Laakso, Wachusett win; Ricci lifts Bromfield
Rich Garven
T&G STAFF

GARDNER- 
 
Christine Laakso got lost and fell down twice in her first
cross country race. There were no such missteps yesterday.

Laakso, a Fitchburg High senior, was a runaway winner while
capturing the Central Mass. Division 1 championship in
frigid conditions at Gardner Municipal Golf Course.

Brutally cold, gusting winds turned out to be Laakso's main
competition as she covered the 2.9-mile course in 17
minutes, 37 seconds. That's the 21st-best time recorded in
this event, which has been held here annually since 1976.

An established all-star in track, Laakso gave up soccer to
run cross country this fall. After that inauspicious start
(although she did recover to take third), Laakso has been on
a roll.

"It all happened pretty fast," Laakso said of her
development. "My first race was two months ago. By leagues I
was running pretty fast times."

Marlboro's Laura Haapanen started slow, but finished with a
flourish to grab second for the second straight year. The
junior was 33 seconds back with the day's second-best time
of 18:10.

"I wanted to go out slow and pick it up in the middle,"
Haapanen said. "Everyone started dying, and I had a lot of
energy left."

Laakso and Haapanen, whose twin sister Elaine placed 17th,
qualified as individuals for the state meet, which will be
held Saturday at Northfield Mountain. They're joined by
Tantasqua sophomore Kristin Wood, Shepherd Hill junior
Amanda Rawson, North Middlesex freshman Allison Conner,
Milford junior Sara Salmon and Oakmont sophomore Sarah
Croteau.

Bromfield won its third straight Division 2 title behind
senior Kristin Ricci's winning effort while Wachusett pulled
a three-peat in Division 1.

The Mountaineers did it with depth, led by Kim Shooshan's
third-place finish in which the sophomore out-leaned Wood at
the line. Juniors Vicki Weismann (seventh), Jessamyn Cox
(13th), Sonja Moik (27th) and sophomore Jenny Pistrang
(28th) completed the top five.

After going unbeaten in dual meets and winning the Quabbin
Invitational, Wachusett had its sights set on retaining the
team title. But one never knows.

"The top three we expected to be in the top 15," coach Larry
Jaquith said. "It was a matter of how the other two (Moik,
Pistrang) would do. They've been consistently up there all
year."

The Mountaineers finished with 75 points. Shrewsbury (129)
and Quabbin (155) grabbed the other two berths for the state
meet. The same trio qualified last year.

Doherty was fourth, two points behind Quabbin, which was led
by senior Brooke Perron's ninth-place finish. Sophomore Kim
Duggan took 12th to pace the Highlanders.

Amazingly, Shrewsbury didn't place a runner in the top
20. However, the Colonials did have five runners finish
between 22nd and 33rd places, led by junior Miranad Cruz,
who just returned from a health-related absence.

"I saw our first person was 20-something, and I thought,
"Oh, oh,'" Shrewsbury coach Peggy Holdash said. "(The pack
finish) really says something about the cohesiveness of our
team. The girls really work together."

Bromfield also had a mass finish, the lowest being senior
Halaina Demba's 16th place. In between Ricci and Demba came
junior Lily Calderwood (fourth), freshman Margaret Cardenas
(eighth), and the trio of senior Pam Rosato, eighth-grader
Liz Lee and freshman Ellen Huber (13-14-15).

Two-time state champion Ari Lambie is off running at
Stanford and, sure, the Trojans miss her. But this a group
that's forged its one identity, and one that will be in the
mix as it seeks to defend its state team title.

"As a team we're much deeper than last year," coach Henry
Phelan said. "We don't have that guaranteed win (from
Lambie), but I think Kristin can win (next week). It all
comes down to one race, but if someone has a bad day, we
have depth."

Ricci hung behind Sutton's Kelsey Baltzell and Nicole Radzik
early on before throwing in a surge that gave her about a
50-yard lead at the first mile mark. She led the rest of the
way, finishing five seconds ahead of Lunenburg freshman Erin
Finneron in 18:44.

"I thought everyone would try to go with me," Ricci
said. "But when I looked back, there wasn't anyone behind
me. From there, I just tried to maintain my lead."

It's been an up-and-down season for Ricci, who hopes to
attend Dartmouth or Yale, but she came up big yesterday.

"She's a strong kid," Phelan said. "She's not the type of
person who will give up in conditions like this. I think
that favors her.

Baltzell and Radzik placed 10th and 11th, respectively, to
help the Suzies earn a return trip to the state meet.

"They really worked hard," Sutton coach Bill Gillin
said. "They wanted it. We've been a little banged up and
really gutted it through today."

Whitinsville Christian earned the third and final spot as
junior Ariel Camp finished fifth.

Individually in Division 2, Finneron and Lunenburg teammate
Sadiea Williams qualified for the state meet. They're joined
by Nipmuc's Ali Sardonini, Millbury's Shayna Wilczynski and
Jennaka Boucher, Uxbridge's Jessica Eidinger, and
Blackstone-Millville's Samantha Lashley. All are freshmen
except juniors Wilczynski and Lashley.

Fitchburg High School Athletics and Competition Home Page