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By Michael Flanagan
Hometown Weekly Sports Editor
On Saturday, the Wellesley High School cross country team traveled to Rhode Island for the Ocean State Invitational, competing against high schools from all up and down the East Coast. The Raiders returned home with a first-place finish following an absolutely dominant performance, which saw five of their runners finish in the top thirty, and a point total accumulation of 79. Wellesley was 32 points ahead of their nearest competition, Hope Valley, N.J, who placed second with 111 points.
Senior Thomas Weiss, who’s arguably been one of the top runners in the Bay State Conference throughout his time at WHS, led the Raiders once again on Saturday, placing eighth overall with a score of 16:21.72. Senior Matthew Cervon was the second Raider to cross the finish line, placing No. 11 overall at 16:24.53. Junior Colby Zarle finished at No. 16 (16:31.29), sophomore Zach Barry at No. 21 (16:43.04), and sophomore Jason Norris at No. 30 (16:55.53).
“I thought we kind of came out a little bit flat,” said Wellesley head coach Tim Broe. “But, credit to the guys, they really fought hard down the stretch and it showed with some good times and a great finish.”
At the time of print, Wellesley will jump back into Bay State Conference play on September 27 when they travel to Weymouth. Another date to circle on the calendar for the Raiders is October 17, when they will play host to rival Needham.
