EMass Large Schools: McNulty, Feehan Continue Winning Tradition

The checklist is almost complete for Abbie McNulty. One more victory to finish off an unbeaten and dominating cross-country season against her Massachusetts’ rivals.

That appears inevitable for the slender runner at next week’s MIAA All State Finals.

McNulty’s latest conquest occurred Saturday morning on 3.1 miles of real estate at the Wrentham Developmental Center where the Bishop Feehan senior ruled the competition once again with a winning time of 17 minutes, 39 seconds at the Eastern Mass. Division 3 Championship. She was 200-meters ahead of Dracut senior Karina Shepherd, who took runner-up honors in 18:16.4.

By the mile mark, passed in a quick 5:25, McNulty already held a sizable advantage over Shepherd and the chase pack. She hit two miles at 11:13 and coasted to the finish on the relatively, flat terrain.

“I was just trying to take the lead from the start and then try and hang on,” she said. “I went out a little faster than I planned. I was kind of tired. I had a decent lead (at two miles) so I wasn’t trying to kill it. Next week (at the All State meet) is more important. This is kind of what I wanted. I wanted to win. Next week I want to win and really feel my best.”

Besides coming home with an individual title, McNulty had the added pleasure of being part of a winning team as the Shamrocks earned the hardware by defeating second-place Hopkinton, 49-73.  Feehan junior Elizabeth Hannon placed third at 18:33.9. She was followed by junior teammate Jackie Cutillo in fifth with a time of 18:37.7. Senior Katie Svenson (16th, 19:14.8) and junior Adrienne Santoro (24th, 19:36.3) completed the scoring for the Shamrocks, who moved up to Div. 3 this year after a mega-successful stint at the Div. 4 level.

“I am just really happy,” said longtime Bishop Feehan coach Bob L’Homme.  “I think this makes nine in a row Eastern Mass. championships. The girls have just worked so hard. Love their attitude. They are just so focused and determined.  They are kind of holding the whole tradition thing. It’s just an awesome day.”

Individually, McNulty will be aiming for her second straight state crown at next Saturday’s All State Finals, held at the Gardner Municipal Golf Course. Last year she had the second fastest time of the day by taking the Div. 2 title at 18:20.72. Peabody grad and current Providence College freshman Catarina Rocha won the Div. 1 race with a time of 18:06.12.

“I’ll do a little speed on Tuesday and then I am just going to try and taper for the rest of the week and try and get prepared,” McNulty said. “It’s very important to me. That’s definitely my main goal for the season and the same with my team. We want to win it this year. That’s really my two main goals. That’s what we have been training for so hopefully we can accomplish that next week.”

The Div. 2 race on Saturday may have featured the Feehan standout’s top two competitors for next week’s meet.  In a down-to-the-wire finish, Needham sophomore Margie Cullen outlasted Lincoln Sudbury junior Sydney Clary with a personal-best time of 18:00.2. Clary crossed the line in second at 18:03.7.

The talented duo separated from the pack with about a mile remaining. Cullen surged to the front for good with a half-mile left. She secured the win with a devastating kick the final stretch.

“I didn’t look back but I was pretty sure she was close behind,” Cullen admitted. “I was scared. My coach warned me that Sydney Clary has a pretty good kick so I knew since she was pretty close that I had to go.”

“Margie ran unbelievable,” Needham coach Cara O’Connell added. “She has been running really great all season. Her first really tough race was our conference meet two weeks ago. She went out and ran against some really, really stiff competition, which was great preparation for today. Her goal was to break 18 (minutes). I think she came really close, if she didn’t. She’s just a really tough racer. She likes to go out and race in the front and I think it paid off today.”

Needham also won the team competition by edging Lincoln-Sudbury, 57-60. In 2012, the roles were reversed with the Warriors beating their rival.

“Lincoln-Sudbury, we were kind of focusing our efforts on,” O’Connell said. “Last year they eked us out by four points, which was really disappointing. But we are much more experienced this year. We trained a little bit differently. We trained smarter. We didn’t over-race, which I think definitely helped our cause. The girls were feeling really good and really fresh. We were aiming on going after Lincoln-Sudbury but also making sure that we got every girl in between that could help lower our score.”

For the second straight year, Lowell claimed the Div. 1 title. The Red Raiders’ Kaley Richards, a sophomore, was the first to break the tape.  She posted a 25-second win over Weymouth sophomore Kacie Higgins with her time of 18:17.7.

Richards opened up with a 5:48 for her first mile.

“I felt pretty good throughout the race,” she said. “I was a little scared at the beginning. It was faster than normal, but it felt good…I am happy with how I raced.”

Lowell coach Mary Beth McKenney was confident her team could take the prize.

“We obviously came in hoping to defend our title,” McKenney said. “On paper, we were probably more like second or third. But we hadn’t really faced Weymouth head-to-head. We kind of used that as an advantage to us. We know that they are a good team but we know how we are, too. I don’t think we have really been challenged a lot all year. That was our game plan.”

 

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