By Zolan Kanno-Youngs, Globe Correspondent

Joseph Cappellano was just a couple hundred yards from the finish line of the Boston Marathon when he was told he couldn’t go any further by police and marathon officials.

“It was just utter confusion,” said the Boston Scholar Athlete senior zone facilitator. “You’re pretty exhausted at that point and when a bunch of cops just kind of jump out and stop you, it’s literally total confusion about how they could possibly stop somebody that’s been running 26 miles.”

Cappellano had been training for the marathon for five months to raise money for his public school students from around the city.

He stood on Commonwealth Avenue, waiting in the growing crowd of marathon runners trying to make sense of what was happening as marathon and police officials tried to get the crowd to remain calm and patient.

Not exactly the easiest thing for hundreds of dehydrated runners being backed up after they had been running miles without hesitation for hours.

“A lot of people were struggling because at the finish line there’s medical tents, there’s water, there’s blankets and things so people were basically stopped without anything,” Cappellano said.

Many of the runners also didn’t run with their cell phones so they couldn’t reach their families. Cappellano’s father, who waited anxiously at the finish line, was one of those relatives.

“As we were running, we heard a couple loud booms but we were on Commonwealth [Avenue] right before you take the right on to Boylston [Street] so we couldn’t really see anything until we saw the smoke above the buildings,” he said.

That’s when the zone facilitator began to see police officials sprint towards the incident with their only concern being the safety of civilians, just like Cappellano had ran for the well being of his students.

“The race day, that’s kind of like the celebration. That’s the fun part so it’s not necessarily what your completely doing it for, it’s about the organization you’re running for,” Cappellano said. “It’s my students who I’m raising money for and the program that I love, work in and that I believe in.”

Some of Cappellano’s O’Bryant students volunteered at the race, handing out water at mile 23 in support of their zone facilitator. Some even ran with him for a mile.

“I said, ‘guys you should probably get back with your group,’ and they turned around a couple miles before the [finish]. Thank God,” Cappellano said.

Liz Collins, a project manager for people and culture at Suffolk Construction Company, which funds the BSA, was also running on Monday. She was about a mile from the finish when she was diverted off the course.

“The thing that made me so scared was that was his time, that was when Joe was supposed to cross the finish line,” Collins said. “That’s what was so crazy.”

As the crowd at Commonwealth Avenue continued to back up, Cappellano and the rest of the runners were walked to the marathon buses at Berkley Street to get their phones and contact their relatives.

“[My father] saw tons of police and civilians running in to help others and I think it’s just a tribute to the spirit of the day,” Cappellano said. “The city and the state come out to support these runners and support these causes and it’s not about you , it’s not about one person, it’s really just a selfless, selfless day and I think that showed true in the wake of tragedy.”

Cappellano’s father and friends were all unharmed by the explosions at the finish line. Just like all of the runners, the BSA will still receive all of the money that he raised through the race.

The runner estimated that by the end of the month deadline for marathon fundraising, he would have individually raised $6,000 for the BSA. Currently the program has raised $23,295.

“It’s fantastic that the charities will still be able to collect the money that’s been worked hard for these past five months,” Cappellano said.

While it wasn’t his first Boston Marathon, Cappellano planned on this race being his last. But despite what happened yesterday, he has a feeling he won’t be able to be kept away from his goal – crossing the finish line.

“We’re not going to let fear stop us from this great tradition and this great wonderful day that will be such a big part of Boston’s history,” Cappellano said.

Zolan Kanno-Youngs covers Boston Public school athletics. He can be reached at kannoyoungs.globe@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @KannoYoungs.

By Justin A. Rice, Globe Correspondent

Running the Boston Marathon separately on Monday morning, both Elizabeth Collins and Angeli Kadade were stopped about a mile away, or just minutes away, from the finish line’s carnage.

While Collins — a Boston resident who was raising money for the Boston Scholar Athletes program for the second straight year — was able to navigate the chaos and make her way to family relatively easily, Kadade was in town from New York City to run for the Dream Big! foundation.

She was totally lost in the aftermath.

“I’m not familiar with Boston at all, I was asking other people where the Westin is,” said Kadade, who didn’t meet up with family at the hotel until after 8:30 p.m., after strangers let her wash up at their Sheraton hotel room. “I was in panic mode to get there.

“I think after running 26 miles you're already so drained, then it was pure adrenalin. We were upset we weren’t able to finish, then we were cold and our body heat dropped. Then once we found out what happened everyone considered family and friends were like ‘Get me out of here.’ ”

Initially, Collins was just as disappointed as Kadade that she wasn’t able to finish the race. After the news of the bombing that killed three and injured scores of others got around on the course, Collins was just as freezing and just as panicked as Kadade.

But being a Bostonian made meeting family much easier for Collins.

“My family came to find me and I went to Mass Ave. to walk down the river to Beacon Hill to get away,” Collins said. “It was like a total free for all.”

While the experiences of these two strangers are on the opposite ends of a spectrum in one sense, it was no doubt a shared experience for two women running for causes that benefit Boston public school students by promoting physical activity.

In fact, the Boston Scholar Athletes program and Dream Big! were two of several nonprofits either entirely or partially dedicated funds to BPS students that were raised through the Boston Marathon Official Charity Program and John Hancock's Marathon Non-Profit Program.

Several other charities that benefited BPS students that were contacted on Tuesday morning reported that their runners were unharmed physically, including MetroLacrosse, Playworks, Tenacity and America SCORES Boston.

Together, the Boston Marathon Official Charity Program and the John Hancock Marathon Non-Profit Program — which provide guaranteed entries into the race for runners fundraising for designated charities — are expected to raise $18 million this year.

So far the BSA has raised $23,295 and counting, while Dream Big! surpassed its $80,000 goal on Monday and Tenacity netted more than $100,000. MetroLacrosse has raised $19,298 so far with more to come, America SCORES Boston logged $26,248 and counting while Playworks has raised $80,000.

“It's a hard day for everyone," Playworks Executive Director Max Fripp said via email,
"but at the core, I wonder if the values we teach 15,000 Boston elementary school students through daily recess and play, might lead to shifts in how we people feel about themselves and the communities where we live and work.”

Fripp noted that they recently completed a two year random control trial with Mathematica with two important findings: 1) Playworks schools have less bullying and aggressive behavior 2) Their students feel more safe and connected.

Other local nonprofits that benefit some BPS students such as AccessSports America canceled events scheduled for Tuesday evening due to the bombing.

Both the BSA and the Sportsmen’s Tennis & Enrichment Center in Dorchester prepared to help students at their Spring Break camps process the traumatic situation.

“In general, I am asking staff to avoid having conversations in front of the children about the events that unfolded yesterday and not to have the lobby television on news stations that will constantly loop the footage,” Sportsmen’s Executive Director Toni Wiley said in an email to members. “However, children are likely to bring this up in conversation, so we should be as prepared as possible to handle it.

“If any student is showing extreme anxiety here at camp, please bring them to Mrs. Houston, to Carlos or to me so that you can continue to work with the other children on your court.”

Kadade wasn’t so sure about sliver linings as she prepared to return to New York on Tuesday.

“I'm not sure there is a silver lining except that my family is safe,” she said via email. “But there are many families that are not, and that are in hospitals. I keep thinking about my race and where I slowed down. If I was two minutes faster my story could have been different.

“Running for charity and hearing ‘dream big Angeli’ throughout the race is why charity runners run. The medal is mine and I didn't get that yesterday but yes, I'm still helping hundreds of girls in the Boston area. And nobody can take that away.”

Collins was back at her desk at Suffolk Construction’s Roxbury headquarters on Tuesday morning.

“I just couldn’t watch the TV any longer,” she said during a telephone interview. “I needed to be around people. I’m still a little sore but a little better than last year, which is good.”

Justin A. Rice covers Boston Public school athletics. He can be reached at jrice.globe@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @GlobeJustinRice or @BPSspts.

By Sarah Moomaw, Globe Correspondent

Due to an expected weekend snow storm - for the third straight week - the MIAA announced alterations to its Saturday lineup of sectional and All-State meets for indoor track and gymnastics.

All will go on as planned, but with earlier times.

The All-State Indoor Track Meet at Reggie Lewis Track Center has been rescheduled for 9:30 a.m., from 11 a.m., in hopes of beating the worst of the storm. Relays will begin promptly after the finish of the girls' 2-mile run.

The schedule for the girls' gymnastics sectionals has also been changed. The South sectional check-in will begin at 8:30 a.m., with the meet starting at 9:30 a.m. Check-in for the North meet will begin at 12:30 p.m., with competition getting underway at 1:30 p.m. Both meets will be held at Hudson High School.

The MIAA advised all athletes, coaches, and fans to check MIAA.net for further weather related announcements.

Peabody's Catarina Rocha, seen running at the EMass Division 1 championship, finished in second place in nationals on Saturday in San Diego. (Kayana Szymczak / For the Boston Globe)

By Zuri Berry, Boston.com Staff

Catarina Rocha, the talented cross-country runner from Peabody High School and the Division 1 player of the year for the Boston Globe's All-Scholastics, finished in second place at the Foot Locker Cross-Country Nationals in San Diego Saturday.

Rocha had gone undefeated in Massachusetts, winning the Bay State Invitational, the Eastern Mass. Division 1 race, the Division 1 All-State meet, and then the Foot Locker Northeast Regional to propel herself to nationals. She finished Saturday's race in 17:29, two seconds off her best mark of the season and five seconds behind winner Anna Roher of Mishawaka, Ind.

By Andrew MacDougall, Globe Correspondent

Mansfield High senior distance runner Josh Lampron is the state's 2011-2012 Gatorade Boys' Track & Field Athlete of the Year, the first track and field athlete to be chosen from the school

“I have had the distinct privilege to coach Josh for the past four years,” said Mansfield coach Julie Collins in a statement. “He has been an outstanding team member. Josh was elected captain of our cross-country team, winter track, and spring track and field teams by his fellow teammates. He is a team player, always leading by example.”

Lampron, who returned as the state’s Track & Field Athlete of the Year recipient from a year ago, won the 800-meter event at the All-State Meet this spring with a meet-record time of 1:51.99. He also placed first in the mile with a time of 4:07:88, helping to guide the Hornets to the state championship.

As a junior, Lampron won the mile at the 2011 New Balance Outdoor Nationals and placed third in the 1,500-meter run at the 2011 USA Track & Field Junior Outdoor Championships.

Coupled with his success in track and field, the 5-foot-10, 150-pound Lampron is a member of the National Honor society and Spanish National Honor society, graduating from Mansfield with a 3.95 grade point average.

In addition, Lampron participates in the Hornets’ marching and concert band. As an Eagle Scout recipient with the Boy Scouts of America, Lampron has volunteered over 100 hours of community service.

Lampron has signed a national letter of intent to run track at Villanova.

By Bob Holmes, Globe Staff

Newton North junior Carla Forbes followed up an indoor season in which she won the national title in the triple jump by winning the same event at the New Balance Outdoor Nationals Friday in North Carolina.

Forbes jumped 42-feet, 9.25-inches, a best in the nation for 2012. Forbes jumped 40-0 to win the All-State title two weeks ago.

By Bob Holmes, Globe Staff

The threat of rain and a better forecast for Tuesday has once again caused the MIAA to move the state track championship. The meet, originally scheduled for Saturday, then postponed to Monday, will now be held on Tuesday. The site remains Fitchburg State, and all the previous start times remain the same.

On its website, the MIAA said, "Weather forecasts for Tuesday are much better than Monday, and the safety of all athletes is our major concern. Special thanks to the administration at Fitchburg State for being able to adjust their schedule to accommodate us.''

The pole vault will start at 1:30, field events at 3, and running events at 3:30 p.m.

Brighton senior Luis Nunez qualified for the All-State meet last Saturday after clearing 6-feet-2-inches at the Eastern Mass Division 1 state meet. (Photo courtesy of Gerald Howland)

By Justin A. Rice, Globe Correspondent

Qualifying for the All-States meet during the indoor track season was a natural progression for Luis Nunez considering he practiced high jump at the Reggie Lewis Center three days a week. Qualifying for Monday’s outdoor All-States meet in high jump, however, was a much bigger feat for the Brighton senior considering he hardly ever practices high jump during the outdoor season.

“He really only gets to practice during meets at White Stadium,” said Brighton track coach Sara Voss Geiman, noting that during the outdoor season they usually practice at their school or at Madison Park’s track, which doesn’t have the high jump set up. “To get to [White Stadium] from Brighton is a trek. The fact that he does what he does with virtually no practice is a testament to what an amazing athlete he is.”

After finishing tied for third at the Eastern Mass Division 1 track meet at Durfee High School last weekend with a leap of 6-feet-2-inches, Nunez will be the No. 15 seed at the All-State meet on Saturday at Fitchburg State University.

“I’m really excited about it, I can’t wait for it to come,” Nunez said. “I really want to improve myself at get into the Top 5.”

Nunez has jumped as high as 6-4 during the indoor season and he said he probably would have a better shot at his goal of qualifying for the outdoor New England meet this weekend if he could practice more. But he also said that he doesn’t mind not being able to practice high jump in the spring because he doesn’t have to worry about over-thinking his jumps.

“For me I have the muscle memory and things like that so it comes naturally,” he said. “That’s kind of one of the things, when I think about it I kind of get nervous, I try to do all types of stuff. When I’m not really thinking about it I jump and do better than when I actually think about it.

“[But] training and everything, I would definitely be better, there’s no doubt about it.”

Nunez has a 4.1 GPA and said he wants to try to walk on to the track team at UMass Amherst in the fall. He said it's not frustrating that he can’t practice high jump in the spring because it allows him to focus on his other events, including the 100- and 200-meter dashes, the long jump and the 4x100-meter relay.

