Going back to 1975, the Pinkerton Academy girls’ cross-country program has won 12 New Hampshire Class L/Division I state titles, including the last three. In those 12 meets, only three times the Astros had the meet’s individual champion.
In other words, it’s been a total team effort.
That was the case last year, and that hopes to be the case again this fall.
“We have our work cut out for us to win (this year’s title),” said PA head coach Jonathan Alizio, who in his nine years, has won five titles and a NE Championship. “The team to beat is Exeter.”
In last year’s state meet, Pinkerton edged out Exeter by one point. The Astros had four of the top 16 finishers, before Sarah Rzasa clinched it with her 44th place finish. Rzasa, along with Gabby Bedard (8th), Parker Knowlton (11th) and Kali Marzolf (13th) all return with aspirations of winning another championship.
“Winning a fourth consecutive championship would be very special. We have only won four in a row once in our history from 2015-2018,” said Alizio. “If we manage to do that, Kali, Gabby, and Sarah would join that elite group of athletes that won every cross-country season of their high school careers.”
Bedard, Marzolf and Timberlane’s Abigail Robinson were Eagle-Tribune All-Stars.
In Mass, many of the Merrimack Valley Conference teams got hit hard by graduations, but Central Catholic returns sophomore Kyla Breslin, who should be among the best in the league and in the state, and is also a returning Eagle-Tribune All-Star.