Competing at the MIAA Meet of Champions, several athletes on the Old Rochester girls cross country team improved their course times on Nov. 16 at Fort Devens.

The team competed in the Meet of Champions for the second year in a row after qualifying for the meet by coming in seventh place at the Cross Country Championships meet on Nov. 9, which was also at Fort Devens.

Senior Madison Conner finished first for Old Rochester and in 86th place in a field of 183 runners with a 5K time of 22:21, which was over 30 seconds faster than the time she ran at the championships meet. 

Sophomore Grace Hebert also improved her time, crossing the finish line at 23:34 minutes, nearly 40 seconds faster than her previous course time.

Overall, the girls team finished in 22nd place.

Twenty-two other Division 2 teams from across the state qualified for the meet.

Athletes from teams that didn’t qualify but were one of the top 10 finishers from non-qualifying teams at the Cross Country Championships also competed on Nov. 16.

The boys Old Rochester team didn’t make it to the Meet of Champions this year, but senior Nolan Bushnell qualified individually, finishing in 75th place with a time of 17:51.

The cross country season is now officially over for all athletes across the state, but Bushnell said he is planning to run in college and other athletes have their eyes on the upcoming indoor track season.