“I want to be able to do different events,” he said.

Nunez’s teammate, senior Laquasia Anderson, will also run at the All-State meet as the No. 11 seed in the 200-meter dash. Anderson was seeded No. 1 in the 200-meter in the Division 1 meet last weekend before finishing second with a time of 26.13 seconds. She also helped Brighton’s 4x100-meter relay team finish 12th with a time of 52.18 seconds.

“There is a part of me that knows she competed well but saved a little bit of herself for the 4x100 so I’m excited to see what she can do with only one race to focus on,” Voss Geiman said.

Anderson had ankle surgery last year after seriously injuring herself during a basketball game.

“I was surprised myself,” she said of how fast she recovered from surgery. “But over the summer last year I played basketball and ran a lot on the weekend and my basketball coach had me running a lot. I just kept running, pushing myself and when I came to track I pushed myself even harder and that was the outcome.”

Anderson, who will try to walk on to the track team at UMass Dartmouth in the fall, will be making her first All-States appearance this weekend.

“I just want to push myself, I’m not worried about being No. 1 and winning, I just want to push myself so I finish,” she said. “One of the things I’m going to take away from track is [my coach] helped me believe in myself because at one point I didn’t and that’s something I’m going to take with me to college and after that.”

The only other athlete from a Boston public school that will be competing in this year’s All-State meet is O’Bryant’s state champion hurler, senior Adrienne Thornton, who won the discus at the Eastern Mass Division 3 meet with a toss of 132-09. She finished third in the shot put with a toss of 38-08.5.

At All-States, Thornton will be seeded No. 1 in discus and No. 3 in shot put behind Mahar Regional’s Sabrina Silva and Wakefield’s Elizabeth Bray.

Thornton’s coach Jose Ortega said their goal is to win both.

“It’s not going to be easy but hopefully she can pull it off,” he said. “She just has to relax and allow her talent and technique to take over. She has it in her to perform well she just has to relax and let it flow and go.”

Ortega, who has won 18 outdoor city championships and 16 indoor city championships at O’Bryant, said that only sending three athletes from Boston public schools to All-States is a “typical” year. Ortega said more city athletes could qualify if more city schools were in lower divisions, where the qualifying standards for the division meets are lower as well.

“That would give us more athletes to qualify for states and a chance to move on to All-States rather than be in their respective divisions and work twice as hard to get to All-States,” he said. “If you want the programs to be more successful you should look into all the teams in Boston being put in one division and more kids would qualify and advance to All-States.”

Ortega lobbied Boston Schools’ Athletic Director Ken Still a few years ago to petition the MIAA with proposal to move the city track teams into Division 4.

“He said present your proposal and to give him data, that’s the hard part is going through and finding all the data to prove our point,” Ortega said. “Without data he cannot present it to the MIAA, which is a legitimate reason.”

Schools are put into division by the size of their student body.

“That’s the problem, our school may be a bit big, but if you look at all the kids coming out for track and field it doesn’t make sense,” Ortega said. “So what if we have 2,200 students, you only get 10 of those 2,200 who come out for track.”

Voss Geiman said she was bummed more athletes from Boston schools didn’t qualify for All-States.

“I was kind of sad because there is such a great camaraderie between the coaches in track and field and actually once we get done with the city meet all the BPS kids feel like we are on the same team,” she said. “It’s too bad there weren’t more people that could go and represent Boston.”

Justin A. Rice covers Boston Public school athletics. He can be reached at jrice.globe@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @GlobeJustinRice or @BPSspts.

By Bob Holmes, Globe Staff

With rain expected Saturday the MIAA has moved the state championships to Monday. The following is the release sent by the MIAA:

After looking at many weather maps – Dick Baker, MIAA Track Liaison, and Charlie Butterfield, All-State Tournament Director – have postponed Saturday’s meet @ Fitchburg State University to Monday, June 4th as outlined in the MIAA Outdoor Track format – with all the same times – Pole Vault @ 1:30, all other field Events at 3 pm, and running events at 3:30 pm. Since the present weather maps show a 100% chance of rain/wind and thunderstorms for tomorrow, and only a 40% chance on Monday (rain only), we are hoping for the best. A final determination for Monday will be made by 12 noon on Sunday. If postponed on Monday, would go on Tuesday.

Barry Chin / Globe Staff

Andy Pierre, who immigrated to Dorchester five months before a 7.0 magnitude earthquake rocked his native Haiti, will compete in the MIAA Division 4 track meet for the fist time on Saturday.

By Justin A. Rice, Globe Correspondent

Shortly after moving to Dorchester from Haiti in 2009, Andy Pierre was summoned by an administrator at his new high school, the Community Academy of Science and Health. Pierre didn’t realize that the administrator, Joel Connor, was also the track and field coach at the Dorchester school known as CASH.

“I didn’t even know track when I was in Haiti,” Pierre recalled, “the first time [Connor] called me he was like ‘Andy I need you after school.’ I was like ‘Why, did I do something?’”

Connor thought the 6-foot-2-inch, 150-pounder had potential on the track, even though his only athletic experience was in soccer.

“He looked like a marathon runner," Connor said. "He had the body of a marathon runner; quite frankly he could run for days.”

The 18-year-old — who is listed as a junior but will likely graduate this spring — will compete in the Division 4 Outdoor Track & Field Championship for the first time on Saturday at North Reading High. Pierre finished fourth in the 600 meters in the Division 4 indoor meet this winter before finishing 13th at All-States.

He will be the No. 9 seed in the 400-meter run Saturday with a qualifying time of 52.40 seconds.

“I’m so excited, I can’t wait,” Pierre recalled after winning the 400-meter run in the Boston City Track & Field Championships on May 15 with a time of 52.70. He also won the city title in high jump with a leap of 5 feet 8 inches.

“The first time I went to states I was so scared.”

Pierre’s transition to the track was nothing compared to his transition to the United States.

When Pierre was 6, his mother, Herodia Auguste, moved from Haiti to Boston in search of work. Eight-years later, she finally earned enough money at her job in the food services department at Boston College to send for her 10 children to join her in the states.

“That was a dream,” Pierre said of being reunited with his mother. “I didn’t even recognize her when I got here. We started again; lots of things changed about her.

“She always put in my head that everything is going to be OK.”

Their reunion was five months before a 7.0 magnitude earthquake devastated Haiti in January 2010.

Pierre said he lost several family members and friends.

“I was lucky,” he said. “I could be one of them. I always thank God for that.”

Adding to his distress was the fact that Pierre and his older brother, Clifford, spoke little to no English when they first enrolled in school at CASH in September 2009. Clifford also ran indoor track for Connor that first winter and served as his brother’s security blanket during the 2-mile and mile races.

“They didn’t speak a lot of English, so they would run with each other,” Connor said. “His brother wasn’t that good but [Pierre] would always run in races with his brother. I tried to convince him ‘Leave your brother,’ but they would come across the finish line together. I would have to tell him ‘Leave him, you’re better.’”

One day Clifford couldn’t attend a meet because he had a job interview at Boston College.

“So Andy had to run by himself,” Connor said. “He basically took two to three minutes off his time. I told him ‘See how fast you’re running, see what your potential is.’ That was the turning point of his getting it into his head that he could be better.”

Pierre’s progression skyrocketed quickly, but he always played second fiddle in the distance races to Latin Academy’s Robert “Sonny” Finch, who has won the mile at the city championships three straight years.

Impressed by Pierre’s split times of 49 and 50 seconds during his mile runs, Connor decided to switch Pierre to middle distance races before this indoor season.

“Sonny was in his head that he couldn’t beat him,” Connor said. “I said ‘Let me switch him, I knew he’s been working on speed. Sonny won. It was, let him have [the mile], let’s try something new.”

Pierre didn’t protest.

“We felt like I can run faster in shorter races,” Pierre said. “I was like 'All right, whatever you see.' I was willing to do it so I think he was right to say that. … I felt comfortable the first time. I feel comfortable with it.”

And Finch, who had befriended Pierre, didn’t mind that Pierre wouldn’t be around to push him in the mile anymore.

“He was always chasing me, then one day he came to me and said I can’t beat you, he always beat me in the 800 though,” Finch said. “I’m sure he likes being in first a little bit better. Plus we’re buddies. We always congratulate each other. … It was kind of comical to see us in the same race. It was a race of opposites. We run the same speed but look completely different. He’s tall and got that Mohawk and I’m so much shorter than him.”

Considering everything Pierre’s been through, Connor said he’s most proud of how Pierre has handled himself in school. In fact, Connor said that Pierre, who is almost 19, will graduate this year even though it’s his third year of high school at CASH.

Connor said like many Haitian immigrants, Pierre didn’t have paperwork when he arrived at the school so they placed him in freshman classes. Once they received paperwork that proved he completed his freshman year in Haiti, Pierre was put on a track to graduate this year, Connor said.

Pierre was able to catch up on credits through CASH’s dual-enrollment program with Benjamin Franklin Institute of Technology as well as the district’s credit recovery program. Connor said Pierre will graduate this spring if he passes the US history and English courses he’s taking through the credit recovery program.

Connor also said the likes of Connecticut College and Roxbury Community College are interested in having Pierre run for them. Connor said the problem is that those schools think he's a junior, so they are working on finding a college where he could walk on to the track team in the fall.

"Maybe not a scholarship but [ a school that would allow him to] walk on saying 'this kid has potential,'" Connor said. “His potential really hasn’t been tapped at all. We practice in the school. We don’t have time to go to White Stadium or the Reggie Lewis Center in the winter so all his practices are in the hallways and he doesn’t have competition to run against.

Track also played a huge role in Pierre’s assimilation to the school and this country, Connor said.

“He’s like a superstar in school and everyone here knows who he is,” Connor said. “That forced him to acclimate to the culture.”

Pierre said he feels fully assimilated and doesn’t miss Haiti at all.

“I feel comfortable here,” he said. “I have things I didn’t have there. Track is one thing I didn’t have when I was in Haiti.”

Justin A. Rice covers Boston Public school athletics. He can be reached at jrice.globe@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @GlobeJustinRice or @BPSspts.

By Justin A. Rice, Globe Correspondent

When the MIAA seeds for the divisional track meets were released this morning, Brighton High track coach Sara Voss Geiman was surprised to see senior Laquasia Anderson seeded No. 1 in the girls’ 200-meter dash at this weekend's Eastern Mass Division 1 track meet at Durfee High School in Fall River.

“I was hoping she would be in the top three or five at least,” Voss Geiman said during a telephone interview on Wednesday afternoon. “Her being the top seed, I didn’t know it would happen. It was really exciting.”

The feat was all the more remarkable considering Anderson had ankle surgery last year after seriously injuring herself during a basketball game.

“It was a huge change from her junior year now that she’s completely healed and healthy,” Voss Geiman said.

Anderson, who has a qualifying time of 26.4 seconds in the 200, will also run on Brighton’s 24th-seeded 4x100-meter relay team along with senior Tanasha Ward, junior Albertine Samson and junior Esther Nkwah. Samson is also the No. 32-seed in the 100-meter dash with a qualifying time of 13.54 seconds.

Samson and Nkwah attend Boston Community Leadership Academy, which is moving from Brighton to the old Hyde Park High complex next year.

“This is also an exciting year because it’s the last year I’ll be with Albertine and Esther,” Voss Geiman said.

Voss Geiman also said this is the biggest team she’s ever brought to the state meet since she started coaching at Brighton three years ago.

Brighton’s boys’ 4x100-meter relay team [junior Christopher Desanero, senior Luis Nunez, senior Michael Moore, junior Seth Philistin] is seeded 24th with a time of 45.84. Nunez is also seeded 30th in the high jump with qualifying leap of 6-feet.

Voss Geiman also noted that Anderson was pushed all season long in the 200-meter dash by South Boston's Daitannah Smith, who is seeded No. 8 in 200-meter dash in the Division 2 meet at Whitman Hanson Regional High. Smith beat Anderson in the city championships with a time of 26.20 seconds.

Also at the Division 2 meet, Latin Academy eighth grader Ashley Lewis is the No. 20 seed in the 400-meter run. Latin Academy senior Barbara Okafor is the No. 23 in the 100-meter dash.

On the boys' side of the Division 2 meet, Latin Academy sophomore Malik Anderson will be the No. 18 seed in the 100-meter dash and his teammate, Sekou Stuppard, will be seeded No. 24 in the 400-meter run. South Boston senior William Arrington is No. 23 in the 200-meter dash.

Jumping to the Eastern Mass Division 3 meet at Pembroke High, it’s no surprise that O’Bryant’s state champion hurler, Adrienne Thornton, is seeded No. 1 in the discus with a qualifying toss of 120 feet and 9 inches. She is the No. 2 seed in the shot put (34-07) behind senior Elizabeth Bray of Wakefield (42-02).

Thornton’s teammate, Kiana Daley, is seeded No. 3 in the discus with a toss of 112-01 while O’Bryant junior Duncan Malone will be the No. 27 seed in the discus on the boys’ side of the Division 3 meet.

Jamila Jones, who edged out Thornton by half an inch to take the city championship shot put title this year, will be the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Mass Division 4 meet at North Reading High. North Reading sophomore, Emily Murray, is the No. 1 seed in the shot put with a qualifying toss of 36-09.

New Mission senior Akkiea Dickerson is seeded sixth in the 200-meter dash at the Division 4 meet with a qualifying time of 26.6. She is No. 23 in the 100-meter dash with a time of 13.3.

In the Boys’ Division 4 meet, CASH junior Andy Pierre is the No. 9 seed in the 400-meter run with a qualifying time of 52.40.

