Big changes are afoot in the girls Dual County League cross country teams. Gone is the enormous shadow cast by two time all-state champion, three time DCL champion, and four time Globe cross-country all-scholastic Andrea Keklak from Lincoln-Sudbury. Gone too is two-time cross country Globe all-scholastic Kathy O'Keefe from Newton South, DCL runner-up to Keklak the last two years.
During their four years of cross country these two girls led their teams to a combined three team state championships. Gone with them may also be their school's dominance of the DCL. It has been seven long years since either LS or Newton South has not won the DCL championship meet, and in four of those years they went one-two. However, cracks started appearing in this wall last season. For the first time since 2005 they did not take first and second as Newton South dropped to fifth at the league meet. This year the league looks wide open as several teams have both quality and question marks.
The individual title will also be up for grabs. Acton-Boxboro's Christine Davis is the top returner from last season's DCL championship meet. She'll be challenged by Weston's Olivia Brackett who posted a two mile PR of 11:04 this past Spring season, as well as Lincoln-Sudbury's Marika Crowe, the state's mile champion.
The Contenders:
1. Weston (last year: 3rd in the DCL, 2nd in EMass Division 5, 4th in State Division II)
Weston can go 1-2-3 and say goodnight in almost every dual meet this season. Brackett, Charlotte Walmsley (11:20 two mile), and Abigail Pohl (5:08 mile) are just about as good a top three as there is in the state, and this trio led a Weston team that came within one point of ending Lincoln-Sudbury's 50+ dual meet win streak last season. The three stars also produced a strong spring track season. Although they should have enough firepower to win the DCL, their issue was depth last season when going up against state powers Bishop Feehan and Hamilton-Wenham, and it is still the question mark going into this year. Sophomore Zoe Snow improved during the course of the season to be a quality fourth, but was only seen doing high jump in the spring, so her summer training will be important if she is to improve over her freshman year. If Weston can add a good caboose to the train, not only will they win the DCL but might also sneak away with a state title. They'll face a good test in their first dual meet on September 14th as they meet Acton-Boxborough.
2. Lincoln-Sudbury (last year: 1st in the DCL, 1st in EMass Division 2, 4th in State Division I)
This team looked like they would be a dynasty a couple of years ago. Now they are one of the biggest unknown's in the league. Not only did Keklak graduate, but Corey Stock, who was 5th in the state as a sophomore, missed last season due to compartment syndrome and is rumoured to be skipping this season as well. The team was further depleted by the move of Megan Broecker to Indiana. The big question is whether a team that has won the last seven state 4x800 relay titles can convert their middle distance prowess into the longer distances, starting with the mile state champion Marika Crowe. Another question is whether senior Leah Potter, who missed last season due to injury, can return to her sophomore form this season. The team's saviour might be underrated and unheralded junior Katie LaScaleia. LaScaleia was nowhere on the radar at the beginning of last season, her first in cross country, and ended up second on the team behind Keklak at the state meet. She followed that up with a 5:22 mile this Spring. Captain Emily Knaul, and junior Sarah Mepham round out the projected top four. The team has always been known for its depth, so the bet here is that they'll find a way to reload.
3. Acton-Boxborough (last year: 4th in the DCL, 6th in EMass Division 1)
Acton-Boxborough had a similar makeup to Weston last season, as they were very strong up front but lacked the depth to rise to the top of the league. When one of their runners had to drop out at the EMass D1 meet, the team's score ballooned and they were left without a date to the big dance. Still, they had three individual qualifiers to the state meet, and Christine Davis is the top returning runner from the DCL championship meet. Along with Sierra Zambarano (5:12 mile), and freshman star Shannon Flynn, they had a troika good enough to contend with Weston. With everyone coming back, and what looks like a good freshman class, they were poised to become the pre-season favourites. Alas, it is rumoured that Flynn is injured, so in order for AB to make a run at the league title and state meet, they'll have to rely on junior Joling Campo as well as incoming freshman Brooke Blackshaw, who ran a 5:47 in 8th grade, to fill the void.
4. Newton South (last year: 5th in the DCL, 3rd in EMass Division 1, 7th in State Division I)
Newton South has been hit hard by graduations the last few years, so even with Kathy O'Keefe, the young team faded a bit last season from their usual perch among the league's top two teams and as a perennial state contender. They'll sorely miss O'Keefe's small points up front and will have to rely on senior Anna Laurence, who has been a consistent performer over her career, to provide leadership to a young team. South had a talented and deep freshman class last year, led by Emily Caggiano and Anna Rhatigan. They will need another influx of freshman as well as the continued improvement of their sophomore class to contend for the DCL title.
5. Concord-Carlisle (last year: 2nd in the DCL, in EMass Division 3, 8th in State Division I)
While LS and NS can lament the loss of Keklak and O'Keefe, Concord-Carlisle may have been hit the hardest by graduation. The DCL runnerup lost their top runners in Katie Jessee and Caroline Kimball-Katz, as well as top five runner Kerry Nix. CC has a strong cross country tradition however, so look for them to reload. Junior Megan Ratcliffe should be among the league leaders this season and she'll be joined by returning sophomore Isabelle Williams and senior Katie Driscoll.