POMFRET — Nov. 10 the Pomfret School girls 'cross country team took second at the NEPSTA Division III Cross Country Championship.
A total of 159 runners competed in the varsity girls’ race, with 22 of 27 participating teams eligible for scoring. The team had previously won third place at the Canterbury Invitational in September, and were grateful for a familiar course at Canterbury School and the chance to “plaque” (i.e., earn a commemorative award for fourth place or higher).
Varsity Race
Tri-captain Sophie Nardelli ’19 approached the race with an incredibly positive mindset, balancing grit and power with lightness and fun. She ran her best 5k race to date, finishing second overall and first for the team in a personal record time of 19:14 (the fastest finishing time for Pomfret Girls XC in at least 20 years.). Tri-captain Maria Tews ’19 also ran her fastest 5k to date in a time of 20:17—3 minutes and 40 seconds faster than when she ran the same course as a freshman. At the finish line, spectators murmured things like “Wow, Pomfret has two in the top 5. They’re definitely going to place!”
Of course, earning the 2 and 4 spots gave the Pomfret team an incredible numerical advantage, but the rest of the team was not off the hook. Freshman Mallory Krasusky’s performance was absolutely critical; she kicked hard to break up a speedy pack of runners from Westover, a team we ultimately beat by just 5 points. For her efforts, Mallory also earned a new personal best time of 22:20 (50 seconds faster than the last time she raced at Canterbury). Pomfret’s fourth and fifth runners for the day, Josephine Myung ’20 and Bella Canavan ’22, did their part to mix in with the Montrose pack (Montrose finished fourth for the day) and prevent them from gaining too many places in between. Josephine and Bella finished just 3 seconds apart, and both earned new personal records. Tri-captain Chelsey Castle ’19 gave everything she had and is retiring her muddy spikes after they carried her to the finish line with a season-best time of 25:05. The 7th varsity runner for the day, Cindy Chen ’20, channeled her nerves into running a strong and gritty race, ultimately earning a season best time of 26:16.
Junior Varsity Race
Girls JV raced at the end of the day, as the wind picked up, the sun faded, and the boxes at the starting line were barely visible anymore. With only four of the Pomfret runners competing in a field of 51 (5 are needed to score), the race was less competitive but still very exciting. In true XC fashion, Anastasiia Eremina ’20 lost a shoe to the muck in the first mile but quickly regained ground and caught up with the pack. With steadiness and grit, Anastasiia moved up several spots throughout the race and out-kicked a runner from Pingree by a fraction of a second in an exciting photo finish. Senior Ella Wei ran her best and final race in a Pomfret singlet, finishing in 27:35 and absolutely crushing her previous personal record by over a minute. Battling shin splints all season, Amanda Chen ’20 ran a solid championship race and managed to shave 7 seconds from her previous personal best. The fourth JV runner for the day, Nhu Vo ’19, should be proud of her final performance as a Pomfret runner; Nhu executed a smart pacing plan and ran a season best time of 29:10.
The Results
After all of the races were finished, the team gathered after what seemed like an eternity of waiting for the awards ceremony. Both Sophie and Maria were honored as All New England Cross Country athletes and were invited to the All-Star meet this weekend at St. Mark’s. Pomfret received its plaque for second place. In the last 20 years the Pomfret School Cross Country team has never placed higher than fourth.
Contributed by Jillian Forgue

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