Boston Latin School has a slew of athletes in the Division 1 meet as well, including senior Wilhelmina Moen, the No. 8 seed in the 200-meter dash with a qualifying time of 26.74. Her teammate, freshman Kenedy Barnwell, is seeded No. 17 with a time of 27.06. Barnwell is also No. 19 in the 100-meter dash with a time of 13.34 while Denise Yoon is No. 34 with a time of 13.54.

In the 800-meter run senior Ava Violich is seeded No. 29 with a time of 2:28.09 and in the 2-mile run seventh grader Sarah Kiame is No. 26 with a time of 12:07.89 while freshman Alannah O’Brien is No. 28 with a time of 12:08.87.

Boston Latin’s No. 9-seeded 4x100-meter relay team (Moen, Barnwell, senior Maggie Hughes, eight grader Andrea Hatzis and Yoon) has a seed time of 51.53.

In the triple jump, junior Fenintola Abioye is the No. 21 seed with a leap of 33-08.

On the boys’ side, Boston Latin junior Mike Ward is the No. 21-seed in the mile run with a seed time of 4:33.05. He is also the No. 26 seed in the 800-meters with a time of 2:01.54.

Justin A. Rice covers Boston Public school athletics. He can be reached at jrice.globe@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @GlobeJustinRice or @BPSspts.

By Craig Forde, Globe Correspondent

Mansfield High School senior Josh Lampron has been selected to compete in the adidas Dream Mile on June 9th in New York City.

The Dream Mile is part of the adidas Grand Prix -- a premiere track-and-field showcase now in its eighth year -- held at Icahn Stadium on Randall’s Island, featuring Olympic medalists and World Champions.

Lampron was chosen after running a 3:45.74 in the 1500 meters at the New Balance Boston Twilight Series at Bentley College last Saturday. It was the fastest time in the event by a U.S. runner since 2009 and stands as an all-time top-20 high school mark.

Selected as 2011 Globe Runner of the Year, Lampron has also been named Massachusetts Track and Field Athlete of the Year, has been selected to numerous Globe All-Scholastic teams and is the 2011 National Champion in the mile. He will attend Villanova in the fall.

By Liz Torres, Globe Correspondent

The Bishop Fenwick girls’ track team finished the regular season 8-1 by sweeping a dual meet against Saint Mary’s (102.5-33.5) and Cathedral (131-4) Tuesday. The Fenwick boys’ finished at 7-2 after at 103-10 win over Cathedral.

The three combined wins give the Fewick squads a combined 502 wins.

The Fenwick boys program, which has been around for 42 years has a record of 254-75-1, while the girls program, which is 34 years old, is 248-22-4.

By Justin A. Rice, Globe Correspondent

For the first time in 18 years a girls’ track team other than O’Bryant won the Boston City League Track Championships. What’s even more remarkable about Latin Academy overthrowing the Tigers Tuesday at White Stadium is that they did it with major contributions from five middle school students.

Latin Academy coach Brian Leussler said he's never had so many middle schoolers perform so well in his 10 years coaching the school, which consists of students from sixth-through-12th grades.

“This is really phenomenal," he said after the Dragons scored 126 points compared to O'Bryant's 107. "There’s so many underclassmen that contributed so much.”

During the opening day Monday, eighth-grader Imani Pressley won the 100-meter dash in 13.10 seconds and seventh grader Catherine Van Even finished second in the 2-mile in 14:13.7.

On Tuesday, eighth grader Ashley Lewis won the 400 meters in 1:01.8 while her classmate, Leigha Mills, finished fourth in the 400 meters in 1:06.4. Finally, eighth grader Britney Firmin won the 800 meters in 2:31.8.

Pressley, Lewis, Mills, and Firmin also teamed up to win the 4x400-meter relay in 4:36.3. An all senior Latin Academy quartet (Barbara Okafor, Samanda Jean, Roxlind James, and Monique Cox) won the 4x100-meter relay in 54.5 seconds to sweep the relays for the Dragons Tuesday.

Cox also won the 400-meter hurdles (1:13) while James won the high jump (4-06).

“We’re lucky because we have a lot of upperclassmen who inspire and lead the underclassmen,” Leussler said.

Lewis said it also helps to have other middle schoolers on the team.

“We’re always there to support each other,” she said. “When we doubt ourselves before a race we always encourage each other and say we can do things even though we’re running against people a lot bigger than us.”

Pressley, who missed the qualifying mark for the state meet by .1 seconds, added, “This is my first year running track, so they help me out a lot.”

While Firmin missed the qualifying mark for the state meet by one second despite shattering her own personal record by 10 seconds, Lewis qualified for the state meet in the 400 for the second straight year.

“At states, I’m the only person of 130 people who is not in high school,” she said. “My goal is to try my best because I can’t do better than my best. I’ll try to do better the next year compared to the other years.”

Leussler wasn’t disappointed that Pressley and Firmin missed states so narrowly.

“They will have plenty of time to go to states,” he said. “They are only eighth graders.”

Mills agreed.

“If we can do this well in the eighth grade,” she said, “and keep working and training, we can do so much better in the future.”

Justin A. Rice covers Boston Public school athletics. He can be reached at jrice.globe@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @GlobeJustinRice or @BPSspts.

By Cat Calsolaro, Globe Correspondent

Save the date. May 15, 2012 marks the 100th straight dual meet win for Bishop Feehan boys track. The Shamrocks (5-0) reached the milestone when they defeated Martha’s Vineyard, 88-48.

Coach Bob L’Homme traced the team’s last dual meet loss all the way back to 1999. That’s 13 straight Eastern Athletic Conference titles for the Shamrocks.

“When you’re at 50 or 60 wins, the coach might know it, but you don’t say anything,” he said. “We knew we were close last year and we prided ourselves on carrying on the tradition.”

The current Shamrocks were proud to be the team that hit win No. 100, but their achievement is only made possible by a tradition of success under L’Homme’s leadership.

“Being on the team that finally did it, they were pretty excited,” said L’Homme.

By Justin A. Rice, Globe Correspondent

When O’Bryant track & field coach Jose Ortega first asked Emily Prado to run the 2-mile three years ago, the long-distance assignment brought her to tears.

“When he told me to run the 2-mile I cried,” the junior recalled during the first day of the Boston City League Track & Field Championships on Monday at White Stadium. “I went into the bathroom, I didn’t tell my teammates, I didn’t tell my coaches, and I started to cry.

“But when I did it, I thought this is something I’m finally good at. I told myself, ‘stick with it, something good might happen.’ I never pictured myself running it for three years.”

Prado not only stuck with it, she has won the event at both the outdoor and indoor city championships for three straight years.

On Monday she did so by setting her personal record, 14 minutes 10.50 seconds — about 40 seconds faster than her previous PR.

O’Bryant, which is going for its 19th straight city title in outdoor girls’ track, was also in first place in the team standings (76 points) after Monday's opening day events. Adrienne Thornton won the girls’ discus for O’Bryant with a toss of 120 feet, 9 inches while her teammate, Kiana Daley, finished second after recording a personal record (112-01).

Thornton, a state champion thrower finished, second in the shot put (33-00.50) behind New Mission/Boston English’s Jamila Jones (33-01). Thornton also finished second behind Latin Academy’s Monique Cox (1:13) in the 400-meter hurdles by .60 seconds.

Her throwing coach, Ted Loska, said she threw well considering she hurt her ankle on a hurdle and the throwing circle was soaked by rain in the middle of the meet.

Latin Academy was second in the girls’ team standings (58.50 points) after Imani Pressley won the 100-meter dash (13.10) and Roxlind James won the high jump (4-06).

The remainder of the running events are slated for Tuesday at 3 p.m.

“It’s slipping away from us,” Ortega said of winning his 20th straight girls’ city championship. “It’s not looking good … This is just the field events. The running events is a whole different system. It’s not going to hold up. The meet is not over. It’s not even half over.”

But while Ortega wasn’t so confident about Tuesday’s running events, he said he’s never seen anyone dominate the girls’ 2-mile in the city like Prado has the last three years.

“I don’t think anyone has won it consistently, back-to-back-to-back,” Ortega said. “That’s an unusual event. No one wants to run it. That’s a long race. It takes someone who is mentally fit to run that race.”

Ortega said it’s one of the hardest events to consistently win.

“You just don’t know,” he said. “Anyone can win it.”

That was evident on Monday when Boston Latin Academy seventh-grader Catherine Van Even finished second in only her third time ever running the event.

“I saw everyone ahead of me was picking up the pace,” she said after clocking a time of 14:13.70. “Everyone was going faster so I decided to pick up the pace.”

Prado wasn’t nearly as good as Van Even when she was in middle school. Prado attended middle school at the Hernandez School so she couldn’t compete in high school track before she got to O’Bryant in the ninth grade.

“In seventh grade I got last place all the time, I was terrible,” Prado said of middle school track, which doesn’t include a race longer than 800-meters.

Prado’s middle school coach, Michael Baugh, however, saw potential in her.

“He said ‘She’s more of a distance runner,’” Ortega said of Baugh, who currently coaches Dorchester High. “He said, ‘the more she runs the better she gets.’ I said I’ll take your word for it.”

Even after she settling into the 2-mile, Prado has had some ups and downs. She said she wasn’t feeling motivated during her last two races going into cities and did not perform well.

“The last two races I didn’t really believe in myself,” she said. “But I had support from my team and my cross country coach and my track coach. It was awesome. It’s like I don’t push myself until the cities. That’s where it all goes down and my adrenaline level kicks in.

“I just told myself I want this."

And now she wants the four-peat.

“I think so,” she said. “I hope so.”

Justin A. Rice covers Boston Public school athletics. He can be reached at jrice.globe@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @GlobeJustinRice or @BPSspts.

Latin Academy was paced by Yao Tan’s victory in the 2-mile (11:20.6) during the first day of the Boston Public Schools Track & Field Championships. (Billy Owens / For the Boston Globe)

By Justin A. Rice, Globe Correspondent

After the first day of the Boston Public Schools Track & Field Championships on Monday afternoon at White Stadium, the O’Bryant boys’ track team is in line to win its first outdoor track & field city title in two years.

The Tigers (49 points) lead Latin Academy by six points.

O’Bryant junior Duncan Malone qualified for states in the discus after winning the event with his throw of 120 feet, 9 inches, a personal record.

“I’m happy,” Malone said. “It was weird because it [could have been] my last thrown of my whole entire season. It was my last thrown and I pulled it off.”

Malone also finished second in the triple jump (37-10) behind South Boston’s William Arrington (39-05.50). O’Bryant freshman Brian Donna won the 400 meter hurdles in 1 minute 2.90 seconds while his teammate, Michael Allen, took the city title in the javelin with a toss of 137-09.

Latin Academy was paced by Yao Tan’s victory in the 2-mile (11:20.6).

Justin A. Rice covers Boston Public school athletics. He can be reached at jrice.globe@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @GlobeJustinRice or @BPSspts.

Pavel Dzemianok for the Boston Globe

Former Boston English High and University of Arkansas middle distance runner, Said Ahmed, started Boston United Track and Cross Country last summer. The organization offers Saturday track clinics at the Melnea A. Cass Recreation Complex from November to May and at Madison Park High School during the summer months.

By Justin A. Rice, Globe Correspondent

Some of the best and most disciplined athletes in the city will descend upon White Stadium Monday and Tuesday for the Boston City League /Track & Field Championships.

One common denominator between all of the athletes competing is that each team is led by one full-time coach, along with the help of volunteers.

That’s why former Boston English High and University of Arkansas middle distance runner, Said Ahmed, started Boston United Track and Cross Country last summer. The organization offers Saturday track clinics from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. at the Melnea A. Cass Recreation Complex (120 Martin Luther King Blvd.) from November to May and at Madison Park High School during the summer months.

Ahmed, 29, said while suburban teams often have a head coach for boys’ and girls’ track along with coaches to teach sprint, distance and jumping events, Boston schools only have one fulltime coach for both boys’ and girls’ track.

Ahmed's clinics teach basic fundamentals of running that the city's track coaches don’t always have time to address during practice.

“When you have 20 or 25 kids how are you going to teach every kid what they need to know?” the former Charlestown High track coach, said. “The reason we created this is so the kids, during their own free time, can come here during the weekends. This clinic is for them to pick up little details that they are missing and a lot of things that will prevent them from getting injured.”

O’Bryant track coach, Jose Ortega, who has won 18 outdoor city championships and 16 indoor city championships, said he has two volunteer coaches that come to practice and meets when they can. He said he tries to get his athletes to attend the clinics as much as possible.

“That’s another outlet for coaches who can’t get volunteers, who can’t do it all, that’s a great outlet for kids to go on the weekend and get extra help,” Ortega said. “It’s just like tutoring. They are getting tutored on the techniques so they can better perform.

“I’m always sending my kids there. The problem is do they go? A lot of them do live in certain parts of the city that they can’t get to it. I always encourage the kids to go there.”

After graduating from English High in 2001, Ahmed attended Arkansas on a track scholarship and graduated in 2005 with a double degree in sociology and criminal justice. Ahmed, who competed in the mile, 800- and 1,500-meters, also ran professionally for Nike until 2009. He has since worn several hats at Charlestown High, including dean of discipline, community field coordinator and track and field coach.

Currently a community field coordinator at the Jeremiah E. Burke School, Ahmed gave up coaching track at Charlestown High two years ago because he realized he didn’t have time to teach all his athletes properly. Last summer he started the Boston United program.

The clinics are for all ages and usually feature five local track coaches, including Boston schools throwing coach Ted Loska and Emmanuel College coach Tony DaRocha.

