Cheshire's Murray, Tolland's Collins Dominate At Haddad-Windham Invitational


One of the top returnees from last year and an individual that is listed as one of the favorites for this year's state title, kicked off his cross-country season on a solid note on Saturday.

Cheshire High junior Brendan Murray posted the fastest time of the day at the annual Haddad-Windham Invitational. Murray captured the Varsity 1 race, crossing the line with a winning time of 16 minutes, 12 seconds for the three-mile course, Murray was about 30 meters ahead of runner-up, David Clavet of Ellington, who was timed in 16:17. With three of its runners in the top 10, highlighted by a fourth-place finish from Troy Cormier (16:46), William Hall claimed the team prize with a 67-127 victory over runner-up Glastonbury. 

In the Varsity 1 race, Coventry's Connor Ratte broke the tape with a time of 16:57. East Catholic easily claimed team honors, defeating second-place E.O. Smith, 45-112. East Catholic was fueled by a 2-3-7 finish from Heath Olivieri, Evan Kennedy and Peter Crowley.

Tolland's Hayley Collins, a fourth-place finisher at last year's State Open meet, turned in the fastest effort in the girls' race. She captured the Varsity 1 event convincingly with a time of 18:33. Simsbury's Maeve Daily was second at 19:28. As a team, it was Ellington over Simsbury, 66-77.

Lauren Daddi led Cheshire to the girls' title in the Varsity 2 race. She crossed the line in 20-minutes flat. Cheshire beat E.O. Smith, 37-60.

For Complete Results, including JV races, click here.