Girls cross country team runs with experience, skill
By Ken Powers Contributing Writer

Shrewsbury - Buoyed by a roster that features 14 returnees, including the team's No. 1 runner and six of the top seven, the Shrewsbury High girls cross country team is cautiously optimistic about this season.

"I definitely feel we have the potential to be more competitive than we were last year," Colonials coach Peg Holdash said. "The Mid-Wach A is traditionally a tough, balanced league, but I think we'll be right in the thick of the race."

A key reason Shrewsbury's harriers - 5-5 last year - should vie for the league title is their wealth of returning experience, led by senior co-captains Kristen Ross and Tessa McGrail.

Ross, who holds the Colonials' home-course record, was the top finisher in Shrewsbury's 28-29 loss to Algonquin Sept. 7 in the season opener for both schools.

Last season Ross covered the 3.1-mile track in 20:39. On Sept. 7, on a 90-degree day, her winning time was 22:32. Ross capped off a solid junior season last year with matching third-place finishes in both the Mid-Wach A League meet and the Central Mass. Division 1 Cross Country Championship meet. Two years ago, as a sophomore, she finished seventh at the Division 1 state meet.

"Kristen is a very, very talented runner who combines a willingness to work hard and get better every time she goes out with a mental approach that I have not seen in a runner in all my years as a coach or a competitor," Holdash said.

McGrail, who battled in- juries much of last season, seems to be back near about 100 percent as her third-place team showing against Algonquin would attest.

Other runners who were among the Colonials' top seven last season include seniors Julie Lebeau and Nicole Laramee, both two-year varsity team members, and juniors Kate Kalinowski and Rachel Kadish.

Sophomore Jenna Violette, a first-year runner, rounds out Shrewsbury's top seven.

Other returnees include: seniors Jessica Ames, Claire Gutekanst and Erica Wentzell; juniors Brittany Alphonse and Lanxin Li; and sophomores Jillian Genco and Leslie Nordstrom.

First-year runners include senior Caitlin Schneider, sophomores Courtney Barry and Kristen May and freshmen Samantha Correia, Erica Flynn, Nicole Ross and Mary Schneider.

Holdash said she was encouraged by the Colonials' performance against the Tomahawks.

"Algonquin is traditionally one of the best teams in our league, always battling it out with Wachusett and North Middlesex," Holdash said. "To battle them so tough, down to the wire, in the first meet of the season, to me, is encouraging."

Part of Holdash's optimism is wrapped up in the captainship of Ross and McGrail.

"This my first year as coach that I have had returning captains," Holdash said. "It brings a continuity to the team that is unique to itself.

"And on top of that continuity is the fact that both Kristen and Tessa are great captains," she said. "Their work ethic and dedication are exemplary and they really known the personality of the team, so they know when to be serious and work hard and they know when they need to keep things light and keep everyone loosened up."