One of Ahmed’s former Charlestown athletes, sophomore Ahmed Ibrahim, has used the clinics to improve his skills.

“It gives us the basics of running,” he said. “You practice your form, you practice drills, those little things you do in a race you can do on Saturdays and during the week you can do the actual running. Some guys hurt themselves during the week so it’s really good to come on Saturdays to practice your form and get yourself straight.

“You need extra focus on [the fundamentals.] Coach can give you some advice during the week but he’s not going to be able to go over the whole thing. So we devote one whole day practicing the aspects of running.”

But Ibrahim said he also likes the intimate nature of only having one coach during the week that he can get to know well. Former O’Bryant and UMass-Lowell cross country runner, Ruben Sanca, agreed. He said only having one coach in high school taught him how to learn on his own.

“It made me a little bit more independent,” said Sanca, who graduated from O’Bryant in 2005 and now works at UMass-Lowell. “When you got to college that’s what happens, you have 90 other people on your team and you have to become a little bit independent to learn from yourself and move on.”

In town for last month’s Boston Marathon, elite runner Desiree Davila, said it would be tough to run in a program that only had one fulltime coach.

“Even for one coach to get a number of kids out and organize a run for them is hard because it’s a lot of numbers,” said Davila, who sat out this year’s Boston Marathon to focus on the London Olympics this summer. “So to be able to put in all that extra work I’m sure it’s a huge task.”

Davila, who was second in last year’s Boston Marathon women’s race after running the fastest American women’s time ever, helped run John Hancock’s second annual Scholars and Stars-World Class Athletes Inspiring Teen Achievers during last month’s Boston Marathon. The clinic gave 150 students from Boston the opportunity to participate in four interactive stations facilitated by the elite athletes at the Reggie Lewis Track and Athletic Center.

“Sometimes it’s not the main thing, it’s not going to school and showing up,” Davila said. “It’s studying, it’s going home and reading and things like that. The more opportunities like this that they have hopefully they’ll get excited about that and they’ll seek it out on their own and when that becomes an option maybe more opportunities will be created for them as the need becomes bigger.”

Ahmed certainly hopes Boston United Track and Cross Country gets bigger. And he said that he would like to see a day when all 19 high school track teams in the city pool their resources and train together with coaches who specialize in different events. Ahmed acknowledged the logistical challenges of holding one practice for every track team in the city, especially during the spring season when, unlike the indoor season, several schools have their own track to practice on.

“But again, where do you benefit the most?” he said. “Is it for the kids or [the coaches] convenience? Pool your resources and maybe you get some college interns who graduated high school and want to get experience in coaching.”

Justin A. Rice covers Boston Public school athletics. He can be reached at jrice.globe@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @GlobeJustinRice or @BPSspts.

By Justin A. Rice, Globe Correspondent

Most of the Boston schools’ baseball and softball games slated for Monday were canceled due to inclement weather.

The O'Bryant varsity softball game against Ursuline will be played at 3:30 p.m. at 269 Common St. in Dedham. The JV game is cancelled. And Boston International will travel to Mt. Alvernia at 4:30 p.m.

Outdoor track and boys volleyball are still on for today along with Latin Academy tennis. O’Bryant boys and girls tennis, however, are cancelled. The boys tennis match will be made up on May 4th at the Sportsmen's Tennis Club.

The Fenway at West Roxbury varsity baseball game was rescheduled for 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday.

The Brighton at Charlestown varsity baseball game will be made up on May 15 and Ryan Field. Snowden and South Boston's varsity baseball teams will make up their game at 3:30 p.m. on May 1 at Kirby Field.

Stay tuned for the rest of the makeup dates.

Other scheduling notes: The Billerica at Madison Park varsity and JV baseball games originally scheduled for April 12 will be made up at 4 p.m. on May 8 and the Boston English-Brighton varsity softball game originally scheduled for April 12 will be played at 3:30 p.m. on May 16 at Cleveland Circle.

The Charlestown at New Mission varsity softball game originally scheduled for April 12 was moved to 3:30 p.m. on May 8 at Sheehy Park. The JV and varsity Madison Park at East Boston softball games originally scheduled for April 12 will be played at 3 p.m. on May 3.

Justin A. Rice covers Boston Public school athletics. He can be reached at jrice.globe@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @GlobeJustinRice or @BPSspts.

Pavel Dzemianok/For the Globe

Latin Academy senior Robert Finch of West Roxbury didn't mind finishing second to last in the Boston Athletic Association's Invitational Mile for the second straight year.

By Justin A. Rice, Globe Correspondent

There's no such thing as a free lunch and there's also no such thing as free running sneakers. "It’s nice to get all this free gear because, I mean, these shoes, there’s no way I’d be able to buy them so it’s nice to be able earn them,” Robert Finch of West Roxbury said of his complimentary orange Adidas sneakers after finishing second to last in the boys’ Boston Athletic Association Scholastic Invitational Mile for the second straight year.

The Latin Academy senior ran the race — which loops around Boylston and Newbury Streets before finishing on the Boston Marathon’s finish line — Sunday morning in a time of 5 minutes, 8.2 seconds.

“I’m kind of a big fish in a small pond; I’m the best in the [Boston City] league but it doesn’t really compare to some of these other guys,” Finch said of the race, which features two athletes from each city or town along the Boston Marathon course. “But it’s nice to have someone to chase. To get a better performance, I need to race people who are faster than me. It’s nice I get to do it at least once a year.”

Finch said the race also gives him a boost going into the heart of the City League season.

Boston Latin junior Michael Ward finished the race in 4:40.6, just missing a top-three finish. Framingham's Ben Groleau won the race in 4:27.2 while Justin Keefe from Newton North (4:39.7) finished second and Tim Bolick of Hopkinton (4:40.4) was third.

“I went out and I stayed with the Brookline pack because I knew they were solid guys,” Ward said. “I stayed there till about 800 [meters] and then moved up and followed one of the Brookline guys [Mark Perry] in the last lap and just kicked it in and got caught at the line for fourth.”

Ward was running the race for the first time.

“My teammates have done it the last few yeas so they gave me some pointers,” he said. “I was just running. I knew a lot of the guys in the race so I used that to help me through it.”

Ward’s Latin School teammate, Ava Violich, finished 11th in the girls’ race in 5:49.5.

“It was fun,” the sophomore said. “I've never run in road races, on concrete, before. It just gives me a feel of what it’s like to really run the marathon.”

O’Bryant junior Melissa Jean was disappointed with her last-place performance of 7:03.3.

“I did not know the course, I did not know any of the competitors,” she said.

The morning also featured a boys’ and girls’ middle school 1-kilometer race. John Lara of the Rafael Hernandez School in Roxbury led the first half of the race before being eclipsed by Zachary O'Leary of Ashland, who won in 2:54.5.

“It’s all right, everybody loses,” Lara said “I was trying to get the win but he caught me. I was out in front [for one lap] and he caught me.”

Lara finished in 3 minutes flat while his brother, Joel Lara, finished sixth in 3:13.7 to give Boston first place in the team standings.

“I felt famous," Joel said of crossing the marathon finish line.

In the middle school girls’ race, Mia Sheets, was eighth (4:01.1) and Kalsia King finished 11th (4:10.4) despite falling down and hurting her elbow at the start of the race.

“I started off trying to get to the front and I tripped and I rolled to the ground,” King said with a bandage on her right elbow. “I had to strive for a little bit, I had to catch up a little.”

Finch, who will attend George Washington University in the fall, said he's not running in college, but he will run the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington.

"I don’t think I’m fast enough to run competitively in college," he said, "but I’ll be running the rest of my life whether competitively or not."

Justin A. Rice can be reached at jrice.globe@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @GlobeJustinRice or @BPSspts.

Pavel Dzemianok for the Boston Globe

The high school boys got off to a fast start in the Boston Athletic Association Scholastic Invitational Mile on Sunday morning.

By Justin A. Rice, Globe Correspondent

Ben Groleau is hitting .500 lifetime at the boys’ Boston Athletic Association Scholastic Invitational Mile.

Running the race — which loops around Boylston and Newbury Streets before finishing on the Boston Marathon’s finish line — Sunday morning for the fourth straight year, the Framingham High senior had a winning time of 4 minutes, 27.2 seconds. The race features two athletes from each city or town along the Boston Marathon course.

“That was rough,” said Groleau, who also won the race as a sophomore. “Coming into it I knew it was going to be a hard field, I knew I was going to have to take it out early, but man I didn’t know I had [that kind of kick] in me. I’m excited. I guess experience paid off a lot.”

Groleau said he was surprised to win by such a large margin. Justin Keefe from Newton North (4:39.7) finished second and Tim Bolick of Hopkinton (4:40.4) was third.

“You can’t get caught up behind anyone right off the bat,” Groleau said when asked about what he’s learned from running the race in the past. “On a course with this many turns, you get boxed in way too much on the corners so you have to take it out. I knew that going in, so I jumped in front at the beginning of the race and I figured I’d let those guys figure it out.”

In the girls’ race, Newton North sophomore, Evelyn Heffernan, won with a time of 5:23.1. Shelby Aarden (5:24) of Hopkinton was second and Melissa Lodge (5:24.8), also of Hopkinton, third.

“It was great,” Heffernan said. “The crowd is incredible and they are really helpful. There are people all around and they just push you through the whole thing and it’s great.”

A freshman, Aarden was running the race for the first time.

“I was trying to keep up with the leaders,” Aarden said. “At the end I had some more energy so I went ahead, I passed one or two in the final 100 yards.”

The morning also featured a boys’ and girls’ middle school 1-kilometer race. Zachary O'Leary of Ashland won the boys’ race in 2:54.5, ahead of John Lara of Boston (3:00) and Thomas D’Anieri of Wellesley. Leah Metzger of Newton won the girls' race in 3:35.9, ahead of Piper Higgins of Wellesley (3:43.3) and Nicole Anselmo of Natick (3:44.5).

“I was really nervous so I just decided to go out and have fun,” Metzger said.

O’Leary said, “John Lara caught me at the end of the first lap; I had to pump through it. I couldn’t feel my legs. The first lap I had to pump it. Then I said to myself ‘I have to kick it in.’

"I can't feel my legs right now but it was worth it."

In the high school boys’ race, Newton North’s Keefe didn’t have enough kick to eclipse Groleau. Keefe was running the race for the first time.

“I was hoping for the win but what can I say, he has the most experience,” Keefe said of Groleau. “He’s a strong kid. I’ll get him later in the season.”

Justin A. Rice can be reached at jrice.globe@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @GlobeJustinRice or @BPSspts.

By Justin A. Rice, Globe Correspondent

The six Boston Marathon runners raising money for the Boston Scholar Athlete Program have received words of encouragement from friends, family and colleagues during training.

But they never expected a pep talk from Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino.

“This weekend is marathon weekend, I want to congratulate the runners who are running the Boston Marathon for the Boston Scholar Athlete Program, I’ll be watching you,” Menino said during the first-ever Boston Scholar Athlete Zone Party on the floor of the TD Garden on Tuesday night.

The gala raised $1.9 million for the program which has established a dedicated, staffed learning center for athletes inside each of Boston’s 19 public high schools. The program was co-founded by Menino and Suffolk Construction CEO and Chairman, John Fish.

“That was great, I didn’t expect that at all," BSA Academic Associate Colin Campbell said. "To have him recognize us meant a lot to us. Even though it was at such a big event, where people are putting a lot more into it than we are to fund raise, and [for him to] recognize us along with everyone there to support our program overall was great.”

Besides Campbell, Nicole Reither of Swampscott, Michelle Nielsen of Falls Church, Va., Kate Hensley of Quincy, Joseph Cappellano of South Boston and Liz Collins of Boston are the other BSA or Suffolk Construction employees running.

So far they have raised about $23,000 for the BSA.

“Every one of the runners for our team has a connection to BSA which is unique,” Campbell said. “I think that’s something you don’t see in a lot of other charity teams. They don’t have that connection. So for us explaining BSA [to donors] has been great."

Each runner has a month after the marathon to raise a minimum $5,000 or the difference comes out of their pocket. And in these tough times many charity runners have had a hard time finding donors to reach their goals.

Joseph Cappellano, a senior facilitator for BSA who works with athletes at Boston Latin School, said it can be tough to raise money since they all know each other and are all raising money for the same cause. But he also said they’ve come up with creative ways to raise money such as conducting a March Madness bracket.

“Most of us have reached [$5,000] or are close but obviously our goal is not to stop at $20,000 but go beyond it,” Cappellano said.

The South Boston native said his friends and family are receptive to helping Boston Public School athletes.

“As soon as I tell them we’re trying to revamp high school sports in Boston they are kind of like ‘I wish they had that when I was there,’ ” he said. “So people are very, very receptive.”

Another challenge is the fact that while the group trains together, Hensley is the only one with marathon experience.

“It’s interesting, we were all athletes in high school and college and we all have old injuries and they start to come back to haunt you,” Cappellano said.

On Monday, the group plans to start the race together and then branch off as the race progresses. They hope to all run under four hours.

“It’s a little up in the air,” Cappellano said when asked what time he is shooting for. “Before Tuesday would be nice.”

For more information on the BSA runners, go to their fundraising website.

Justin A. Rice can be reached at jrice.globe@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @GlobeJustinRice or @BPSspts.

By Hannah Becker, Globe Correspondent

The Boston City League track teams were in action on Thursday’s rainy afternoon as the city schools competed in a dual meet at White Stadium in Dorchester.

Nine girls teams and nine boys teams came out to compete in the second meet of the season.

