The Marblehead High School boys cross-country team went to the Division 1C State Divisional Championship in Wrentham Nov. 11 with a game plan and executed it flawlessly, coming home with its first state title since 2015.
Ryan Thompson (eighth, 16:22), Isaac Gross (ninth, 16:24), Harrison Kee (12th, 16:38), David DiCostanzo (20th, 17:05), Ryan Blestowe (27th, 17:12), Errol Apostolopoulos (50th, 17:44) and Gabe Bayramian (73rd, 18:14) were the winning Magicians in this meet.
“This is the team’s first divisional championship since 2015,” said veteran coach Brian Heenan. “The boys’ performance was even more impressive given that they were missing sophomore Will Cerrutti, one of our top runners, but they were able to defeat a very strong Oliver Ames team thanks to our depth.
Even though Oliver Ames took the first three places in the race, the Marblehead boys were able to get their first five runners across the finish line before Oliver Ames’ fourth runner, which allowed them to win the meet by two points, Heenan explained.
Thompson, Gross and Kee earned medals after finishing among the Top 15 harriers. But, according to Heenan, DiCostanzo and Blestowe made the most important moves in the race by overtaking a pack of runners in the last half-mile, which sealed the first-place victory for the team.
The Marblehead boys will enjoy their victory for a couple of days before getting ready for the All-State Championship Meet at Fort Devens in Ayer on Saturday, Nov. 19. against the other best teams in the state.
The field includes Brookline, Newton North, Westford Academy, BC High and St. John’s Prep, just to name a few.
