2024 MIAA Girls Cross Country Championships: Westford Academy, Westwood, Hamilton-Wenham Take Home Team Titles

The Devens Willard Athletic Complex hosted the 2024 MIAA Girls Cross Country Championships on Saturday, November 18. A total of 23 teams qualified to run in each of the day’s three division races, in addition to 30 individual runners not on those qualified teams.

Here is a look at each of the three division races:

Division 1

Westford Academy used its depth to ultimately prevail in a tight battle for the team championship.

Meanwhile, Needham High School’s Greta Hammer had little trouble following up her divisional qualifier victory from the previous week with a state championship. Hammer completed the 5-kilometer course in 18 minutes, 2.48 seconds.

Emily Wedlake was fifth overall (18:40.03) as Westford finished with 118 points, just edging out runner-up Lexington High School (122). Wellesley High School was third (127), followed by Billerica Memorial High School (132), Needham (140) and Cambridge Rindge & Latin School (145).

The other divisional qualifier winners were right behind Hammer as Billerica’s Gianna McGowan was second overall (18:16.44), followed by Charlotte Tuxbury of Wellesley in third (18:22.53). Aoife Shovlin of Cambridge, the 2023 state champ, took fourth (18:32.26).

Rounding out the top 10 were Emilia Smith of Attleboro High School (18:50.39), Janie Conrad of Lexington (18:58.24), Sophia Juanes Seto of Cambridge (19:00.36), Ciara Evans of Newton North High School (19:05.28), and Emma Daley of Weymouth High School (19:07.22).

Diya Shrestha was the next scoring runner for the winning Grey Ghosts, placing 21st (19:27.99).

Division 2

Emily Flagg of Whitinsville Christian School added a state individual championship to her back-to-back divisional qualifier victories, finishing in a winning time of 18:16.66.

Westwood High School, which also topped its qualifying wave the previous week, earned the team victory with 123 points. Tea Pagnotti was the spark for the Wolverines with a fifth-place finish (19:32.12).

Maggie Kuchman of Holliston High School, the 2023 state champion and a divisional qualifier winning a week earlier, took second behind Flagg (18:39.34). Next across the line were Marrietta O’Connell of Marblehead High School (19:18.71) and Maeve O’Neil of Northampton High School (19:24.78).

Amherst-Pelham Regional, another divisional qualifier winner, was second as a team (151), with Boston Latin Academy third (191). Whitinsville Christian was fourth (238) and fifth-place Canton High School (253) just edged Bedford High School (254).

Completing the top 10 individuals were Natalie Martin of Norwood High School (6th, 19:36.63), Ila Zollo of Walpole High School (7th, 19:38.65), Madeline Mahoney of Nauset Regional (8th, 19:42.00), Sophia Warnetski of Ashland High School (9th, 19:44.35), and Sara Blanco of Latin Academy (10th, 19:47.16).

Division 3

Cameron Davis of Oxford High School, who ran to her second divisional qualifier victory a week earlier, added a state championship to her resume with a winning time of 18:20.12.

Hamilton-Wenham Regional cruised to the team championship with 89 points, comfortably ahead of 2023 winner The Bromfield School (133). Grace Rich placed sixth overall (19:33.64) and Asa Labell was seventh (19:38.41) to lead the Generals to the team trophy.

Bromfield’s Evelyn Wool was the runner-up individually (18:55.57). A pair of divisional qualifier champions were next as Katherine Murray of Norwell High School placed third (19:23.36) and Krista Bettez of Gardner High School was fourth (19:27.31). Rosie Bradley aided Bromfield’s runner-up finish, placing fifth (19:31.09).

The remainder of the top 10 individuals were Annabelle Averett of Swampscott High School (8th, 19:40.18), Katie Massey of Advanced Math & Science Charter (9th, 19:41.22) and Emma Genovese of Millis High School (10th, 19:41.87).

Among teams, Mount Greylock Regional was third (157), followed by Norwell (162) and Lenox Memorial High School (209).