The boys’ results were highlighted by a tie between East Boston and Latin Academy at 52 points. O’Bryant picked up the most points in the meet with 72 in a win over West Roxbury, who collected 13 points. O’Bryant also defeated Brighton 61 to 39. Madison Park picked up 58 points in a win over Charlestown (nine points) and West Roxbury lost their second match-up with 12 points to Brighton’s 43. South Boston defeated New Mission 47 points to 34 points.

O’Bryant picked up wins in three events, including both relays. The Tigers won the 4x100 in 50.70, over a second ahead of second place finishers South Boston. They also took the 4x400 relay in 4:40:00, 10.1 seconds faster than Madison Park, which finished second.

The Tigers’ third win came in the 800-meter, which Patrick Powell finished in 2:17.70.

Also picking up three wins was South Boston, who controlled the field events. Carson Passes won the discus, throwing for 99 feet and 11 inches. Tony Nguyen took home the shot put with a distance of 37 feet, 5.5 inches. The Knights’ third victory came in the 400 meter, where William Arrington finished in 55.2 seconds for a full three-second victory.

Madison Park, East Boston and Brighton each picked up victories in two different events to help bolster their point totals.

Boston Latin Academy, who won the Boston City League indoor track championship this past season, finished in the top three in six of the 15 events, including a win in the 1-mile from Sonny Finch who finished in 5:25.40.

West Roxbury and Madison Park took the jumping events with the Raiders’ Jonas Ogaus taking the long jump at 18-feet 1-inch and the Cardinals’ Kevin Bevnardez winning the triple jump at 35-feet 2-inches.

In girls’ action, Brighton picked up the largest point total of the afternoon with a 67-18 win over West Roxbury. The Raiders also picked up a loss to O’Bryant, 60-18. O’Bryant’s second win came with a 52-46 takeover of Brighton. Latin Academy defeated East Boston 54-44 and New Mission/English defeated South Boston 49-19. The biggest margin of victory came in Madison Park’s 40-8 defeat over Charlestown.

O’Bryant’s Adrienne Thornton, the state record holder in the 20-pound throw and defending New England champion in the discus, won the discus throwing for 120-feet, 3-inches.

Latin Academy won six events on the girls’ side including both the 4x100 and 4x400 relays. Each of the four individual events won by the Dragons was claimed by a different athlete, marking the team’s depth.

Brighton took three events highlighted by Jaquasia Anderson’s narrow defeat of New Missions Akkeia Dickerson. Anderson finished in 26.3, just three tenths of a second ahead of Dickerson. Brighton’s Esther Hkwah won the long jump at 15-feet 1-inch and also won the 100 meter hurdles as the only female racing.

New Mission, Madison Park, South Boston, and East Boston each had a winner in one event.

By Justin A. Rice, Globe Correspondent

High school principals and athletic directors have until next Wednesday to nominate student athletes for the 16th annual Massachusetts Student-Athlete Citizenship Awards Ceremony on April 24 at Northeastern University.

This awards ceremony and program are designed to recognize Massachusetts high school student-athletes who have demonstrated excellence in three disciplines: academics, athletics and citizenship. The ceremony will be held from 8:30 a.m. to noon in the Curry Student Center Ballroom at Northeastern University.

The theme of this year’s event is “How Can Student-Athletes Make a Difference in the Community?”

The event, which is being sponsored by Sport in Society at Northeastern University and the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association, is open to schools in Districts A, B, C, D, E and H.

Each school can nominate two male and two female students that merit this recognition and have participated in community service. One faculty member, coach, or parent representative should also be willing to provide transportation and accompany the students.

For more information contact Ted O’Reilly at 617-373-4025 or m.oreilly@neu.edu.

Justin A. Rice can be reached at jrice.globe@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @GlobeJustinRice or @BPSspts.

By Justin A. Rice, Globe Correspondent

Boston public high school track teams will train with current and former Boston Marathon elite runners on Wednesday afternoon, including defending Boston Marathon men’s and women’s champions Geoffrey Mutai and Caroline Kilel.

The second annual Scholars and Stars-World Class Athletes Inspiring Teen Achievers will give 150 students the opportunity to participate in four interactive stations facilitated by the elite athletes at 3:15 p.m. on Wednesday at the Reggie Lewis Track and Athletic Center.

Mutai and Kilel will instruct the students on proper running form while a plyometrics workout will be led by Desiree Davila, who will run the marathon for Team USA at the London Olympics this summer. Davila was second in last year’s Boston Marathon women’s race after running the fastest American women’s time ever.

Four-time Boston Marathon champion Bill Rodgers will instruct the students in “dynamic drills” while a core training workout will be conducted by Greg Meyer, the last American men’s winner at Boston.

The event is being cosponsored by John Hancock Financial and the Boston Scholar Athletes Program.

Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino and Suffolk Construction CEO and Chairman, John Fish, who co-founded the Boston Scholar Athlete Program, will be on hand to address the students. Members from John Hancock’s Employee Marathon Program will also be there along with John Hancock Financial Executive Vice President Jim Gallagher.

Justin A. Rice can be reached at jrice.globe@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @GlobeJustinRice or @BPSspts.

Pembroke standout Wesley Gallagher was name Gatorade Massachusetts Boys Cross Country Player of the Year Monday morning.

The award recognizes outstanding athletic excellence, but also takes into account academic standards and personal character.

In his senior season, Gallagher raced to the Division II individual state championship with a time of 15:43, leading the Titans to second place as a team.

A Globe All-Scholastic and Division II Runner of the Year, Gallagher placed third at the Nike Cross Nationals Northeast Regional championships, finishing with a time of 16:14.6.

He also qualified for the 2011 Nike Cross Nationals Final, where he finished 70th.

With the selection, Gallagher becomes a finalist for the Gatorade National Boys Cross Country Runner of the Year award, which will be announced later this month.

Catarina Rocha has been selected as the 2011-12 Gatorade Massachusetts Girls Cross Country Runner of the Year.

Rocha, a junior, placed third in the Foot Locker Northeast Regional Championship with a time of 18:19.9 and seventh in the Foot Locker National Championship with a time of 17:38. She is the first athlete from Peabody High School to receive the honor.

“Catarina Rocha is a leader on her team and in the classroom,” said Peabody athletic director Phil Sheridan. “I have had the opportunity to watch her in all facets of life and she is very serious about her training, her studies and her commitment to helping others.”

The 2011-12 Boston Globe All-Scholastic co-Runner of the Year won the Division 1 individual state championship this past fall with a time of 18:12. She also volunteers as a peer tutor for Challenger Sports, a physical activity program for children with special needs.

The distinction automatically qualifies her as a finalist for the Gatorade National Girls Cross Country Runner of the Year award, which will be announced this month.

Concord-Carlisle's Andrea and Mike O'Brien are All-American soccer players in addition to being Boston Globe All-Scholastics. (Essdras M Suarez / Globe Staff)

By Zuri Berry, Globe Staff

The Boston Globe Fall All-Scholastics are out, available for view on Boston.com. More than 200 high school athletes from nine different sports have been selected as All-Scholastics, marking the end of the fall season.

On this season's cover is Concord-Carlisle brother-sister duo Mike and Andrea O'Brien, who are both All-American soccer players for the school. They highlight the level of talent of the many individuals selected this season.

Take a look at who was recognized in football, boys soccer, girls soccer, volleyball, field hockey, boys cross country, girls cross country, girls swimming and golf.

By Zuri Berry, Globe Staff

It was a long weekend in Massachusetts high school sports. The MIAA awarded championship trophies in soccer, volleyball, cross-country, swimming and field hockey. And a week before that, golf champions were crowned. Here's a roundup of all the games and state championships from the fall. You can also find all of our stories and photos at our Fall 2011 Championships page.

Div. 1 girls soccer

Peabody rides defense to title - Katie Brunelle’s goal with 3:26 remaining in the first half helped the Tanners beat East Longmeadow 1-0.

Div. 2 girls soccer

Canton can't halt Auburn - Alysha Brunelle’s strike was all Auburn would need, as the Rockets capped off an undefeated season and claimed the Division 2 girls’ soccer state title, 1-0, over Canton yesterday at Worcester State.

Div. 3 girls soccer

Dover Sherborn edges Hopedale - After losing in the EMass title game last year, the Dover-Sherborn girls’ soccer team had one goal this season, and that was to finish the job with a state championship. The Raiders completed the mission with a 2-1 victory over Hopedale.

Div. 1 boys soccer

Ludlow beats Masconomet - Kyle Tomas scored two second-half goals to lead Ludlow to its third state title in four years and 17th overall.

Div. 2 boys soccer

Groton-Dunstable derails Concord-Carlisle - Daniel Beyh and Alex Merlino scored in the second half as the Crusaders (20-1-1) won their first championship since 2001 in beating the two-time defending state champs.

Div. 3 boys soccer

Sutton proves too much for Georgetown - Despite late momentum by Georgetown, Sutton prevailed, 3-1.

State Volleyball championships

Barnstable adds No. 14 to dynasty; Marlboro tops Melrose; Frontier bests Case - Barnstable’s dynasty grew by beating Central Catholic, 3-0, in the MIAA Division 1 championship; Marlboro rallied to complete an undefeated 23-game season, finishing off Melrose 3-1; and Frontier capitalized on the power and athleticism of junior Cassidy Stankowski, who drilled 24 kills in the Red Hawks’ victory in a marathon 3-2 match.

Boys X-country championships

Bishop Feehan edges Pembroke in photo finish - Bishop Feehan placed four runners in the top 17, overcoming three Pembroke top-10 finishes, to win the MIAA boys’ Division 2 cross-country state championships.

Girls X-country championships

Whitman Hanson girls pull a fast one - All five of Whitman-Hanson’s scoring runners crossed the finish line in under 20 minutes.

Swimming championships

Andover girls glide to 12th title - The Golden Warriors got off to a rousing start when the 200-yard medley relay team of Maeve Awiszus, Ashlee Korsberg, Rachel Moore, and Emma Cammann cruised to a win in 1 minute 49.76 seconds, nearly five seconds in front of runner-up Framingham.

Div. 1 field hockey

Andover repeats as state champions - Sophomore Julia LeBlanc redirected a pass from Meagan Keefe in the second half as the Golden Warriors (22-0-2) defeated Longmeadow, 1-0, for their second consecutive state title.

Div. 2 field hockey

Watertown sinks Oakmont - Watertown (21-0-1) defeated Oakmont, 3-1, to extend its unbeaten streak to 69 games and lock up its 12th state title since coach Eileen Donahue took over in 1986.

Div. 1 golf

St. John's Pandelena takes crown in playoff - Nick Pandelena of St. John’s Prep won a three-man playoff to take the Division 1 individual competition, and St. John’s (Shrewsbury) won its fourth state championship in six years at Glen Ellen Country Club.

Div. 2 golf

May, Masconomet rule roost - ith all eyes on Charlie May, the Masconomet junior calmly rolled in a 10-foot birdie putt on the first playoff hole to clinch the Division 2 state individual championship.

Div. 3 golf

Westwood gets the drop on Medfield - Pat Frodigh -- Westwood High’s No. 1 golfer -- eagled on a crucial 13th hole to spur his team to victory.

By Jessica Bartlett, Town Correspondent

Braintree High School students and faculty are mourning the death of Kyle Piazza, a math teacher and varsity track coach who died this weekend from non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

Piazza, a 2001 graduate of North Quincy High School, began working for Braintree High School shortly after graduating from Westfield State in 2005.

A math teacher by trade, Piazza turned his talents to coaching in 2010 when he was hired as the varsity girls' indoor track coach, specializing as a throws coach in the javelin, shot put, and discus. He was also an assistant with the football team, as well as assistant girls' outdoor coach.

Cancer treatment forced Piazza to put a halt on both his teaching and coaching last October.

Today, school administrators said the 28-year-old’s legacy lives on in the minds and hearts of his students.

“He was a great man, especially for what he brought to Braintree High School…passion, persistence, and pride,” said Braintree High athletic director Michael Denise.
“He was the biggest supporter and the biggest positive influence than anyone could be with our students and student athletes ... He always worked with our kids until they understood what they needed to know, and I think as a coach he was a true teacher in his methods and techniques to make the student athletes successful.”

Although he was head coach for the girls' indoor program for just season, his impact was considerable: one athlete broke the school record in the shot put.

“That’s how good of a coach he was and how persistent he was with his student athletes in getting the most out of them every single day,” Denise said.

Overall, Piazza was a successful mentor and teacher, helping out as a game administrator when need be, and being a comrade to much of the student body.

His energy will be missed within the BHS community.

“Outside of coaching and teaching he would play Wiffle ball with his students, would throw a Frisbee, he always seemed to have a following, he had a magnetic personality that students just went to. He’s every young educator a building wishes it could have, because he was such a positive influence,” Denise said.

For now, students, administrators, and friends have been celebrating Piazza’s life, Denise said.

“We’ve kept it in a positive light all day long…and the kids and faculty are supporting each other,” he said.

Grief councilors are available for students at the high school. Additionally, at tomorrow night’s senior night, the girls soccer team will host a 50/50 raffle and be asking for donations. All proceeds will be donated to cancer research.

The football team will also be wearing the letters KP on their helmets for the remainder of the season.

In addition, the new Student Athlete of the Month awards, which will go to a male and female student every month, will be named after Kyle Piazza.

“It’s an individual so young that had so much to offer students in their lives,” Denise said. “It’s just a shame. It doesn’t seem fair.”

Tewksbury's Anthony Arcari has signed his national letter of intent to play football and run track for Merrimack College. (Jon Chase / For the Globe)

By Zuri Berry, Boston.com Staff

Tewksbury's Anthony Arcari, a Merrimack Valley (Small) all-star running back, has signed his national letter of intent to play at Merrimack College in the fall.

