy; Juniors — Nora McCourt, Brielle Tinker; Sophomore — Elizabeth Strickland.
Key losses: Cyrus Evans, Kodi Quimby, Moriah Reusch, Addie Colello, Cassidy Hardy, Daniela Cundick, Molly Patterson.
Promising newcomers: Boys: Sophomore — Nick Bell; Freshmen — James Civiello, Nick DeMarco, Wyatt Hall, Teddy McLeod, Kevin Montminy, Damian Wynn; Girls — Elsa Feegel, Lily Jackson.
Season outlook: The boys team has to replace two of its top 10 runners, but plenty of experienced runners return, and Cullenberg said they are working to establish a stronger pack that can train and race together. The girls return five of their top runners and are hoping to add some more depth. “Both teams are showing that they have what it takes to be competitive again this year and are looking forward to making steady progress to improve upon last season’s performances,” Cullenberg said.

OAK HILL RAIDERS
Coach: Jack Carney (fifth year)
Conference: MVC; Class: B South
Returning athletes: Boys: Senior — Sebastian Doyle: Girls: Junior — Celina Curran.
Key losses: Jared Grant, Dominick Plourde.
Promising newcomers: Boys: Sophomore — Elliot Hill; Freshman — Maxx Crowley; Girls: Sophomore — Amanda Williams; Freshmen — Robyn Babbidge, Abigail Gervais, Avery Pinard, Jayda Smith.
Season outlook: After not having enough runners to compete as a team on either the boys side or girls side last year, Carney is looking forward to the possibility of the Raiders fielding a competitive girls team for the first time in two years this season. “With the additions of the promising newcomers and their energy and enthusiasm, this year’s team members are excited about setting personal bests and enjoying themselves,” Carney said.

OXFORD HILLS VIKINGS
Coach: Luc Roy (18th year)
Conference: KVAC; Class: A North
Last year’s results: Boys: 10th at A North regionals, 10th at Class A KVACs; Girls: Ninth at regionals, 10th at Class A KVACs
Returning athletes: Boys: Seniors — Cody Roy, Hayden Hethcoat, Gavriel DosReis, Zachary Braun; Juniors — Noah Kissel, Lucas Hutchinson, Carlton Dailey; Sophomores — Jeremiah Lawrence, William Kasperek, Carson Holme, Ronan Brown, William Abbot; Girls: Senior — Willow Adler; Junior — Adelaide Harthorne; Sophomores — Cedar Worster, Emily Sanborn, Antonella Gilbert.
Key losses: Camden Colby, Caroline Sheets, Hannah Grover.
Promising newcomers: Boys: Asher Roy, Grady Miller.
Season outlook: The boys have built a strong squad, with core team members from last year adding two promising runners this season. And Roy said that while the girls team is short on numbers, “their hard work and determination shows vast improvements from last year on the individual and team performances.”

POLAND KNIGHTS
Coach: Sean Galipeau-Eldridge (22nd year)
Conference: WMC; Class: B South
Last year’s results: Boys: 12th at B South regionals; Girls: 10th at regionals
Returning athletes: Boys: Senior — JR Tibbetts; Junior — Johnny Bsullak; Sophomores — Ethan Castonguay, George Dionne, Harper Doyle, Ryan Kelly, Riley Lamb, Zachary Maffei; Girls: Senior — Danielle Warren; Juniors — Brianna Corriveau, Autumn Demelia, Kayleigh Hood; Sophomore — Emily Bartlett.
Key losses: Boys: Anthony Warren, Michael Wells. Girls: Nicole Rioux.
Promising newcomers: Boys: Sophomores — Lucas Foss, Cayden Michaud; Freshmen — Ben Comeau, Brayden D’Auteuil, David Farrell, Benny Fuller; Girls: Freshmen — Kaiah McGarry, Elianna Morello.
Season outlook: The Knights are young, but they are looking to use pack running to make improvements this season. Bsullak is the leader of the boys team, according to Galipeau-Eldridge, and the Knights have a group of six to seven runners who will narrow the gap amongst them and push each other to improve times. The girls, led by Corriveau and Bartlett, are also looking to run in a tight pack and increase consistency, which should help the Knights be competitive this season.

SPRUCE MOUNTAIN PHOENIX
Coach: Ben Geissinger (third year)
Conference: MVC; Class: B South
Last year’s results: Boys: Sixth at MVCs; Girls: Eighth at C South regionals
Returning athletes: Boys: Samuel Geissinger; Girls: Hannah Perkins, Skylar Condon, Katie Johnson, Avery Ryder.
Key losses: Abrahm Geissinger, Sam Perkins, Owen Schwab, Matt Pepe, Ava Coates.
Promising newcomers: Boys: Freshmen — Owen Dunn, Chris Wilson; Girls: Senior — Emily Bowie; Junior — Olivia Tompkins; Freshmen — Erin Chen, Morgan McDaniel.
Season outlook: The Phoenix lost a number of experienced runners, especially on the boys side, but coach Ben Geissinger said there’s still some key runners returning and some “great new prospects.” The team is fortunate to have Perkins and Condon as leaders, he added. They are both underclassmen, so the new runners will have them as mentors beyond this season. “Our preseason has gone very well, with the whole team showing great commitment and determination,” Geissinger said. “They are very focused and are doing a great job supporting each other.”

ST. DOMINIC SAINTS
Coach: Cameron Meserve (first year)
Conference: WMC; Class: C South
Last year’s results: Boys: 13th at C South regionals
Returning athletes: Senior — Abigail Piotrowski; Juniors — Rohen Brown, Phoenix Jalbert, Jack Gilpatric, Logan Martin, Gavin Godfrey.
Promising newcomers: Freshmen — Anastasia Jalbert, Daisy Piotrowski.
Season outlook: Meserve takes over what he called a very young team, but one that has a fantastic core group of upperclassmen to lead the charge. “Our group is focusing on development, continuing to build our team culture, as well as competing versus ourselves and against competition,” said Meserve, adding that he is excited to see the team make progress toward reaching its goals.

WINTHROP RAMBLERS
Coach: Ed Van Tassel (12th year)
Conference: MVC; Class: C South
Last year’s results: Boys: Class C runners-up, C South champions, MVC champions; Girls: Sixth at regionals, MVC runners-up
Returning athletes: Boys: Seniors — Chris Pottle, Eben Michaud, Teddy Wagner, Sam Brito, Harold Vance, Bennett Ross, Zachary Chapman, David Gustin; Junior — Joseph Szakas; Sophomore — Luke Hopkins; Girls: Senior — Haley Williams; Junior — Ashley Arseneault; Sophomore — Grace Drown.
Key losses: James Cognata, Annabelle Blais.
Promising newcomers: Boys: Senior — Gabe Corey; Freshman — Sam St. Germain; Girls: Senior — Kaitlyn Brito; Freshmen — Keura Pearson, Sophie Beckwith.
Season outlook: The boys team, despite losing top runner James Cognata, is looking to build off last year’s success. The girls team has what Van Tassel called a good mix of new and experienced runners, and they will look to come together as a team and improve over the course of the season.