Millbrook girls XC beats Pomfret handily; our runners post PRs and season-best times at Division III New Englands

It was a near-perfect day for running at the NEPSTA Division III Championships on Saturday, November 9th, with temps in the mid-50s and a breeze that died down at race-time. The varsity field contained over 140 racers, and the start was aggressive, with runners jockeying for position at the first turn. Andy Sassatelli set a blistering pace and led through the first half, Kingswood Oxford's senior Claire Palmer just behind her. Claire emerged from the trails back across the road in front, and Andy hung on beautifully. Palmer set a new course record in 18:04, and Andy crossed in second in 18:22, just three seconds shy of the course record herself. Meanwhile, the fearsome pack of Selina Hung, Ingrid Schmitt, and Jaicee Downs got caught up in the crowd over the first half mile, but then the steady passing began! All three finished in times significantly improved over their race on this course early in the season: Selina in 23:12, Ingrid in 23:42, and Jaicee in 23:49. Millbrook's fifth and sixth runners, Linna Du and Eloise Hegeman, ran close to each other for much of the race and also finished in excellent times, with Eloise a full three minutes faster than back in September! And co-captain Hailey Mesard finished the last race of her high school career with a hard kick at the finish and a solid time. Freshmen Ameera Pena and Anya Kelmanovich represented Millbrook in the JV race, finishing seconds apart in 27:05 and 27:07 respectively, also minutes faster than their best 5ks this season. The future is bright for these two! Overall, Millbrook girls took 10th among the 23 teams present, bringing their successful season to an excellent close. Congratulations to Andy Sassatelli for making the All-New England team. She will be running next week at the All-star race featuring the top 20 from all four NEPSTA divisions. Watch here for results!