Arcari, who received an athletic scholarship, will be expected to play at running back, safety and on kick returns. He'll also attend the school for indoor and outdoor track in which he'll run the 55-meter, 60-meter, 100-meter and 4x100-meter sprints.

In his senior year, he tallied 700 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns on 102 carries.

By Bob Holmes, globe staff

Longtime Gloucester track coach Jim Munn died Sunday after a nearly six-month battle with brain cancer. Munn, 72, won 10 Northeastern Conference outdoor track titles and was 235-9 in his career. He was also a columnist for the Gloucester Times.

By Bryan Dorval, Globe correspondent

Lincoln-Sudbury’s 4 x 800 girls' relay team pulled off a come-from-behind win to set the tone for the New England track and field championships Friday night. They were in eighth place when their third runner, Marika Crowe, who placed third at all-states last week in the 1,000 meters, received the baton and immediately went to work.

Slowly, but surely, Crowe put the Warriors, especially their anchor, the fastest 1,000 meter runner in the country, Andrea Keklak, in prime position to pull out the win.

Lincoln-Sudbury got off to a rocky start with its first runner Emily Rudder falling into 10th place. Rudder knew her team would pick her up. The baton was then passed to Madison Acton, who attempted to gain some ground on the field. “I passed two people,” said Action. “I was hoping to pass more.” She put the Warriors in eighth before Crowe took over.

Crowe began to make her way to the front of the pack, moving up five places into third. It was now time for their anchor to finish the job.

Trailing the anchors from Lasalle and Wachusetts, Keklak easily took the lead in her second lap. Along with setting her personal best time at 2:09.4, Keklak helped the Warriors tie for the second fastest time in the country for the 4 x 800 girls' relay with a time of 9:13.72. “We wanted to go for No. 1,” said Rudder. “But two isn’t bad.”

Shrewsbury High School's John Murray was named the Gatorade Massachusetts Boys' Cross-Country Runner of the Year. Murray won the MIAA Division 1 state title this past November then finished fourth at the Foot Locker Northeast Regional Championships. Murray will attend Georgetown in the fall.

"John Murray is an extraordinary young man and one of the finest distance runners I've seen in my years of coaching,'' said Shrewsbury coach Jim Smith. "Even with his success, he cares more about his teammates than he does his own accomplishments. He is truly one of a kind."

The Malden boys cross country team entered its final regular season dual-meet with a hefty weight on its shoulders: the Golden Tornadoes hadn’t won a Greater Boston League cross country title in nearly 40 years.

Fortunately, this group of runners is among the best the school has seen in those four decades, which they proved with their 23-34 win over Somerville at Malden.

“We’re pretty deep with good runners this year, the expectation was to win,” said coach David Londino. “We were still excited by the win, of course, but the guys went into it pretty confident.”

Andrew Terenzi beat the field on the 3.1 mile course with his 16:51 time. Teammate Yusuf Mohamed took second in 17:05. Somerville’s Edward Chen (17:10) and Mike Conte (17:16) took third and fourth place respectively. Malden’s Patrick Keough rounded out the top five with his 17:30 finish.

The Malden win breaks up a string of running stalemates between the two teams, who tied for the Greater Boston league title in both winter and spring track.

Londino said he expects his one and two runners, Terenzi and Mohamed, to put in strong showings at next month’s EMass tournament and possibly earn spots at the all-state meet.

“They’re both capable of running a sub 16:30,” he said. “The question is how close to it they can run.”

By Gabe Souza, Globe Correspondent

When Chelsea cross-country coach Don Fay saw his sixth and final runner trailing his Mystic Valley opponent with just 100 meters to go in Thursday’s meet, he feared his team’s undefeated status might be in jeopardy.

Knotted at 28-28, Mystic Valley’s Pat Kinnon held a slim lead over the Red Devils’ Hector Mendoza as the race neared its close.

But in a last gasp effort, Mendoza found enough energy to overcome Kinnon in the final stretch and gain a victory for his team with a three-second margin.

“Hector was behind most of the race,” said Fay about his senior runner who set a personal best by 50 seconds. “I was pretty surprised when he came out on top. But he saved the meet for us.”

The Chelsea boys team improved to 4-0 overall while the girls went to 5-0.

Both teams’ undefeated records are a sign of a steadily improving program, Fay said.

“This is the best we’ve had in my four years here,” Fay said. “We’ve got good team chemistry and a lot of stellar athletes.”

Depth in positions is also a strength for Chelsea, Fay said, evidenced by the victory delivered from the No. 6 runner. He believes it could carry his team all the way to a Commonwealth Athletic Conference championship.

“We have eight or nine runners that consistently place well,” Fay said. “That helped us. I thought this would be a close meet. I didn’t think it would be this close, but I’m happy with the outcome.”

Chelsea’s next meet will be at Minuteman Regional High School, Tuesday, Oct. 12. But the matchup Fay and his Red Devils are most looking forward to will be on Oct. 20 when team clashes with defending conference champion Shawsheen Valley Technical.

“They beat us 35-22 last year,” Fay said. “It will definitely be a lost closer this time around.”

This fall the Globe’s high school standings will be based entirely on game results and not on Sunday phone calls or emails from league representatives. It’s actually something we started in January with winter sports. And even with a few speed bumps, it was incredibly successful. We think the change has been a huge benefit to school fans looking to see where their team stands every day of the week, not just on the one day standings are updated.

How does it work?
When coaches call in their games scores during the week, our database will compile the standings and they will be available 24/7 on Boston.com/schools. This is what we’ve done the past three years for football, then began with winter and spring sports this past year. We’re now expanding that system to include all sports. But we still need league representatives. The only information we need, however, are the league’s leading performers, whether hitters, pitchers, goal scorers/assists, goalies, or runners.

What are the benefits of doing this?
Under the old system, standings we took on Sunday afternoons were only accurate until a team played its next game. This meant that after a big Tuesday of soccer, fans had to wait until the following Monday’s paper to see the league standings. Now, after you watch your team beat its cross-town rival and your coach calls in the score, you can go home, click on Boston.com and see the league standings.

What are the drawbacks?
If your school doesn’t call in the scores, then your record will be 0-0 all year (unless an opposing coach calls in the game against your team). Even if a league representative insists your team is 10-0, the only way we can make the standings agree is to get the scores of the 10 games.

How do we get you any missing scores?
Scores can be emailed to us at hssports@globe.com. Be sure to designate the home and away teams and the date of the game.

As with any new system there will be an adjustment period. But we hope you agree, accurate standings seven days a week are better than just one.

By Ayoub Kourikchi

Marshfield High School cross country standouts Joel Hubbard and Kevin Thomas took to their home course and coasted to a first and second place finish against Plymouth-North, and Hubbard shattered the one-year-old course record of 15:20.

“Once they crossed the line I leaned over to the high school principal and told him they broke the record,” said Marshfield cross-country coach Dennis Sheppard.

Both juniors led the front pack as they came across the first mile in 4:52 and crossed the 2-mile mark at 10 minutes flat. Hubbard came in first overall in 15:05 and Thomas immediately followed in 15:20 on the 2.9-mile course.

“I didn’t expect to run this fast because it's early in the season. It's nice to see that they are this fit and in shape after doing base mileage during the summer,” added Sheppard.

The two Rams had a breakout spring track season, particularly during the Division 2 state meet where Thomas finished fourth in the two-mile in 9:35 and Hubbard completed the 800-meters in 1:55.

Sheppard expects the two, among the top runners in the Atlantic Coast League, to be two of the top runners in the division state meet as well as the all-state meet in November.

Andover junior Moira Cronin brought the region some renown this weekend as the took the high jump title at Outdoor Nationals in North Carolina. She reached 5 feet 9 inches in a jumpoff.

The national title win comes after a excellent in-state season in which she won the Division 1 and New England titles at the same height.

The two-time All-Scholastic finished fourth at Indoor Nationals this past winter to earn All-American status.

By Bob Holmes, Globe Staff

The Methuen boys track team added one more achievement to the season’s already long list, as the 4x1-mile relay squad set a Massachusetts all-time record yesterday, finishing in sixth place at the New Balance National Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Greensboro, NC.

The Ranger foursome of Andrew Stamatopulos [4:25.3], Jared Reddy [4:20.8], Ben Pare [4:19.8] and Cam Kelley [4:27.8] clocked 17:33.79, shattering the old Mass. outdoor mark by more than 16 seconds. The previous mark, 17:50.11, was set by Lexington at the 2005 Nike Outdoor Nationals while finishing third.

In other results, Triton senior Deanna Latham finished sixth in the 100-meter hurdles in 14.21. Newton South’s girls finished ninth in the 1600-meter spring medley. Mansfield’s girls were fourth in the 4x100 shuttle hurdles while Hopkinton was seventh.

By Julie Gray, Globe Correspondent

Junior Terrence Gibson broke the Rockland High School record for fastest 100-meter dash, finishing in only 11.1 seconds and shaving a tenth of a second off of the previous record of 11.2 seconds.

Gibson performed well in other events against North Quincy Tuesday, running the 200-meter dash in 23.1 seconds, throwing the javelin 149 feet, and jumping 41 feet and 10.5 inches in the triple jump. With Gibson's strong performance, Rockland took the meet 85-51.

By Paul Sulzer, Globe Correspondent

Hamilton-Wenham senior Jackson MacDonald set his fourth school track record Thursday in a 96-49 win over Amesbury at home.

MacDonald, who has committed to Northeastern, set a new high mark in the high jump at 6 feet, 6.25 inches. He already holds Hamilton-Wenham records in the long jump (22 feet, 10 inches), the triple jump (44 feet, 11.75 inches), and the 110 high hurdles (14.4 seconds). In addition, he ran the 100 meter dash in 11.2 seconds Thursday, though that was not low enough to break the school record.

Over the winter, MacDonald was the state long jump and pentathlon champion.

By Liz Torres, Globe Correspondent

Woburn senior captain Aimee Rideout broke an 18-year school record in the 100-meter dash by two-tenths of a second.

Rideout finished the race in 12.02, highlighting Woburn's 109-67 meet win over Middlesex league opponent Watertown Tuesday afternoon.

Marlborough High school is looking for a number of head coaches to fill vacancies for Fall 2010.

Among the coaching openings are:

- Varsity Cheerleading Coach
- Varsity Boys Cross-Country Coach
- Varsity Girls Cross-Country Coach
- Varsity Football Coach
- Varsity Field Hockey Coach
- Varsity Golf Coach
- Varsity Boys Soccer Coach
- Varsity Girls Soccer Coach
- Varsity Girls Volleyball Coach

Interested applicants are being asked to apply online at Marlborough.schoolfusion.us.

The Boston Athletic Association has selected 32 runners — 16 boys and 16 girls — from the eight cities along the marathon route for the BAA Invitational Mile.

The event will be held 9:30 a.m. Sunday April 18 at the finish line of the Boston Marathon and will include last year's winner and Globe All-Scholastic Margo Gillis.

"As part of our ongoing commitment to the cities and towns that so graciously host the Boston Marathon, the scholastic mile races are just one way the BAA showcases the running talent that resides within them,” said Guy Morse, executive director of the BAA in a press release. “In addition to the professional races, our scholastic athletes will help Marathon spectators get into the running spirit for the 114th Boston Marathon."

Runners were selected from Hopkinton, Ashland, Framingham, Natick, Wellesley, Newton, Brookline and Boston

The BAA has also added a 1,000-meter race for middle-school age runners from each of the towns aforementioned.

Here are the list of runners:

FULL ENTRY

Whether you prefer the court or the ice, and even the pool, there's a few events to note this week.

Hockey

• Catholic Memorial, the Globe's No. 1 team in the region, and St. John's Prep, the No. 7 team, will be playing each other at 7:20 p.m. Wednesday at Ristuccia Arena in Wilmington. It's a rescheduled game the two teams were supposed to play Jan. 2.

  Catholic Memorial (9-2-1) downed the last No. 7 team, Malden Catholic, 4-2 Saturday after going into the third period tied 1-1.

  St. John's Prep (5-5-1) is second in the Catholic Conference.

• No. 1 St. Mary's vs. No. 9 Woburn girls hockey, Wednesday. A rematch of last year's division 1 state championship, won by St. Mary's.

• No. 3 Hingham vs. No. 6 Duxbury girls hockey wednesday. Two top 10 girls hockey teams, each with just one loss. For Hingham, beginning of a brutal two-game stand that has them facing St. Mary's on Saturday.

Basketball

• No. 7 Madison Park vs. No. 6 East Boston in boys' basketball Thursday. Last time these two teams met, Eastie won in overtime. Both teams are in top 10.

Other

• Swimming -- Boston College High vs. St. John's Prep swimming Sunday at 7 p.m. at Harvard.

  Defending state champion St. John's is unbeaten and faces Catholic Conference rival and unbeaten BC High for the conference title. This could be the best competition of the entire winter season. This is the first of three straight matchups between the schools with the Catholic Conference meet and the state championships also ahead.

• Track and Field -- State Coaches Elite track meet Sunday at Reggie Lewis center. Best of the best in state line up in what is usually a great preview of the state championship next month.

A new state record was set yesterday at the Division 1 state relays at the Reggie Lewis Center.

Andover's girls team jumped 15 feet, 9 inches to shatter the previous state record by half a foot. Top performer Moira Cronin said she and fellow jumpers, Jessica Salley and Rosie Forster, knew that the record was in reach coming into the meet.

"We were hoping to break the record because we figured out the math [based on our previous jumps]," she said.

Cronin jumped 5 feet 9 inches, Salley jumped 5 feet 1 inch, and Forster jumped 4 feet 11 inches. Cronin also has the highest jump in the nation this year at 5 feet 10 inches. Coach Peter Comeau sung his star jumper's praises.

