Molly Keating

We've complied the top 500 girls performances from schools in the New England region that have run on the Ponaganset XC course.

Let's take a look at how the top 5 boys & girls seniors from 2011 are doing during their freshman years of college

Milesplit RI compiles the top 50 girls performacnes at the Ponaganset covered bridge course

The buzz about how good Precious Holmes really was began early this winter and continued through the indoor season. The Hillhouse, CT phenom didn’t disappoint the Reggie Lewis Center crowd at Friday night’s 25th New England Interscholastic Indoor Track & Field Championships.

The La Salle Academy girls kicked off the 25th annual New England Indoor Track & Field Championships by smashing a state record in the 4x800-meter relay. That was just the opening act for the Rhode Island contingent that made its way to the March 2 meet.

A bit of gamesmanship is underway by the coaches of prominent teams in New England. The meet rules for the New England Championships state that an athlete can only be entered in four events including relays, and several coaches have their top tier athletes slated for the maximum allowable amount. The fact that an athlete can even qualify in four events is a testament to their tremendous talent, but the likelyhood that it will actually happen is slim.

Chariho Regional put a halt to 17 straight years of dominance by Bishop Hendricken on Saturday by taking the boys’ team title at the  R.I. Interscholastic League Indoor Track and Field Championships with a 68-63 win over the runner-up Hawks.

It was a high profile week in New England, with New Balance sponsoring two elite events geared towards assembling some of the fastest fields on the East Coast.  Thankfully for track fans, both events delivered as promised.

A stacked field has been assembled for both mile races, and the addition of the boys 4x800m and girls 4x400m has given high school track fans even more to cheer for.  The Reggie Lewis Center track is considered a relatively fast surface, and if athletes get after it early, we may see some jaw dropping times.

New  York NY - The mile is a classic distance.  About 8 meters longer than the now standard 1600m, the mile recently has seen a movement encouraging its' return.  There is even a website dedicated to this very thing, petitioning high school sports to return to the classic distance.  And if there ever was any indication that the mile was still alive, the fields for the mile at the upcoming US Open, New Balance Grand Prix, and Millrose would be it.  See if your favorite made the cut.

Meet directors of the New Balance Grand Prix announced the high school fields on Wednesday afternoon, with the boys and girls mile races highlighting the prep action.  In years past, the race has focused on athletes from New England and the New York Metro area, but this year’s field has expanded to include athletes from as far away as North Carolina. 

Show stopping relays were the order of the week with the Yale Track Classic and the Massachusetts Division meets providing ample competition to tear apart the rankings.  Some teams, like Marshfield (MA), had the luxury of doing both.  They participated in the MSTCA Division 2 Relays last weekend, and then traveled to Yale Friday where they unleashed a US#1 DMR time of 10:17.40.  That group was anchored by Joel Hubbard who split 4:14 for his mile leg.

CHICAGO (January 12, 2012) — In its 27th year of honoring the nation’s best high school athletes, The Gatorade Company, in collaboration with ESPN HS, today announced Molly Keating of La Salle Academy as its 2011-12 Gatorade Rhode Island Girls Cross Country Runner of the Year. Keating is the second Gatorade Rhode Island Girls Cross Country Runner of the Year to be chosen from La Salle Academy.

  The Dartmouth Relays is traditionally the first major invitational with regional implications. Teams from all six New England states are slated to participate, in addition to teams from New York and Canada.  MileSplit will follow all the action from the two day event, updating this page with the most recent performances.

  A personal best in the 25-pound weigh throw with the nation’s No. 1 distance, a near state mark in the 55-meter dash and a back-and-forth duel for first place in the long jump.  There was a select group of Rhode Island athletes that made their way to the victory stand at the annual R.I. Classic Track & Field Invitational on Dec. 28. And the few that did certainly made their presence known inside the confines of the Providence Career and Technical Academy field house.

Elle Purrier of Richford, VT led from the gun, and never looked back as she broke the course record on the Ponaganset covered bridge trial 5k course. Purrier covered the layout in 18:01. The time was 13 seconds better than the course record held by former RI state champion Jeanne Mack of LaSalle. On the boys side, Mike Marsella of Chariho used his home course advantage to hold off a strong effort from Conor Rog of Fairfield Prep, CT to claim the title with a 15:26 clocking with Rog just one second back. US #22 Champlain Valley, VT repeated as champions by tallying 112 points to defeat runner-up LaSalle Academy by 43. On the Boys side US #39 Bishop Hendricken claimed the NE title once again with 4 in the top 50. Hendricken tallied 116, 56 points in front of runner-up Fairfield Prep, CT.

Just as he's done all season long, Mike Marsella made his statement early at the RIIL Cross-Country Championships on Nov. 6.  All photos by Raphael Bieber

The 77th New England Championships will feature the top female harriers from Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, & Connecticut battling it out for regional supremacy. With several All-NE selection returning the quality up front will be top notch will a handful of girls with a real shot to run away with the NE championship. Look for RI state champ Molly Keating (LaSalle Academy, RI) , 2009 NE champ & 2x runner-up Emily Durgin (Cheverus, ME), Courtney Hawkins (Milford, NH) the NH MOC champion, Elle Purrier (Richford, VT) the D3 State champion & 4th place finisher from 2011, & Reid Watson (Glastonbury, CT) the CT State Open champion & 2x All-NE selection to be a few to contend for the top spot. Teamwise, (US #22) Champlain Valley, VT the defending champions will be the team to beat as they shoot to repeat, expect strong challenges from two team from Rhode Island, Barrington & LaSalle Academy, along with Maine champs Cheverus, NH Champs Coe-Brown Academy & CT Champs Ridgefield.

Catarina Rocha and Aisha McAdams enter Saturday's race with a wealth of credentials, but the pair will have plenty of company and a sea of maroon jerseys may envelop the two as the team battle rages in the front pack.