GLOCESTER, R.I. – When he came down the final stretch, Robert Allen got a good glance at the digital clock at the finish line. It was then that the Cranston West senior realized his goal of a state record wouldn’t happen on a brisk, cold Sunday afternoon.
It didn’t matter, though. He still got himself the coveted crown.
With his patented finishing kick, Allen broke away from Bishop Hendricken senior Ryan Meehan with less than 300-meters remaining to capture the boys’ race at the RIIL State Cross-Country Championships with a crisp time of 15 minutes, 30.86 seconds. Meehan finished second at 15:37.57. (Photo, right, by Rick McCulloch, RITrackXC.com)
Allen, a second-place finisher at last year’s meet, became the first Falcon runner to claim a state title since Gary Hague accomplished the feat in 1972. His time is also the second fastest ever run on Ponaganset’s tough five-kilometer layout.
Former Westerly All-American Andrew Springer holds the state mark of 15:14.05, which he set in winning the 2008 event. It’s a record that Allen was hoping to break in his final state meet.
As he made his last surge for the title, he knew that record would remain in the books.
“I saw 15-something (on the clock), but I didn’t care,” he said. “I accomplished what I wanted - a state championship.”
It was deju vu for Hendricken for the team plaque. Led by Meehan’s runner-up finish, the Hawks won their third straight title and 19th overall with a slim 77-79 win over second-place La Salle Academy. Comprising the Hawks’ scoring was Meehan, senior Andrew Andraka (sixth, 16:17.17), senior Nick Chrones (16th, 16:38.14), senior Drew Manning (25th, 16:54.05) and junior Matt Vuono (29th, 16:57.21).
With his race winding down, Andraka came though with a clutch performance. He was in 11th place at 2.5 miles and passed five runners the last 1,000 meters.“
(The meet) was very, very close,” said Hendricken coach Jim Doyle, whose team copped the New England and Nike Northeast Regional titles last year. “We knew it was going to be close. Ryan Meehan ran well and obviously Andrew Andraka, he finished sixth. The big surprise was our other senior, Nicholas Chrones, who was on the JV team up until this last year.”
The usual suspects occupied the lead pack at the beginning of the race. Allen led a tight group that included Meehan, La Salle senior Zachary Fraielli (third, 14:48.32) and North Providence senior Alex Gallo (fourth, 16:08.18) through a mile split of 4:53.
Allen had a strong start once the gun was fired. His team drew an unfavorable spot on the starting line on the far right side, but he made sure that wouldn’t deter his pre-race plans.
“I knew I had to get out and make sure I don’t get boxed in or anything,” he said. “Once I got that position, I was relaxed.”
Allen and Meehan broke from the pack right around two miles. By the time the talented tandem raced down the final incline of the course to exit the wooded portion, there was no second-guessing what two runners would be battling for overall supremacy.
With the duo running nearly side-by-side the final 600 meters, Allen shifted into high gear with less than a quarter-mile left to beat Meehan by a comfortable 50 meters. In last year’s race, the Hawk runner placed tenth overall.
“Robert Allen has a little more experience and a little better kick,” Doyle said. “That’s what it came down to.”
“The whole race went exactly how I planned, which is odd,” Allen said. “It never happens.”
It was twice as nice for La Salle junior Molly Keating, who copped her second straight title in the girls’ race with a time of 18:51.93. The gifted harrier led from gun-to-wire and was nearly 12 seconds ahead of second-place finisher Michaela Hackett of Cranston West, who crossed the line in 19:03.43. (Photo, left, by Rick McCulloch, RITrackXC.com)
Keating and her teammates also cruised to their fourth consecutive title, easily defeating runner-up Barrington, 30-52.
Keating hit the mile mark at 5:37 and made her decisive move for the title just a mile later, breaking away from North Kingstown sophomore Aisha McAdams.
“I wanted to go out as fast as I could and push the third mile, especially,” she said. “When I got ahead (of McAdams), as far as I knew she was still right behind me. I just pushed it from there.”
Keating surprised the competition at last year’s meet when the then-sophomore posted a fast winning effort of 18:28.1 – a good 150 meters ahead of Barrington’s Abigail Jones.
“I felt pressure today,” she said afterwards. “I felt nervous because there are such amazing runners in Rhode Island so I didn’t know if I would be able to repeat it. I never thought last year that I would win so I didn’t know I would get the chance again.”
GLOCESTER, R.I. – When he came down the final stretch, Robert Allen got a good glance at the digital clock at the finish line. It was then that the Cranston West senior realized his goal of a state record wouldn’t happen on a brisk, cold Sunday afternoon.