"She's amazing," he said. "She's a great worker, she's a great kid."

Gatorade announced today that Mansfield High's Peter McGowan was named the Gatorade Massachusetts boys cross country runner of the year.

McGowan, if you recall, was the Globe's Division 1 All-Scholastic runner of the year. And he is most deserving.

I'll quote from our All-Scholastic package:

The top runner in the state this season, McGowan's 16:05.4 finish at All-States earned him the top spot in Northfield and helped Mansfield clinch the Division 1 team title. His 16:02 finish clinched the Division 2 EMass title, and he was also second at the Bay State Invitational.

McGowan's coach gave her remarks on the award.

“McGowan is a picture-perfect example of what hard work and perseverance can do for you,” said Mansfield High Head Coach Julie Collins in the Gatorade release. “He’s had to overcome a lot of physical adversity and I’ve never seen anyone work as hard to keep himself in shape and ready to succeed as much as him.”

According to the Gatorade release, McGowan has verbally committed to an athletic scholarship at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst this upcoming fall. He's kept a 3.61 GPA in school while partaking in various extracurricular activities.

Andrea Keklak was the top finishers and Claire Arthur took fourth place as the Lincoln-Sudbury girls cross country team won the Division 1 championship at Franklin Park today.

Teammates Megan Broecker finished 11th and Holly Clarke finished 12th.

Here are the results:

Individuals-1. Andrea Keklak, Lincoln-Sudbury, 19:26; 2. Margo Gillis, Newton-North, 19:44; 3. Kathy O'Keefe, Newton-South, 19:53; 4. Claire
Arthur, Lincoln-Sudbury, 20:04; 5. Erin Donovan, Lowell, 20:10; 6. Julie
Solimine, Haverhill, 20:15; 7. Christine Davis, Acton-Boxborough, 20:16; 8.
Mary Cole, Franklin, 20:28; 9. Melanie Fineman, Newton South, 20:29; 10.
Megan Ross, Franklin, 20:29; 11. Megan Broecker, Lincoln-Sudbury, 20:32;
12. Holly Clarke, Lincoln-Sudbury, 20:33; 13. Madeleine Reed, Newton-South,
20:42; 14. Dekotee Chea, Chelmsford, 20:52; 15. Leah Gellineau, Brookline,
20:55.

Team Scores-1. Lincoln-Sudbury, 58; 2. Newton South, 74; 3. Franklin, 100; 4. Haverhill, 164; 5. Acton-Boxborough, 176; 6. Weymouth, 179; 7. Lowell, 187; 8. Billerica, 206; 9. Chelmsford, 260; 10. Brookline, 301.

Jenna Davidner was the top finisher for the girls Division 2 cross country championship at Franklin Park Saturday.

Davidner finished in 19:15, ahead of Beverly's Monica Adler by 15 seconds (19:31).

Here are the full results for Division 2 girls:

Individuals-1. Jenna Davidner, Oliver Ames, 19:15; 2. Monica Adler, Beverly, 19:31; 3. Abbey D'Agostino, Masconomet, 19:44; 4. Priyanka Fouda,
Wellesley, 20:04; 5. Caroline Kimball-Katz, Concord-Carlisle, 20:05; 6.
Cassandra Olson, Mansfield, 20:06; 7. Jessie Kaliski, Wellesley, 20:06; 8.
Katina Russell, Needham, 20:16; 9. Millie Chapman, Beverly, 20:20; 10.
Katie Jessee, Concord-Carlisle, 20:22; 11. Courtney Shea, Walpole, 20:28;
12. Kelci Sullivan, Whitman-Hanson, 20:30; 13. Micayla Oniskey, Reading,
20:34; 14. Devyn Pryor, Dartmouth, 20:40; 15. Ali Kirsch, Sharon, 20:42.

Team Scores-1. Wellesley, 95. 2. Whitman-Hanson, 123; 3. Concord-Carlisle,
131; 4. Oliver Ames, 141; 5. Dracut, 192; 6. Needham, 248; 6. North
Andover, 248; 8. Walpole, 270; 9. Beverly, 289; 9. Tewksbury, 289.

Vivian Hanley finished second overall and Erin Murphy finished third overall as the Bishop Feehan girls cross country team won the Division 3 championship Saturday at Franklin Park.

Here are the full results:

Individuals-1. Lindsay Walsh, Swampscott, 19:06; 2. Viviana Hanley,Bishop Feehan, 19:20; 3. Erin Murphy, Bishop Feehan, 19:30; 4. Mairead Kiernan, Milton, 19:37; 5. Alanna Poretta, Pentucket, 19:43; 6. Megan Barry, Dennis-Yarmouth, 19:50; 7. Erin Svensen, Bishop Feehan, 20:01; 8. Heather Connick, Pembroke, 20:15; 9. Anisa Arsenault, Bishop Feehan, 20:20; 10. Nicole Pettit, Westwood, 20:21; 11. Haley Dyer, Danvers, 20:24; 12. Nicole Borofski, Plymouth North, 20:25; 13. Kellie Lodge, Hopkinton, 20:29; 14. Rachael Keating, Westwood, 20:36; 15. Emily Hughes, Milton, 20:39.

Team Scores-1. Bishop Feehan, 40; 2. Milton, 95; 3. Dennis-Yarmouth, 189; 4. Swampscott, 212; 5. Medfield, 216; 6. Marblehead, 230; 7. Pembroke, 236; 8. Westwood, 251; 9. Hingham, 252; 10. Hopkinton, 270.

Kristen Ashley finished second and Emily Senning took third as the Hamilton-Wenham girls cross country team won the Division 4 championship at Franklin Park in Boston this morning.

Dover-Sherbon's Lee Milne was the top overall finisher, in 20:04.

Here's the results from the event:

Individuals-1. Lee Milne, Dover-Sherbon, 20:04; 2. Kristen Ashley,
Hamilton-Wenham, 20:37; 3. Emily Senning, Hamilton-Wenham, 20:42; 4.
Shannon Feguson, Norwell, 20:47; 5. Katie Powers, Cardinal Spellman, 20:48;
6. Jen Salit, Seekonk, 20:49; 7. Lauren Chow, Weston, 21:05; 8. Emily
Gagliardi, Seekonk, 21:18; 9. Cyrena Shiland, Hamilton-Wenham, 21:20; 10.
Abigail Pohl, Weston, 21:33; 11. Erica Gagnon, Archbishop William, 21:35;
12. Charlotte Walmsley, Weston, 21:35; 13. Kerry Phelan, Hamilton-Wenham,
21:39; 14. Megan Dreyer, Martha's Vineyard, 22:00; 15. Abigail Alegi, Coyle
& Cassidy, 22:06.

Team Scores-1. Hamilton-Wenham, 43; 2. Seekonk,110; 3. Weston, 142; 4.
Coyle & Cassidy, 144; 5. Norwell, 163; 6. Dover-Sherbon, 177; 7. Bedford,
197; 8. Ursuline Academy, 261; 9. Newburyport, 303; 10. Old Rochester, 344.

Seekonk's Johnny Gregorek took first place overall in the Division 4 cross country championships at Franklin Park, leading his team to win the overall championship.

He finished in 16:47.

Old Rochester's Dan Dourdeville finished second overall in the race in 16:51. Greg Krathwohl, of Ipswich, finished third in 16:59.

Here are the Division 4 boys results:

Individuals – 1. Johnny Gregorek, Seekonk, 16:47; 2. Dana Dourdeville, Old Rochester, 16:51; 3. Greg Krathwohl, Ipswich, 16:59; 4. Conor Lyons,
Hamilton-Wenham, 17:20; 5. Chris Benevento, Hamilton-Wenham, 17:27; 6. Tyler Faulkner, Minuteman, 17:33; 7. Nathan Larrimer, Seekonk, 17:33; 8. Ben Girard, Manchester Essex, 17:34; 9. William Harrington, Bishop Fenwick, 17:37; 10. Cody Archambault, Seekonk, 17:43; 11. Jamie Eberlein, Weston, 17:43; 12. Greg Englehart, Newburyport, 17:45; 13. Kieran Kinnare, Ipswich, 17:46; 14. Ryan Brown, Seekonk, 17:48; 15. Nicholas Foley, Cape Cod Academy, 17:49.

Team scores – 1. Seekonk, 51; 2. Newburyport, 101; 3. Hamilton-Wenham, 127; 4. Old Rochester, 233; 5. Weston, 241; 6. Bishop Fenwick, 252; 7. Ipswich, 259; 8. Norwell, 273; 9. Martha's Vineyard, 342; 10. North Reading, 353.

Dennis-Yarmouth's Max Darrah was the top finisher in the Division 3 boys cross country championship at Franklin Park, Pembroke took home the hardwood with four runners finishing in the top 10.

Pembroke's Paul Cina took second overall (16:40), while teammates Ryan Kelley finished fourth (16:53), Joe Vercollone (17:04) finished seventh, and Brendan Adams finished eighth (17:08).

Here are the Division 3 results for individuals and teams:

Individuals – 1. Max Darrah, Dennis-Yarmouth, 16:27; 2. Paul Cina, Pembroke, 16:40; 3. Bryan Stanley, Whittier Rvt, 16:51; 4. Ryan Kelley, Pembroke, 16:53; 5. Bobby McShane, Bishop Feehan, 17:00; 6. David Allen, Sandwich, 17:01; 7. Joe Vercollone, Pembroke, 17:04; 8. Brendan Adams, Pembroke, 17:08; 9. James Wigglesworth, Marblehead, 17:16; 10. Brendan Sullivan, Foxboro, 17:18; 11. Tucker Reece, Marblehead, 17:24; 12. Joey Smith, Medfield, 17:26; 13. Tim Gill, Bishop Feehan, 17:28; 14. Jake Medeiros, Dighton-Rehoboth, 17:29; 15. Zach Maddigan, Middleboro, 17:31.

Team scores – 1. Pembroke, 34; 2. Bishop Feehan, 85; 3. Marblehead, 158; 4. Sandwich, 165; 5. Medfield, 172; 6. Dennis-Yarmouth, 196; 7. Canton, 294; 8. Dighton-Rehoboth, 313; 9. Holliston, 345; 10. Hopkinton, 346.

Results are streaming in and our first shout out goes to the Lowell boys cross-country team, which won the Division 1 championship today at Franklin Park.

Xaverian's John Bleday was the top finisher (16:28), but Lowell packed the top 15 with three finishers (tying with second place team Methuen), including No. 5 Michael Giardina (17:00), No. 11 Nicholas Mullen (17:15) and No. 12 Padraic Donovan (17:16).

Here are the scores and times:

Individuals – 1. John Bleday, Xaverian, 16:28; 2. Jared Reddy, Methuen,
16:33; 3. Andrew Herring, Lexington, 16:35; 4. Steven Sollowin, Weymouth,
16:42; 5. Michael Giardina, Lowell, 17:00; 6. A.J. Rossi, St. John's Prep,
17:03; 7. Chernet Sisay, Brookline, 17:03; 8. Mike Amirault, Xaverian,
17:06; 9. Evan Braz, Peabody, 17:09; 10. Andrew Stamatopulos, Methuen,
17:10; 11. Nicholas Mullen, Lowell, 17:15; 12. Padraic Donovan, Lowell,
17:16; 13. Simon Voorhees, Andover, 17:21; 14. Ben Pare, Methuen, 17:23;
15. Tevin Honohan, New Bedford, 17:27.

Team scores – 1. Lowell, 67; 2. Methuen, 107; 3. St. John's Prep, 128; 4.
Brookline, 157; 5. Lexington, 175; 6. BC High, 234; 7. Lincoln-Sudbury,
241; 8. Westford Academy, 263; 9. Andover, 268; 10. Peabody, 274.

By Amara Grautski, Globe Correspondent

When Madison Park High School junior Ricardo Jaquite (right) won a national title Friday, the Cardinals outdoor track coach, Colin Rose, hoped it would act as an example that hard work does pay off.

“He had an excellent year,” Rose said of Jaquite, who joined the team this season after moving from Portugal. “His training was very consistent. Every day he worked hard, so in turn, his meets were very consistent.”

Jaquite won the triple jump with a leap of 49 feet, 10 inches at the 2009 Nike Outdoor Nationals in Greensboro, N.C. last week –- an inch shorter than the leap that placed him second in the Nike Indoor Nationals.

“I would say his national jump wasn’t his best jump of the year, and it wasn’t his best meet of the year, but because he put in his work he was able to beat the field because of his consistency,” Rose said.

The third-year track coach said the team practices five days per week, with meets usually falling on weekends, and over the course of the year Jaquite’s jump has improved by about 2 feet.

“Kids who have talent, people don’t realize how much work they put in,” Rose said. “When you get to nationals everyone is talented, the difference between winning and losing is how much work you put in.”

He added that the national title is a huge boost for Madison Park and hopes it sets an example for other athletes in Boston.

“It’s huge for the school,” he said. “It shows that, you know, we do have athletes in Boston Public Schools, and when you work hard things happen. It’d be one thing if he was one of these athletes that was naturally talented and never worked hard…[Jaquite's accomplishments] can inspire other kids to do the same.”

The first major meet of the spring outdoor track season takes place Saturday with the running of the MSTCA State Coaches Invitational. The girls' meet will be held at Somerville's Dillboy Field while the boys head to Fall River and Durfee High School. Field events begin at 9:30 a.m. Running events at 10 a.m.

