With banners unfurled, well-wishers gathered and the afternoon sun burning away the clouds, the Middlesex boys' cross-country team came to the line to face Groton School in their first home meet of the season. Earlier in the day, reigning ISL and New England champion Viraj Deokar '16 had accepted his 2014 Globe All-Scholastic plaque from Athletic Director Joe Lang, and rumors swirled that he would make a run for the Middlesex course record of 15:56, set by former Middlesex and current Yale harrier James Randon '13. Nor, in the event, did he disappoint.
The race began quickly as it progressed across the Circle and into Estabrook woods, with Viraj passing the first mile mark in 5:03. The pace slowed as the course wound through the woods, but picked up once again on the downhill stretch in the third mile. As the timer ticked past fifteen minutes, a lonely figure emerged 250 meters from the line. Buoyed by the cheers of the home crowd, Viraj accelerated through the finish in 15:41, shattering the course record and inaugurating a famous victory for Middlesex. Senior co-captain Gavin Fujimori finished in 17:28, with Will Fletcher '15 closely tracking the first Groton runner in 18:00. Rock Hoffman '15 shaved nearly 1:45 off his time in the same race last season as he chased the second Groton runner to the line in 18:25, and Luke Collins '18 soundly defeated the sixth and seventh runners from Groton, finishing in 18:51, a year-over-year improvement of two minutes and 40 seconds. Following close behind were Ryan Ewing '17 (19:04) and Jack Yoon '16 (19:20), as Middlesex secured a 23-32 win over their historic rivals.
The junior varsity once again took the top three spots in the competition, with Ted Pyne '18 (19:33), Jack Pelletier '17 (20:08) and Eric Gourdon '16 (20:16) leading the way. Tim Ren '17, with an inspired burst to the finish, defeated the fifth Groton runner at the line in 20:59, and Kiran Tremblay '17 rounded out the 24-31 victory with 21:02 finish.
The Zebras will hit the road again this Saturday, heading to Concord, NH for a dual meet against St. Paul's School.
