Kate Wiser, CBA Boys Dominant At Bowdoin Park Classic

By John Nepolitan of DyeStat

The morning at Bowdoin Park may have been warm, but that did not slow the racing as Kate Wiser, a junior from Pomperaug CT, and the Christian Brothers Academy NJ boys showed that they were the big stories of this year's Bowdoin Park Classic.

Wiser led from the gun and looking very much in control as she cruised to the 15th-fastest time ever recorded over the 5,000-meter Bowdoin Park layout, stopping the clock at 17:55.5 to win the Varsity I race by more than two minutes.

Wiser slid just ahead of former Foot Locker champion Erin Davis of Saratoga Springs NY and faster than current Team USA members Molly Huddle (Notre Dame Elmira NY) and Elinor Purrier (Richford VT), who are competing in Doha at the IAAF World Outdoor Championships.

Cornwall NY, running without top runner Karrie Baloga, who last year as an eighth grader finished third in the NYSPHSAA Class B Championships and won the freshman race Saturday, still had enough strength to win the team title with a 48-76 win over Goshen NY.

The Varsity 1 boys race also produced the top individual time of the day and the second Connecticut winner of the day as Robbie Cozean of Xavier CT was never far from the front clocking 16:03.1.

Westfield NJ put all five of its scorers in the top 25 to win the team title over Xavier, 70-117.

The first major team battle of the day, the Girls Varsity 2 race, saw Ridgewood NJ put all five scorers in the top 15, led by individual winner Camryn Wennersten to beat state rivals Holmdel and Haddonfield, 44-84-90.

Mari Noble of Greenwich CT took the early lead. Wennersten, biding her time and slowly moving up and then pulling away, beat Noble 18:41.1 to 18:45.2.

The big team showdown of the day did not disappoint, with US#9 Christian Brothers Academy NJ, La Salle College PA, Staples CT and Haddonfield NJ all with runners packed at the front. Shaw Powell of CBA took the point as the field moved through the first mile with little separation between the four squads. Coming back down to the final 1,000 meters, Powell had a solid lead and went on to win in 16:12.8, while his teammates had started to move through the field and take control. At the finish CBA had a 46-70 advantage over LaSalle with Staples third with 149 and Haddonfield fourth with 163.