Abbott Valentine had the best of both of his running worlds Saturday.
The Hampden Academy senior outlasted rival Daniel McCarthy of Bangor by 1.35 seconds to win the Class A individual boys cross country championship at Troy Howard Middle School, and his effort also paced the Broncos to the school’s first team state title.
“All year the boys have been very close in their goal of winning states, going into every meet knowing we don’t have to win that one to win states but that the work matters,” Hampden coach Danielle Johnson said.
Freeport (Class B) and Orono (Class C) also claimed state championships during a day that included mist and light rain and a steadily deteriorating course as hundreds of runners from around Maine tested themselves to determine the best in class.
Valentine won a three-way battle with McCarthy and Grady Satterfield of Mt. Ararat High School in Topsham by catching up with Satterfield during the second mile and withstanding McCarthy’s finishing kick over the final half-mile to capture his first individual state title in 15 minutes, 34.44 seconds.
That time was just 1.42 seconds slower than he ran on the same course on a drier day a week earlier when McCarthy surged past Valentine and Satterfield to win the Class A North regional.
“I knew once I saw the conditions today that it was going to be a test of endurance, and being able to outkick Grady and outlast Dan, that’s what really gave it to me,” Valentine said.
Valentine started faster than he did a week ago and so did Satterfield, who gained a 2- to 3-second lead midway through the 3.1-mile race. Valentine soon reeled in Satterfield, and McCarthy then reeled in Valentine to set up a repeat of the regional final.
“I was thinking, ‘I really hope he doesn’t pass me,’” VaIentine said. “It’s scary to be running in front of Daniel for that last 800 because you really don’t know when the kick is coming, but I was able to match it enough today to be able to hold him off.”
Hampden’s top five finishers were among the first 27 scoring runners as the Broncos totaled 69 points, followed by Bangor (115) and Brunswick (117) atop the 14-school field.
Junior Charlie Collins placed 10th overall for the Broncos, followed by sophomores Harrison Shain (16th) and Brody Simons (23rd) and senior Judson Nash (31st).
“Everyone on this team really wanted the championship, you could see it in how everyone carried themselves this week,” Valentine said.
Orono began the season with just two runners with any high school cross country experience but ended the fall with the program’s third Class C state championship in the last six years.
“No one told them they weren’t supposed to be running fast,” Orono coach Lin White said of the 11 newcomers on his squad.
Senior Kyle McClellan’s third-place finish led the Red Riots (69 points) past runner-up George Stevens Academy of Blue Hill (80) and Maine Coast Waldorf of Freeport (103) in the 12-school competition for the team crown.
Classmate Colby Farnsworth, one of the first-year runners, placed eighth overall, followed by freshman Owen Beane (14th), returning senior Izaak Swartz (17th) and sophomore Zane Roggenbuck (53rd overall) to compose Orono’s scoring contingent.
“We knew we were up there in the seeds and we knew it was going to be a tough race between us and Maine Coast and GSA,” McClellan said. “We didn’t know how it was going to be by the end of the race but we’ve been working and working for this all season. The competition was tough but we just kept pushing and pushing.”
Brosnan Comeau, a junior from Monmouth Academy, pulled away from Bucksport sophomore William Hileman and McClellan late in the race to win the Class C individual championship. Comeau finished in 16:43.78, followed by Hileman (16:49.57) and McClellan (16:57.10).
Freeport won its first Class B crown since capturing back-to-back titles in 2014 and 2015. The Falcons placed five runners among the top 26 overall, led by Henry Horne’s eighth-place effort.
Freeport scored 86 points, followed by York (114), Cape Elizabeth (131), Greely of Cumberland Center (144) and fifth-place Caribou (148) among the 13 competing teams.
Connor Daigle persevered through the slippery conditions of the sixth and final race of the day to become the first boys runner from Medomak Valley High School in Waldoboro to capture a Class B individual title in 16:35.75.
“I had to use a few tree branches to sort of swing me around corners so I wouldn’t fall,” said Daigle, a senior who said he did slip six times. “But we got the work done, and state championships are more about the win than the time.”
