According to coach Jim Blackburn, junior Max Brandl and other runners stepped up Tuesday, Oct. 2, bringing boys’ cross country, 6-1, to a 24-31 victory over Needham and Walpole.

Because senior David Demarest, a captain with senior Jonny Long, injured his foot earlier in the season, a gap has opened for the team’s fourth and fifth spots. Finishing in 17:01 and achieving a personal record, Brandl took the team’s fourth spot and placed sixth in the race overall. “He’s improved a lot,” Blackburn said. “He had to fill in for David in that race, and he did a great job.”
Similarly, junior Jared Freedman improved his time from past races to 17:08 at the meet, playing in tenth overall.
Junior Gabe Montague, who led the Tigers, placed second overall, finishing at 16:28, just three seconds after Needham junior Adrian Amaya. Junior Mike Schlichting placed third overall, finishing at 16:39, and Long finished in fifth overall at 17:00.
Demarest also said the team expected a difficult race against Needham and Walpole. “It was a meet that we were a little worried about, but we ran daringly and competitively and ended up winning by a good amount.”
A week earlier, the team lost 27-28 against Wellesley. “We were expecting to win, but injuries and the 2.5 mile distance, as opposed to our usual 3.1 miles, made it difficult for us and we just barely came up short,” Demarest said.