Week three: following the Newton South girls' cross-country team

By Sapna Pathak, Globe Correspondent

Competing in arguably their toughest meet of the season, the Lions placed fourth at the Hartford Invitational last Saturday.

Senior Kathy O’ Keefe paced South, placing eighth overall on the 3.1-mile course in 19 minutes, 1 second, followed by Madeleine Reed (11th, 19:25), Kayla Burton (16th, 19:59), Anna Laurence (20th, 20:08), and Elizabeth May (21st, 20:28). Two of the squad’s top runners, Melanie Fineman (Rosh Hashana) and Jenny Epstein (illness) did not compete.

‘‘We needed some early challenges to get us up to speed,’’ said South head coach Steve McChesney. ‘‘Every single girl is new to her respective position from last season, so I had some reservations about going to an invitational that featured another team ranked in the top 25 in the nation. After seeing them against Concord-Carlisle, I was excited and felt now we belonged in a field this strong.’’

Up next

The Lions took this week off from dual meets to prepare for yesterday’s Amherst Invitational, which featured 22 of the top teams in New England. On Wednesday, South faces a Lincoln-Sudbury squad ranked ninth in the country.

‘‘This team will have faced the toughest September schedule in our program’s history,’’ said McChesney. ‘‘We’ve already faced two teams in the DCL that rank in the top 10 in the state in Division 1 in Acton-Boxborough and Concord-Carlisle and we will host the number-one team in the state when we face a Lincoln-Sudbury team that is ranked ninth in the nation.’’

Stepping forward

Freshman Kayla Burton is developing into one of McChesney’s top runners, moving up to the third spot (from sixth) after her 16th-place finish in Hartford.

‘‘I knew she had a lot of talent before the season and she’s listened and learned from her mentors and it’s had positive results in the races,’’ said McChesney. ‘‘She’s resilient and has the right blend of passion for the sport and the willingness to work to help the team.’’

TRACK THE TEAM
For more coverage of the Newton South girls’ cross-country team, go to www.boston.com/newton.