Boothbay Region High School cross country teams outran the competition at a home meet under overcast skies on Wednesday, Sept. 14. Boothbay boys and girls teams won the race despite the loss of top runners on both teams. Faith Blethen not only easily outpaced all competitors; she set a new course record.

The Seahawks logged their second win against MVC competition in as many events, even without top runner Kyle Ames, who was sidelined with a foot injury. Blake Erhard led the Boothbay boys, finishing second at 18:33, 41 seconds faster than he ran the course last year.

“Blake is coming on really strong. He grew a lot over the summer and he is looking really good for the season and he has a lot more room to grow,“ Coach Nick Scott said after the race.

Finishing second for BRHS was freshman Will Perkins (19:43), followed by freshman Rowan Kristan (seventh, 20:24), sophomore Will LeBrecque (10th, 21:09), and sophomore Bayly Gaughan-Carrasco (14th, 21:58).

“We lost four seniors last year and to have these new guys really step up is huge. Last year’s freshmen have grown a lot and they are much stronger. Then we have the addition of the new freshmen boys, Will Perkins and Rowan Kristan, in particular. Not only are they an asset, they’re a huge asset,” Scott said.

Scott said his main focus is on the season at hand, but the infusion of young talented runners bodes well for the future.

“We’re very competitive this year and I expect us to do well in October, but it’s hard not to smile, thinking we’re so young.”

Boothbay won the meet with 33 points, followed by Lisbon, 43, Winthrop, 83, Hall-Dale, 98 and Oak Hill, 108.

With the addition of newcomer Delly Clarkson and soccer-crossover Evy Case, the Boothbay girls finally had enough runners to score, and they did in a big way. Boothbay girls won the meet with 28 points, followed Winthrop, 37 and Oak Hill,  61.

Faith Blethen, Loren Genrich and Kate Friant easily took the top three spots and all topped their times on this course last year.

Blethen finished first at 20:37, obliterating the 21:08 course record she set last year. Blethen, whose left leg was taped from the knee down, collapsed in pain after crossing the finish line. Within a minute she was back up and said the leg did not hurt when she was running, only immediately after she stopped.

Genrich finished second at 24:16 (33 seconds faster than last year).  Friant, who crossed the finish line third at 24:36, almost a minute faster than last year, outlasted Hall-Dale’s Tess Gioia (fourth, 24:38) in the home stretch.

“These three girls have been working really hard. They’re focused and they are all running faster than last year, which is delightful to see,” Scott said.

In their first race of the season, Case finished 10th at 27:39 and Clarkson 21st at 38:26. Lincoln Hamblett did not race, due to a knee injury.

“It’s very exciting as we fill out our roster. Once Lincoln’s back, that should square things away and the girls team should be very competitive,” Scott said.

Scott said Ames’, Blethen’s and Hamblett’s injuries are being watched by the teams’ physical therapists from LincolnHealth and sidelining Ames and Hamblett was a conservative measure.

“I don’t think these are season-ending injuries, we’re just being conservative to be sure we’re ready for the post-season competition,” Scott said of the decision.

Next week will bring the first preview of the competition season ahead. Boothbay travels back to the University of Maine at Augusta on Wednesday, Sept. 21 for the mid-season Mountain Valley Conference race.