Who will lead the packs in Eastern Maine?


    On a recent afternoon, driving through the picturesque St. John Valley through Madawaska  and Frenchville en route to a soccer match in Fort Kent, one thought occurred after rolling down the car window on a breezy, sunny afternoon.
    This is cross country weather.
    Ah, the rites of late August.
    The high school cross-country season begins in earnest last weekend with the Scot Lalibertie Invitational in Augusta and Mount Desert Island Relays, and with the Ellsworth Invitational and plenty of other meets around the state on tap for next weekend, here’s a look on how things may shake up in Eastern Maine this fall, both team-wise and individual wise.
    As always, ladies first.
    Class A: The 2008 campaign was a dream season for the Brewer Witches, as they rode a powerful pack of seniors to the Eastern Maine title and a runner-up finish at the state meet.
    But with most of that pack power having graduated, it appears Mt. Blue is ready to rise to the forefront.
    And why not? The Cougars from Farmington boast one of the state’s top runners in senior Melody Lam, and she has an arsenal of weapons behind her, including Gwen Beacham, Shelby Aseltine and Addie Cullenberg.
    Mt. Blue has had an outstanding summer of training, and Lam and company are in great shape and are primed for a run at the regional and state crown.
    Brewer should still be strong with Michelle Haluska and Sara Chavarie up front, and senior newcomer Lily Sund, who had an outstanding track campaign for the Witches.
    However, if Brewer wants to remain among the top teams, they’ll need support behind those three, and Bekah Clark will be one of the runners counted upon to step up.
    Brunswick returns a solid corps as well, led by sophomore Kathleen McMahon and junior Meghan McDonough, also two of the top individuals.
    The race for individual honors should be a great one with MB’s Lam, Kate Spies of Mount Ararat, Brunswick’s McMahon, Haluska and Chavarie of Brewer and Morgan Beede of Cony all returnees from last fall’s top 10.
    In the end, Mt. Blue looks too tough. My crystal ball is predicting a Cougar sweep, in the team and individual races.
   Team champ: Mt. Blue
   Individual champ: Melody Lam


   Class B: This is always an interesting division to prognosticate, because anything can happen.
   There is a new team in the ranks this fall, with Hampden Academy dropping down from Class A. The Broncos have had success here before, winning state-title honors in 2003.
    The team and individual races in Class B will be awesome, as only one senior from last year’s top 10, MDI’s Heather Spurling, has graduated.
    Among the top returnees include defending champion Brianne Dunn, a junior at Ellsworth, Kim Spencer and Sarah Dickens of John Bapst, Dacie Manion of Old Town, Caribou’s Dayna Michaud and Mary Jo Sheehan, Kailyn Russell of MDI and Alecia Palmer of Presque Isle.
    The team competition looks even more intriguing, as one of four teams could emerge on top.
    John Bapst is hungry after losing by two points to MDI last fall, and with a powerful pack behind Spencer and Dickens, coach Joe Capehart’s team will be on a Crusade for regional glory.
    MDI won’t go down without a fight, however, as in addition to Russell, the Trojans have a fine senior class in Jessica Swanson, Mackenzie Curtis and Frances Blank.
    One team that can’t be overlooked is Ellsworth, with two talented runners behind Dunn in Rosie Vachon and Hayley White.
    The PVC has dominated the Eastern Maine landscape this decade, and I expect that to continue, individually and in the team ranks.
    Team champ: John Bapst
    Individual champ: Brianne Dunn


   Class C: This is quite the contrary from Class B, as a number of last year’s top individuals have graduated, and team and individual glory is certainly up for grabs.
    Those who will vie for the individual crown include Chelsie Oldfield of Foxcroft Academy, Faith Mackey of Searsport, both sophomores, and Brandy Carle of Calais, also a soph. All three of these girls earned top-10 finishes in 2008 amongst a talented senior class.
    This is always the toughest one to predict, as depth is always going to be key here.
    Orono won a close three-team duel with Mattanawcook and George Stevens a year ago, but the Red Riots graduated three top runners.
    GSA’s pack was young last year, so it’s difficult not to go with the Eagles.
    Team Champ: George Stevens
    Individual Champ: Chelsie Oldfield
  

Stay tuned for the boys.