By Senior Correspondent Marty Ogden, Editing and Graphics by Ron Knapp

State Open Meet Entries from AthleticNet

Live Results during each race by Paynes Corner Timing

What began in the heat of the summer will come to a head on Monday at Wickham Park as the CIAC State Open Cross Country Championship at Wickham Park; the 93rd boys race and the 51st girls race. Nearly 400 boys and girls will traverse the 5000m course to determine the best cross country runners and teams in the Constitution State. When you think about it, if the nearly 400 runners averaged 35 miles a week for the past 12 weeks that would almost be 3/4th the distance from earth to the moon. 

The effort these young runners have put in is worthy of taking notice and honoring them. The CIAC with the help of meet director Bill Baron, Paynes Corner Timing Service and their crews will put on an event that begins with the girls race at 10:00 AM and followed by the boys at 10:45 AM that will honor the efforts of the athletes, coaches and families who are passionate about this sport we all love. 

It will be interesting to see how this delay affects the results on Monday. Some teams are just hanging on after a long season, while others are on the way up and will get an extra workout which will improve some of the runners. We will just have to wait and see. But based on last week’s results, let’s take a look at some of the top individuals.

Race for Individual Honors

State Open and Course Record: Alex Ostberg Darien 14:58.0, 2014

Check out The Running Academy’s Individual Top Performance List

Amity’s Luke Cushing is the top returner from last year’s State Open and with the exception of last year’s New England championship, he hasn’t been beaten by any of the runners in the field. He comes in with the fastest time from the all the Class championships, but only a few tenths behind him are his rivals Tycen LeBelle and Sam Leone. Based on his resume, he is the overwhelming favorite, but they don’t award State Open titles based on past performances. The past few years there has been one sure thing favorite, but this year it should be a nail-biter. You would have to return to the 2016 battle between Staples’ Zakeer Ahmad and Drew Thompson of Fairfield Prep who were only one second apart or even the 2013 race where the current Prep coach Christian Alvarado held off Ridgefield’s Trevor Hopper by a step. We hope Monday’s race is just as exciting. 

The only runner in the field who has even finished in front of Cushing is Griswold’s Tycen LaBelle. At last year’s New England championship the sophomore finished 10th with Cushing three seconds and three places behind. Now a junior, LaBelle has come into his own and has already earned two New England medals in cross country and just won his 2nd Class title in a row. He ran hard last week, but he was never seriously pushed to win the Class M title but this week should be an entirely different story. The Wolverine should definitely be considered a co-favorite and should be in it until the very end. 

How exciting would it be if three boys were coming up the final hill at Wickham Park together? It is certainly possible this year. While Cushing and Labelle were a little in front last year, Sam Leone of East Lyme has certainly developed into a possible contender. Besides his 10th place finish at the State Open last fall, he went on to win New Englands during indoor track and take 2nd place outdoors. He broke the ECC course record this year, putting his name in front of some of the All Time Greats in CT history. He has a dangerous kick so anyone within 20 yards of him on the final stretch should be very concerned. 

There is a reason we run the races. Sometimes past performance is no indication of success on the day if you truly believe in yourself. Oliver Samuel defeated some of his main rivals last year but a 13th place finish at FCIACs took him off the radar to be a contender. But the Staples senior went right to the front with pre race favorite Ryan Newcomb but took over the lead around the halfway mark and never looked back until the final stretch when he broke into a smile with the win in hand. He will be looking to improve upon his 41st place finish last year and earn a spot on the stage for the first time in his career. 

Alex Cook has gradually and steadily improved the last three seasons and is now on the cusp of a top five finish at the State Open. Two years ago the E.O. Smith senior didn’t even run in the meet and last year he finished 34th. He has already dropped 30 seconds from his time at the Class meet last year and is on the verge of breaking 16 minutes at Wickham. The CCC champion returned a week later to Wickham Park and finished 2nd at the Class MM Championship and will be looking to continue his season at New Englands. 

Expect to see Oxford’s Joe DeLuise go right to the front of the pack on Monday and make this a tough race from the gun like his idol Steve Prefontaine used to do. The senior in his first season of high school cross country has already won the NVL and Class SS titles but is looking forward to the added competition at the Open. If he runs smart and is patient, he should finish near the leaders. He is an outstanding steeplechase runner and has run some very good 5ks and 3200m races on the track. So you know he has the strength. But the crowded field in cross country is a different challenge that he will have to overcome. If he does, look for something special from the Wolverine. 

Another first year runner coming over from soccer is New Canaan’s Quinn Kilkenny. The senior has run the fastest time this season among all CIAC runners with his 15:35.8 at the Great American Cross Country Festival. He was 4th at FIACs and Class L runner up behind Cushing. He is gaining experience with each race he runs and he could be a top ten finisher at the Open. 

Last year Brookfield’s Landon Wall just barely squeezed into New Englands with a 24th place finish at the State Open. He was one of only seven underclassmen to punch his ticket and that experience is sure to help the senior. The Bobcat was SWC champion and 3rd in Class MM with a chance at a top ten finish on Monday. 

Jonah Schulman seems to be the next man up in Hall’s long line of great runners. He was only 21st last year at Class L, but with some steady training, he developed into a sub 9:20 3200m by last spring. He has gone against some of the best in the state this year and has finished 3rd at both the CCC Championships and Class L meet. He has definitely earned his place to be mentioned in the same breath as CT’s finest XC runners. Now he just has to execute on Monday. 

Edward Kushel has led Fairfield Warde in every big meet they have run which is saying alot because he has two potential top 25 State Open finishers as teammates. The junior has made great strides since last year, improving nearly a minute on his Class L time. He was only a second away from winning the FCIAC championship, taking the runner-up spot. Then at the Class L meet he finished 4th. No one knows what will happen at the Open, but the Mustang has been a steady performer all season and has a great shot at a top ten finish. 

Brahm Bulow started off his season strong with invite wins at Stratton Brook and Winding Trails back in September. He has continued this success with a runner-up finish at CCCs and 4th place in Class MM. The Avon senior came into the season as the 13th best returner from last year’s Open and if things go well he could improve upon that and possibly move into a top ten  finish. 

Maximillian Mocarski has been Fairfield Warde’s third runner in all the big meets, but saved his best race of the season for the Class L championships where he was 5th, a place behind his teammate Kushel and two places in front of his other teammate Hudson Schunk. If the trio can stay in sight of each other, they could certainly help the Mustang’s chances of moving into the top ten at the Open. 

Other projected top 25 finishers based upon times from last Saturday include:

Zackary O'Toole - Stratford  16:26.31,  6th Class L

Jack Faitsch - East Lyme  16:26.55,  5th Class MM

Holden Hines -  Xavier  16:28.80,  6th Class MM

Hudson Schunk - Fairfield Warde,  16:29.74 7th Class L 

Alexander Medina - Hamden,  16:29.76  2nd Class LL

Julien Silva - Fitch  16:30.01,  7th Class MM

Ryan Newcomb - Greenwich,  16:30.56  3rd Class LL

Nolan O'Connor - Xavier, 16:31.07  8th Class MM

Dominic Lombardo - Bolton,  16:32.50  1st Class S

Daniel Reilly - Kaynor Tech,  16:32.98  9th Class MM

Benjamin Schildgen - Lakeview,  16:33.21 2nd Class SS

Michael Yardis - Greenwich,  16:34.95  4th Class LL

Alejandro Juro -  Manchester,  16:35.28  5th Class LL 

We hope you enjoyed our previews of the upcoming CIAC XC State Open Championships!

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