Many of you read that Tobin finished 7th overall in Districts. Here is a bit of the days story:
Shrewsbury Cross Country boys team placed second in the District race Saturday October 13! They were only 5 points behind the 1st place team. That is a very close scoring for cross country.
Here they are holding their second place trophy. I have several other pictures of the team with the trophy, but since every guy had a hand on the trophy I couldn't see faces too well. This informal picture captures many of their faces and also the pride they had winning this trophy. Last year they tied for 2nd, but their 6th man finished behind the other team's 6th man giving them 3rd place. Even though only three teams from the District race move onto States a trophy is only given to 1st and 2nd place. This year the cross country team brought home a trophy for Shrewsbury High.
Here is a picture of the girls team. The girls race a great race. They placed fourth. Only the top three teams move to states. Individuals can race in states if their times were fast enough. Two girls from Shrewsbury will run in Saturday's states race: Becca and Nicole.
Now for the race itself. The race began and John Murray was out leading and he never gave up the lead. He finished first! Shrewsbury's uniform is mainly gold with navy shoulders and sides.
As I edited the photos I noticed that on the left of the above picture you can see five of the six runners from Shrewsbury. Coach has been preaching the effect of the pack mentality. Shrewsbury used this in Districts.
I had to include this great picture of Tobin at the start of the race. I find his legs muscles incredible.
The Shrewsbury XC flag was held high at the race. Here are some of the teammates that were there to cheer on the varsity at Districts. I overheard some other kids saying "Hey, we need a flag like that!".
There were a few spots on the course that I ran to take pictures. This tree marks a turn in the course after a long downhill. John was in the lead and moving quickly.
Tobin came around strong and near the front.
I have a picture of CJ at the same tree. I did not stay at this point to take more pictures because I wanted to see John and Tobin finish.
John finished first with a time of: 14:15.5. He broke the course record that was set 12 years ago! He broke it by 9 seconds.
Tobin finished 7th with a race time of 15:00:0! This makes him a Telegram and Gazette All Star. He will have a nice dinner and interview with the newspaper. They always make quarter page write ups for the top seven runners from Districts. This will be displayed in the High School for his junior year! What an honor to be all star for two consecutive races! Tobin improved his time from last year by 48 seconds.
CJ and Curtis placed 14th and 15th with times of 15:21:0 and 15:21:7!
Mike Bodden had been the JV star. Because of his finish during the last game of the season, Bodden was given the 7th man spot for Districts. He gave everything in this race and finished 5th for the team! Wow, great job.
Dan is a sophomore and his first year on the team. He finished with a great time of 16:13.
Branden Cramer finished on fumes the last mile and was great for the team. Nice going!
Chris Favulli came to the race to cheer on the guys. He is picture on the right. Chris ran with the team last year. He is now running for UMASS Lowell. It was great that he came to see this race. Tobin felt dizzy after the race, but recovered fine later that day.
Medals were given to the top 15 runners. Here Tobin and another top finisher are congratulating the other runners. Many of them know each other by first name.
Coach Smith was beaming with pride holding the trophy and walking with John.
Curtis Beals and Coach Smith
Captured a picture of Coach Smith and Tobin.
When I dropped Tobin off at the HS to catch the bus, I told him it was a great day for a run. It was a great day. The sun was out, a bit warm for a fast run, just a great day for a run. Saturday should be similar. There will be wind though, but the States race is on the same course as Districts this year. Should be another great day for a good run. Shrewsbury is going for 1st place. I know they will run hard and do well. I will keep you posted.
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