CHELMSFORD — The rain was hard, the mud was thick and the air was raw. But none of that mattered to the Lowell High boys cross country team.
On a day when most of the local sports schedule was wiped out by a storm that dropped close to two inches of rain, the Red Raiders simply wanted to compete. Lowell had a chance to win its second straight Merrimack Valley Conference Division 1 title and finish a second consecutive 9-0 season with a tri-meet victory over Chelmsford and Dracut.
Led by senior Alex Andujar, who won the 3.1-mile race in Chelmsford with a time of 15:54, the Red Raiders were unfazed by the hideous conditions. Lowell powered its way to a 19-37 win over the Lions and a 15-48 win over Dracut to once again claim league supremacy leading into the MVC meet in Chelmsford on Oct. 29.
“Obviously with the weather forecast saying it was going to be bad and torrential, there was a safety concern. But I think everybody wanted to run,” said Lowell head coach Phil Maia. “We’re glad we ran. We won the (EMass. Div. 1) meet at Franklin Park a couple of years ago in torrential rain. It was so bad that we tore the course up, it was a mess.”
Fans either watched the race from their cars, or frantically tried to stay dry with umbrellas.
They watched as Lowell runners claimed four of the top five spots. Junior Pat Coppinger was third (16:07), senior Nathan McCarthy was fourth (16:13) and Nick McArdle took fifth (16:29).
Chelmsford’s Rob Massey posted a time of 16:00 to take second place.
“It was unbelievable out there,” said Andujar. “It was a great race.”
The kind of race where it doesn’t matter how you get the job done, as long as you get it done.
“We don’t pay too much attention to the times, it’s more about the adjustments the kids made,” said Maia, in his 24th season. “A day like this you almost have to throw the times out. Our top five guys did a nice job. Alex had a great race, of course. The other guys ran together and supported each other.”
This is the 10th league title for the Red Raiders. After a championship drought from 2005-2009, they have once again found their stride.
“We have a nice little streak going now, and it’s thanks in part to the enthusiasm of my assistant Scott Ouellet (Class of 1997),” Maia said. “The kids are excited about the program. We have 60 kids and they wouldn’t be here if they didn’t enjoy it. If you make excuses, this isn’t the sport that you come out for.”
Chelmsford defeated Dracut, 17-42, to finish a strong 7-2. Freshman Quinn Cooney finished in seventh place (16:50), while Sean Eastman was eighth (17:00) and Dan Nolan 10th (17:06).
Dracut (3-6) was led by Tim Poitras in ninth (17:04).
In yesterday’s girls’ tri-meet in Chelmsford, the Lions swept Dracut (15-48) and Lowell (28-29).
Chelmsford finished at 9-1, second to unbeaten Haverhill. Lowell (7-3) defeated Dracut (3-7), 27-39.
Sophomore Alli Wood took second with a time of 19:04 to lead Chelmsford. Kathryn Cooney was fifth (19:58), Elissa Ladwig was sixth (20:03), Jennie Pisarik took seventh (20:06) and Kristen Young was eighth (20:27).
Red Raiders junior Erin Donovan took first with a time of 18:56, as Lowell took three of the top four spots. Bryanna Allison was third (19:20) and Grace Ndungu was fourth (19:39).
