Cross Country Wins 22nd EIL Championship

Congratulations to the Winsor cross country team who secured their 22nd Eastern Independent League (EIL) championship with a winning low score of 31 points and 10 runners in the top 20 finishers.

Initially canceled due to weather, the Winsor cross country team traveled to Lincoln, RI for the rescheduled championship meet at Chase Farms. Although the team entered the race undefeated in the EIL and heavily favored to win, “Everyone starts with a fresh slate when the gun goes off,” said longtime Cross Country Coach Moriah Musto.

The course features a big uphill at the start, a rolling hill loop that runners do twice, and then a downhill sprint to the finish. “As Winsor worked the middle mile, it was abundantly clear that we would run away with the team competition and the question was now how wide would the margin be,” said Coach Musto.

A formidable trio of Reema Wulfsberg ’30, Avery Fantasia ’29, Leila Andermann ’27 took off from the start and were joined by top runners from Newton Country Day School, the Wheeler School, and Concord Academy. Amanda Chen ’30 and Junia Kielsmeier-Jones ’30 joined the top 10 along with a string of Winsor red in the top 25 at the mile mark. 

There continued to be position changes through the final mile as Winsor athletes fought for every position. When the race was done, Winsor’s top 5 scorers were all in the top 10. Reema led the way in third place (19:50), followed by Avery in fourth (20:06) and Leila in fifth (20:10), Amanda in ninth (20:56), and Junia in tenth (21:04). 

In fact, Winsor placed eight runners in the top 15 out of 119 finishers, what Coach Musto called, “an outstanding team performance.” Anna Scarinci-Sitter ’32, Julica Hatabu ’28, Sophie Klempner-Africa ’30, and Ellie Flaim ’30 ran the race in under 22 minutes and came in ahead of the #3 from every school in the field. Chloe Connolly ’29 came in 20th to give Winsor a stunning 10 athletes in the top 20—a new Winsor record! 

The depth of the team shows incredible promise and a bright future for Winsor cross country. “While no official JV score was kept, Winsor went 1–7 in JV scoring and our JV 7 would have scored just 113 points, good for 4th place in the varsity race, explained Coach Musto.”

Athletic Director Trina Hable offered her support as well. “Congratulations to our runners and coaches on a terrific season and a well-earned championship,” she said in an email to the community.

Go Wildcats!