Behind Edwards’ Win, Simsbury Girls Take 2nd
Dagny Edwards didn’t have much time to shine last season in cross country, but she made the most of an early opportunity to do just that at the Stratton Brook Invitational in Simsbury on Saturday.
Edwards, a Simsbury junior, ran 20:17 to win the girls large school varsity race. Last year, she had to deal with an early season foot injury that limited her until the state races. Her winning time Saturday helped Simsbury (66 points) capture second place in the team competition behind Staples (29 points).
“Dagny has run since her freshman year, but last year with a broken foot, we started her slow,” Simsbury coach Megan Shumway said. “We were very careful last year with her. We went real slow, which is why she started the season so late. It’s unbelievable how far she has come.”
Simsbury was running a different group than normal in the varsity race, with some newer and younger runners getting a chance to step up. Charlotte Duesing and Amanda Derway, running cross country for the first time this season, placed second and third for Simsbury (10th and 14th overall), with sophomores Carly McCusker and Grace Arcouette having a good showing.
Shumway was pleased with her team’s finish, especially coming off a disappointing meet with Farmington at Conard this past week.
“We had a tough dual meet on Tuesday; we just didn’t run well,” Shumway said. “So for them to turn it around so quickly is nice to see. They had really positive attitudes going in, even though the weather was hot.”
Edwards finished ahead of Canton’s Julia Caputo, who took second in 20:29. The RHAM girls, who’ve finished in the top two of Class MM each of the past three years, took third behind Abby Potticary’s fourth-place finish in 21:30.
Glastonbury junior Jacob Smith continued his impressive early campaign by winning the boys large school varsity race in 16:50, holding off three Staples runners. The Wreckers took first as a team with 33 points, edging out Glastonbury (40 points). Both teams placed all five scoring runners in the top -15. Bristol Central was third (56) behind Mark Petrosky’s fifth-place time (17:25), with Simsbury (103) and Hall (174) rounding out the top five.
In the small school boys varsity race, two Windsor Locks runners were in the top five. Despite not having a team score, Jon and Ryan Kittredge finished third and fourth in 18:25 and 18:33, the top area runners. Granby was the top area team, placing third with 88 points behind winner Northwestern (33) and Shepaug (88).
Evan Holm led the way for Granby with a fifth-place time of 18:37. Gilbert’s Byron Deily won the race in 17:53.
Granby was also the top area team in the girls small school varsity race, coming in second with 71 points to edge out Thomaston (73) and Watertown (76). Shepaug won the race with 42 points, with their top three runners coming in third through fifth.
Thomaston’s Maegan Desmarais won the race in 22:07 ahead of two runners from Pittsfield (Mass.). Amy Briggs took fourth overall in 22:28 to lead Granby to its second-place finish, coming in just ahead of Shepaug’s first and second runners.