The Globe's Shawn Medeiros relays the following:

This past weekend at the Penn Relays, Madison Park's Ricardo Jaquite won the high school boys' triple jump championship. Jaquite jumped 49 feet, 1 1/2 inches edging out Jeffrey Artis (49-1) from Western Branch in Chesapeake, Va. There were 19 competitors total in the event. Jaquite's personal best is 49-11, which came at the Nike Indoor Nationals this past indoor season.

BC High senior Corey Thomas opened the MIAA All-State track meet by clearing 6-11 to win the high jump in a meet record. After a brief rest, he tried 7-1 but missed. Later he won the 55-hurdles in 7.51 seconds. Thomas jumped 7-0.5 on Feb. 1 at the State Coaches Elite Meet.

For those looking to attend this winter's City Championships, here's a list of dates for this year's festivities:

• Indoor track: Feb. 9-10, 3 p.m. at the Reggie Lewis Center
• Swimming: Feb. 10, 3 p.m.
• Girls' basketball: Semifinals on Feb. 18, 4 and 5:30 p.m. at Madison Park; Final on Feb. 20, 5 p.m.
• Boys' basketball: Semifinals on Feb. 19, 4 and 5:30 p.m. at Madison Park; Final on Feb. 20, 6:30 p.m.
• Boys' hockey: Semifinal on Feb. 19, 10 a.m. at Matthews Arena; Final on Feb. 20, noon.

We'll pass along the matchups for basketball and hockey when they are released.

BB&N football recruits Austin Capaviella, Philippe Panico, Xander Frantz, Steve Grassa, and Mike DiChaira

A couple of scenes from today's Signing Day. BB&N football recruits (above) pose for a group photo, while Natick standouts (below) put their names on the dotted line.

Natick athletes Shannon Foley (Elon, soccer), Rebecca White (Quinnipiac, track), Tim and Tom Brandt (UMass, football)

BC High senior CoreyThomas broke Greg Gonsalves's 28-year-old meet record of 7 feet, 1/4 inches in the high jump by clearing 7- 1/2 to start the competition at the Reggie Lewis Center Sunday.

Thomas was a half-inch short on his first attempt at the record. On his second, his legs knocked the bar off. But on his final try, Thomas cleared the bar and landed clean on the blue cushion below. Thomas shot his left fist in the air victoriously.

Globe photographer Jay Connor captured a nice sequence of one of Thomas's failed leaps, but check out the video above to marvel at the majesty of his leap. As the Globe's Dan Shaughnessy wrote in Wednesday's Globe: Imagine. Thomas is only 6 feet tall and he can jump over Kevin Garnett.

BC High's Corey Thomas (above, center) turned the Massachusetts State Track Coaches Association Elite meet into his own personal showcase by winning the 55-meter hurdles and shattering a 28-year-old meet record by clearing 7 feet, 1/4 inches in winning the high jump.

Click HERE to check out a gallery of snapshots from Sunday's meet.

The Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association Board of Directors was given an update this afternoon by attorney Robert Fraser regarding the organization's ongoing dispute with Mansfield High School and its football coach Mike Redding.

The purpose of the meeting, held in executive session, was to update board members as well as answer any questions they had.

A subcommittee of the board had said that Mansfield must punish Redding for taking five days to inform the association of the use of an ineligible player in two games this fall. In response, Mansfield's attorneys sent a letter to the MIAA late last week regarding the subcommittee's decision and asking for clarification. Because yesterday's discussion was held in executive session, the specifics of Fraser's update were unknown.

In other news, the board discussed a number of topics:

• Preliminary fall tournament review showed attendance at all tournaments was up approximately 6,000 fans over the previous year and that tournament net was iup approximately $70,000.
• Topics for the April 3 association meeting were discussed. Among the issues discussed were league realignment, alcohol abuse by students, the need for consistent standards for deciding on whether to approve cooperative teams, and the potential budget cuts that schools across the state are expecting.

Mike Moverman (right) (Globe File Photo)

In other school news today, Gatorade and ESPN RISE Magazine, announced that Mike Moverman of Oliver Ames is the 2008-09 Gatorade Massachusetts Boys Cross Country Runner of the Year. Moverman is the first Gatorade Massachusetts Boys Cross Country Runner of the Year to be chosen from Oliver Ames High School. The award recognizes not only outstanding athletic excellence, but also high standards of academic achievement and exemplary character demonstrated on and off the racecourse. Moverman is now a finalist for the prestigious Gatorade National Boys Cross Country Runner of the Year award to be announced in February.

The 5-foot-9 senior won the Division 2 state meet with a time of 16:04.3, leading the Tigers to a second-place finish as a team this past season. The 2008 Boston Globe Runner of the Year, Moverman recorded the fastest time of the season at Franklin Park in Boston, winning the Bay State Invitational with a time of 15:48. Moverman finished sixth at the Foot Locker Northeast Regional in 15:48 and placed 19th at the national Foot Locker Cross Country Championships in 15:54.

Bromfield's Emily Jones has been named the 2008 Gatorade Massachusetts girls' cross-country runner of the year.

Emily Jones (Globe File Photo)

The Georgetown-bound senior won her third consecutive Division 2 title this past fall, leading the Trojans to a fourth-place finish overall. After winning the Foot Locker Cross-Country Northeast Regional championship, she placed 13th overall in the national event.

“We knew that even as a freshman, she was going to be a talent,” said Steve Sawyer, head coach of rival Hamilton-Wenham High. “She hasn’t let anyone down. We’ve all been fortunate to watch her develop. She’s a strong runner and not afraid to push herself.”

Check out the full press release after the jump.

FULL ENTRY

As you may have noticed when you picked up your Boston Globe this morning, all of our high school sports standings are moving online here at Boston.com starting today.

Hop over to High School Sports Central for all of today's content, which includes:

• Notebooks for boys' and girls' basketball and boys' hockey
• Standings for all winter sports
• Players of the week and leading scorers

If you don't see the standings for your favorite team or league, please get in touch with your coach, athletic director, or league representative and remind them to contact the Globe on Sundays to report the latest information.

Rarely does the 144th finisher in the boys' Division 1 all-state cross-country finals end up as the top headline from the season's top meet, but allow our friends at the Worcester Telegram & Gazette to explain...

It’s one of the most courageous, heart-wrenching finishes you’ll see at any level of sports, from pee-wees to professionals.

Need a little inspiration today? Check out the photos and video of St. John’s High runner Ben Perron and his agonizing final 50 meters or so at Saturday’s State Cross Country Championships in Boston.

Suffering from what was later determined to be severe dehydration, the 16-year-old junior from Southboro fell several times while coming down the home stretch of the 5-kilometer Franklin Park course, crawling on all fours, trying to get up, falling flat on his face, and eventually rolling across the finish line while emotional fans cried, cheered and exhorted him on.

For the record, Perron wound up 144th out of 146 finishers. He was believed to be somewhere in the top 30, and leading the Pioneers’ contingent, before his muscles began failing him. He was seen by his sister grabbing the back of his thighs as he rounded the final turn heading into the home straightaway, and he fell for the first time shortly after that with about 60 meters to go.

What followed was an emotional, gutsy performance that had to be seen to be believed. After stumbling and falling, Perron rolled over and returned shakily to his feet, only to fall backward as though he were drunk. Officials ran over and checked on him from several feet away.

“I don’t remember it perfectly, but I pretty much remember most of it,” said Perron, who continued to crawl on his hands and knees, almost tipping over at one point. “I definitely was conscious the whole time. I knew what was going on.

“I was surprised that I couldn’t even stand up. I kept moving — there wasn’t really a choice. I just kept working.”

Teammate Cam Tieuli, a St. John’s captain, tried to grab his arm and help him up as he came by, but quickly stopped, realizing any assistance would result in disqualification. Another teammate, Dan Zawalich, patted Perron on the back as he passed by to offer encouragement. Perron was still probably 20 meters from the finish line.

Hop over to Telegram.com for the complete article.

What's your take? Should his teammates or other runners have helped him out? Leave you thoughts in our comments section.

Here are the latest MSTCA boys' cross-country rankings through Sept. 28:

Division 1

1. Newton South
2. Amherst-Pelham
3. Brookline
4. St. John's (Shrewsbury)
5. St. John's Prep
6. Nashoba
7. Xaverian
8. Methuen
9. Mansfield
10. Dennis-Yarmouth
11. Newton North
12. Whitman-Hanson
14. Ludlow
14. Lincoln-Sudbury
15. BC High
16. Concord-Carlisle
17. Central Catholic (Lawrence)
18. Franklin
19. Reading
20. North Andover

Division 2

1. Bishop Feehan
2. Whitinsville-Christian
3. Wellesley
4. Oliver Ames
5. Seekonk
6. Hamilton-Wenham
7. Wincester
8. Mohawk Trail
9. Hingham
10. Bromfield
11. Monument Mountain
12. Swamscott
13. Newburyport
14. Hanover
15. Marblehead
16. Pembroke
17. Mt. Greylock
18. Sutton
19. Holliston
20. Hopkinton

As the 2008 fall season goes into full swing, we've invited a handful of local standouts to write about their seasons on our Player Diaries blog.

I'll allow our contributors to introduce themselves:

Abbie Brown, Westwood, Field hockey

So, two years ago, Westwood field hockey wasn't the best team in the state, nor are we now, but we are working our way to tournament again. Last season, we went to the tournament for the first time in nine years which was a big accomplishment for the us. This year we hope to do the same thing and get further than last year. As of right now, the Westwood Wolverines field hockey team is 2-0 from beating Stoughton and Scituate in two nonleague matchups. We still have a long way to go until we make the tourney, but our team is willing to do whatever it is to make it again.

I play field hockey and lacrosse, and run winter track. This past spring my team was the 2008 Division 1 girls' lacrosse state champions.

Mike Savery, Hingham, soccer

My name is Mike Savery and I play midfield for the Hingham boys' soccer team. We were 6-6-6 last year, making the playoffs for the ninth straight time under our coach Ken Carlin. However, our worst season under coach Carlin ended just as horribly, losing to Oliver Ames in the play-in round, 1-0. This year, however, will be much different. We are returning eight starters, and have 15 senior players, myself included. I will be looking to split some time this year on the right side, as we have yet to figure out the winning formation. Along with playing on the soccer team, I am a four year varsity skier, two of those years as captain.

Kara Dunford, Notre Dame Academy, cross country

I'm at senior at Notre Dame Academy in Hingham. I'm running cross country in the fall for the first time. Besides cross country, I am one of the captains of the indoor and outdoor
track teams. I am also editor-in-chief of the school newspaper and I am interested in pursuing a career in Journalism in the future.

Check back on our Player Diaries page for much more from this trio as the season goes on. If you're interested in writing for us, drop us an email with your name, school, sport, and a quick note on why you'd like to contribute.

We're dusting off our Player Diaries blog for the fall season and we're looking for athletes who might be interested in chronicling their seasons on Boston.com.

Last fall, Mansfield football standout Mike McPherson and Ursuline volleyball All-Scholastic Caitlin Burchill kept us updated on their exciting seasons. Now we want you to tell us all about your fall season.

Interested? Drop us an email with your name, sport you play, and a brief bio about yourself. Remember, you don't have to be the team superstar. Heck, if you're the stats keeper and you want to tell the world about how your team is doing, we want you, too.

We'll pick a handful of our favorites to handle the Player Diaries this fall. Hey, it doesn't look bad on a college resume, either.

Charlestown's Omar Aden, Bromfield's Emily Jones, and Ashland's Nicole D'Argento have earned Massachusetts Gatorade Player of the Year honors for their respective sports.

Aden won for boy's track, Jones for girls' track, and D'Argento for softball. They join Acton-Boxboro's Scott Weismann as those honored for the 2008 spring season.

Here's a bit on each athlete from the press releases distributed by the Gatorade folks:

Omar Aden

The senior distance runner won the mile at the MIAA All-State Outdoor Track and Field Championships with a time of 4:13.83, which ranked as the nation's No. 7 scholastic performance in 2008 at the time of his selection and helped the Townies to the state championship. An Indoor Track All-Scholastic selection as named by The Boston Globe, Aden, who placed fourth in the mile at the National Indoor Scholastic Championships, captured second place in the 1,600-meter run at the New England Outdoor Track and Field Championships in 4:13.19.

Emily Jones

The junior distance runner ran the 2-mile race at the Central Region Meet in 10:27.03, the fastest time in the nation at the time of her selection. A week later, Jones ran the 2-mile in 10:33.30 to win the All-State Meet with the fourth-fastest time in the nation. Also the 2007-08 Gatorade Massachusetts Girls Cross Country Runner of the Year, Jones ran the mile race in 4:59.15 this spring, which ranked as the nation's No. 22 performance in the mile this spring at the time of her selection, and she placed second in the 3,000 meters at the Penn Relays Carnival.

Nicole D'Argento

The junior pitcher started 22-0 with a 0.28 ERA and 288 strikeouts in 147.2 innings this season, leading the Clockers to a 26-0 record entering the Division 2 state semifinals scheduled for June 11. A returning All-Scholastic selection as named by The Boston Globe, D'Argento had produced a .605 batting average, 35 RBI, 33 runs scored and six home runs at the time of her selection. The two-time Tri-Valley League Player of the Year, she concluded her sophomore season of 2007 with a 9-0 record and a 0.00 ERA.

For those curious, the Globe begins collecting high school sports standings for the spring season this Sunday, April 27.

Standings will start appearing in Monday's paper (and online) along with our first batch of in-season top 20 polls, which will update each week from there.

League representatives are reminded to call the Globe between 1 and 6 p.m. Sunday at 617-929-3235, 2860, 2861, or 2862. Our toll-free number is 1-800-232-2860. Standings can also be faxed to 617-929-2670 or e-mailed to hssports@globe.com, but please confirm all fax and e-mail transmissions by calling one of the numbers above.