Harwood Girls XC qualifies for New England Championship
November 3, 2023 | By Waterbury Roundabout 
Co-captain seniors Julia Thurston (left) and Hazel Lillis (right) ran a strong race, finishing 3rd and 4th respectively for the Highlander girls who advance to New Englands. Photo by Robert Cummiskey
Senior Cooper Hansel ran his final race as a Highlander with a solid finish for the boys team. Photo by Robert Cummiskey
Harwood Girls XC had a stellar finish to their season and the Boys XC shows promise for the near future, according to their coach, following the Vermont Division II Championships at Thetford Academy on Saturday, Oct. 28.
The girls team placed second in their competition to U-32. “Not only did they surprise me with their amazing second place in D-II, but qualifying for New England’s was unexpected!” said longtime Harwood Cross Country Coach John Kerrigan.
Last year was the first time in 22 years that a Harwood competitor or team failed to qualify for the New England Championships, Kerrigan noted. “After a one-year absence, it will be good to go back,” he said. The regional contest will be held in Belfast Maine, a course Harwood runners are familiar with.
The top six teams from each state qualify for the elite XC regional competition. The Harwood Girls team finished 6th overall, ahead of many of the larger Vermont Division I teams, Kerrigan pointed out.
“It was especially surprising because we had no girls qualify as individuals (top 25 overall). It was a real team effort,” he said.
The Harwood girls who competed in the Vermont Division II state championship meet (and their rankings) were: juniors Celia Wing (10th) and Heidi Haraldsen (12th), seniors Julia Thurston (16th), Hazel Lillis (20th) and Rowan Clough (27th), sophomore Pippa Diller (31st) and freshman Harmony DeVoe (38th).
Kerrigan noted that in the state junior varsity race, freshman Julia Cisz finished “an outstanding 12th.”
U-32 girls won the top D-II spot for a second consecutive year with all of their runners finishing in the top 25. The rest of the girls D-II team results were: Burr and Burton in third, followed by Woodstock, Lamoille, Lyndon and Montpelier.
Junior Christopher Cummiskey came in first for the Highlander boys at the State Division II Championship in Thetford. Photo by Robert Cummiskey
Juniors Heidi Haraldsen (left) and Celia Wing (right) led the Highlander team in the State Championship on Saturday. Celia finished first for Harwood despite a nagging injury; Heidi came in on her heels as the second HU runner. Photo by Robert Cummiskey
On the boys side, U-32 took home first-place in a repeat D-II finish this year as well, the program’s eighth consecutive title. The rest of the team places were: Montpelier in second, followed by Burr and Burton, Middlebury, Vergennes, Harwood, Lamoille, Woodstock, Hartford, Lyndon and Missisquoi.
Harwood Boys placed 6th. They were led by junior and team captain Chris Cummiskey (24th), followed by freshman Brody Hackett (34th), senior Cooper Hansel (46th), sophomore Chapin Rivers (47), juniors Wyatt Ross (48) and Atticus Ellis (51st), and freshman Callum Robison (57th.)
Kerrigan said the boys team shows promise for the future. “Cooper, the only senior competing today, finished his career with an outstanding race,” he said. “With two freshmen and a strong group of juniors returning next year, we should be very competitive in 2024.”
The top eight Harwood girls next will travel to Belfast on Nov. 10.
“Now we just have to figure out how we can get them there. I have been told that there are not any athletic administration funds available for transport or overnight accommodations,” Kerrigan said.
Community members wishing to support the team’s travel costs can send donations to Harwood Cross Country, Harwood Union High School, 458 VT Route 100, Moretown, VT 05660.
“It would be greatly appreciated,” Kerrigan said.