Local successes at Footlocker HS XC Regionals held in Boston

The Northeast Regional qualifier for the prestigious Footlocker High School Cross Country Nationals moved from New York's Van Cortlandt Park to Boston's Franklin Park on a short 3 month notice and local director Jorge Torres, himself a past Footlocker National champion and Olympian, managed a quality show for competitors and spectators in the 44th running of the races.

The schedule of 8 races included the two championship events in which half of the 20 qualifiers - 10 boys and 10 girls - were from New England states. The Elite 10 will race the advancers from 3 other regions on December 9 at Balboa Park in San Diego California.
 
The Girls race saw Ellie Shea (Emerging Elite/Belmont MA) earn her third trip to Nationals with a second place finish; it was her first cross race of the season after an extended summer track season. Taking the girls' final ticket west was Aiofe Shovlin (Cambridge MA) in a dramatic finish straightaway run.  Her Cambridge coaches Jamahl Prince and Scott Cody were finalists in the 1987 race.

Top boys finishers Paul Bergeron (Westford Academy MA) and Tamrat Gavenas (Phillips Andover, MA) placed third and fourth behind a winning HS course record (14:51) for the second trip for both.  They'll be joined by Jack Graffeo (Westford Academy MA) in a rare Footlocker instance of two runners from the same school advancing in the same year.

The event will return to Franklin Park in 2024 to again cap the local harrier
season.

Full results  athletic.net/CrossCountry/meet/224619/info