Avon High’s Carver Morgan (1866), shown earlier this fall, finished 65th at the Northeast Region cross country championships Saturday in New York. (Photo courtesy Jason Armistead).
Avon High senior Carver Morgan finished up his high school cross country career on a high note with a fine run at the Eastbay Northeast Regional cross country championship meet at Van Cortlandt Park course Saturday in the Bronx, New York.
Carver Morgan races Saturday in the Bronx. (Photo courtesy Melissa Morgan)
Morgan finished 65th in the field of more than 200 runners from New England, New York, New Jersey, Maryland and Delaware with a time of 16:38 over the 3.1 mile course.
Two weeks earlier, Morgan fell in the mud at the New England championships in Vermont and couldn’t finish the race after turning an ankle. On Saturday, he got the job done.
At the Northeast Regional, formerly sponsored by Foot Locker, Morgan was in 80th place after two kilometers (1.2 miles) but steadily worked this way through the field.
“It was a great time on a difficult Van Cortlandt course and smart running in an incredibly talented field to move up from 80 to 65 by the end of the race. That’s exactly how a cross country race is supposed to be run,” Avon High coach Cortney Fusco said.
Lewis Mills’ Justin Cascio also ran in the race and finished 51st with a time of 16:29.1.
Connecticut had five runners finish in the top 10 and earn an automatic invitation to the national championship race in San Diego on Dec. 11.
Conard High senior Gavin Sherry won the race with a course-record time of 15:05.8, breaking the record set by Glastonbury’s Donn Cabral in 2007. Cabral was a two-time U.S. Olympian in the steeplechase. Manchester’s Aidan Puffer (6), East Lyme’s Luke Anthony (8) and Newington’s Michael Bolhke (10) also finished in the top 10.
2021 Northeast Regional cross country championships
At Bronx, New York
Top 10 runners – Gavin Sherry, Conard 15:05.8 for 3.1 miles at Van Cortlandt Park (new course record. Old record: Donn Cabral, Glastonbury, 15:09, 2007); 2. Marco Langon, Raritan, NJ 15:09.6, 3. Gitch Hayes, Albany, NY 15:18.6, 4.Myles Hogan, Hastings-Hudson NY 15:19, 5. Shane Brosnan, West Orange NJ 15:24, 6. Aidan Puffer, Manchester, 15:26, 7. Jack Gregorski, Painted Post NY 15:27.7, 8. Luke Anthony, East Lyme 15:28, 9. Sam Burgess, Framington MA 15:29, 10. Michael Bohlke, Newington, 15:36
Other local runners: 56. Justin Cascio, Lewis Mills, 16:29.1, 66. Carver Morgan, Avon, 16:38.2
