While the Houlton Invitational on Saturday afternoon hosted many teams, it also served as the Aroostook League Championship. Teams from Hermon, MDI, and Old Town participated in the race along with county teams including Houlton/GHCA, Presque Isle, Caribou, Limestone/MSSM, Fort Kent, and Washburn. The teams all ran together to compile one set of results, and then the non-Aroostook County teams were pulled from the results to award the Aroostook County Champions.
Meet Results
The boys varsity race day kicked the day off at noon. From the start of the race, Sam York of MDI was seen smiling as he ran away with first place, almost a minute ahead of second place. York finished the course in a time of 16:37.30. Ephraim Willey and George Ferland of Caribou rounded out the top three in 17:32.10 and 17:48.10, respectively.
For team results, the MDI took first with 27 points ahead of Caribou with 60 points.
In terms of Aroostook County, Willey and Ferland took first and second while James Brady of Houlton/GHCA, in 6th place in the combined results, took third in 18:41.40. With MDI pulled out of the Aroostook County Championship, Caribou was able to take the team win.
The second race of the day, the girls varsity race, was a real nail-biter. Once again, two of Maine's top sophomores went at it. Teanne Ewings of Houlton/GHCA and Amelia Vandongen of MDI were inseparable the whole race. Similar to the Old Town Sectionals on September 26, it came down to the sprint. Ewings was able to out sprint Vandongen and cross the line in 19:14.50 while Vandongen crossed in 19:16.00. Kayley Bell of Caribou finished in 20:37.20 for third.
For team results, Houlton/GHCA was able to capture the team award with 38 points over MDI's 40.
In terms of Aroostook County, Ewings was first, Bell was second, and Natalie Johnson of Houlton/GHCA, originally fourth, was third in 20:42.00. Houlton/GHCA were still the team winners.
Photo Galleries from Houlton XC Invitational
The last race of the day was the combined boys and girls JV race. On the boy's side, MDI placed all five of their runners in the top five, scoring a perfect 15. Chris Cooper was first in 19:27.30, Tryg Soares was second in 19:35.20, and Jack Debellis was third in 21:05.60. MDI was the only team able to score.
On the girl's side, MDI was also dominant. Lillian Beckwith of MDI was first 23:49.80, Emma Simard of MDI was second in 23:53.80, and Seneca Haney also of MDI was third in 24:11.60. MDI was the only team able to score.