Scarborough High School placed three runners in the top eight en route to the boys team crown, while Osman Doorow claimed the individual title during Saturday’s 14th Maine Cross Country Festival of Champions at the Troy Howard Middle School in Belfast.
In the girls race, La Salle Academy of Providence, Rhode Island, the No. 10 team in the country, took home top honors behind individual winner Eliza Rego. The Rams placed four runners in the top five overall.
More than 1,400 athletes finished the races, which included seeded events, unseeded competitions and freshman competitions for both boys and girls.
Doorow was a convincing champion in the boys seeded race, covering the 3.1-mile course in 15 minutes, 50.05 seconds. The effort was a personal record and the fourth best time in meet history.
Paul Casavant of Hampden Academy was second in 16:04.95, followed by Benjamin Drezek of Cumberland, Rhode Island (16:12.25).
Scarborough’s effort was spearheaded by Andrew Scholl (16:18.62) and Connor Doherty (16:20.37), who placed fourth and fifth, respectively. Colin Tardiff was close behind in eighth (16:24.99), while Andrew Goodwin was 41st (17:21.28) and Luke Grover wound up 67th in 17:44.68.
The Red Storm scored 120 points to beat out Cumberland, Rhode Island, which tallied 62 points. It was Scarborough’s fifth FOC crown, but the program’s first since 2010.
Falmouth (187), Phillips Exeter of New Hampshire (254) and Harwood Union of Vermont (245) completed the top five. Lewiston (255), York (315), Orono (348), Hampden Academy (358) and Westbrook (359) rounded out the top 10.
Also earning positions among the top 10 individuals were Noah Eckstein of Harwood Union (6th, 16:21.14), Joe Murphy of Classical (7th, 16:24.99), John Hassett of George Stevens Academy in Blue Hill (9th, 16:27.28) and Falmouth’s Jeremiah Sands (10th, 16:29.90).
In the girls seeded race, La Salle lived up to its reputation as one of the country’s best programs. Rego set the pace, crossing the finish line in 18:05.58, more than 23 seconds ahead of runner-up and teammate Karina Tavares (18:29.27).
Rego’s was the third-fastest time in meet history for the girls.
La Salle’s Grace Connolly (18:36.30) and Emily Kane (18:50.33) sandwiched Tia Tardy of Orono High School, who took fourth with a personal best of 18:39.51. Audrey O’Neill’s 19th-place effort (19:32.58) secured the win for the Rams, who outscored runner-up Orono High School 30-128.
La Salle was a late and unexpected entry in the meet. It had planned to compete in a meet in North Carolina, but the event was canceled because of wet weather related to Hurricane Joaquin.
Cumberland, Rhode Island, was third with 141 points, followed by Harwood Union (154) and Falmouth (267). Three other Maine squads cracked the top 10.
Cape Elizabeth (301) was sixth and Massabesic of Waterboro seventh (323), with Phillips Exeter (324), Colonel Gray (393) and Brunswick (394) taking the Nos. 8-10 positions.
The runners claiming the Nos. 6-10 spots among individuals were Lauren Brown of Waterville (19:00.65), Augusta Stockman of Camden Hills (19:03.57), Kialeigh Marston of Bonny Eagle in Standish (19:03.63), Amy Laverty of Cumberland, Rhode Island (19:04.04) and Orono’s Hannah Steelman (19:04.90).