Cross country runners impress in sweep of Stoughton

By Mike Berger

For the first time in two years, the CHS boys cross country team earned itself a dual meet win, beating Stoughton last week 26-31.

The Bulldogs’ top trio of Minh Hong, Bharat Ramanathan and Tristan Grant (Mike Tureski photo)

It was an action-packed week for both Bulldog XC teams as they followed up a sweep of the Black Knights with a strong showing at Saturday’s MSTCA Frank Kelley Invitational.

In the boys’ win over Stoughton, Shawn Smith Manzi was the top Canton finisher, placing third (19:55). He was followed by Minh Hong, Bharat Ramanathan, and Tristan Grant, who finished in the next three spots to help secure the victory.

“We knew we had a shot at winning going into the meet, said Ramanathan, a senior captain. “Stoughton put up an excellent fight, and we needed a total-team effort to get that elusive win. I couldn’t be prouder of the guys.”

From the start, Manzi took off with the top two Stoughton runners, battling back and forth over the first two miles of the course. He gave it all he could, but with the lactic acid building in his legs he couldn’t break up the two Knights and settled for a well-deserved third.

The pack of Ramanathan (19:57), Hong (19:57) and Grant (20:13) worked together throughout the race to try and close the gap between them and the lead pack. They were able to narrow it and nab places 4-6, helping the Bulldogs get four runners ahead of Stoughton’s third finisher, clinching the victory.

Also running solid races for the Bulldogs were William Barnard (20:26) and Nicholas Murphy (20:50), who placed eighth and ninth, respectively, and earned course personal bests at Pequitside Farm.

“We have been focusing on our pack running all season,” said head coach Brian Gotsell. “Our motto is ‘we form the pack to pick up the slack.’ Pack running proved to be the difference maker today and helped us earn our first win in two years.”

Lauren Raffetto extended her personal winning streak. (Mike Tureski photo)

In the girls’ race, the Bulldogs cruised to their second victory of season, winning 15-50 by claiming the top 15 spots. Lauren Raffetto continued her winning streak as she placed first overall (20:40). She was followed by a solid pack of teammates, including Lexi Piazza (23:49), Addy Azar, Isabella Holland, Madeleine Driscoll, and Margot Swearingen, who all finished within 15 seconds of each other.

On Saturday, both teams traveled to the Wrentham Developmental Center to compete in their first invitational of the season. In the freshman girls race, Olivia Siddons opened the day with a medal-winning performance, placing 20th (12:58) in the 3km race.

For the boys, sophomore Tristan Grant placed 16th (10:41), while in the girls division, Azar ran a tactical race to place third (11:26) while Swearingen took 16th (12:45). Both the boys and girls finished fourth overall in team scoring in the sophomore races.

The junior girls race was the race of the day. From the start, Raffetto took off with the lead pack and with about 200 meters to go, she started her blistering kick to secure the victory (10:38) while recording the fastest time of the day across all races. Fellow teammate Holland placed 16th (12:21) to also land on the podium as Canton finished second overall in team scoring.

In the junior boys race, Hong ran a strategic race to place 35th and had the fastest time of the day for the Bulldogs (10:36). In the final race of the day, the senior girls ended the meet on a high note. Piazza, a team captain, picked off runner after runner over the fast course to finish in third (11:11). Fellow captain Driscoll finished 16th (12:15) while the team as a whole took second in overall scoring.

“It was a great day with great competition,” said Gotsell. “The short, fast course gave our athletes a chance to showcase their speed and gain confidence that will help them as we head towards championship season.”

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