Rena Schwartz wins fourth Vermont cross country title

By Mary Albl of DyeStat

Rena Schwartz cruised to her fourth straight Vermont state cross country crown Saturday at Thetford Academy. 

The Green Mount Valley senior won the Division 1 title in the fastest time of the day for any girl, running 18 minutes, 59.60 seconds. Schwartz won her first two titles at the Division 2 level when she ran for U-32. In the team battle, Champlain Valley won its ninth straight title.

On the boys side, South Burlington junior Lucas Calcagni clocked 16:36 to win the Division 1 title and produced the fastest time of the day, while Essex claimed its first state championship hardware since 2008.

"I’ve been dreaming of this for so long. I'm just so happy," Calcagni told the Burlington Free Press. "I planned that kick since the beginning of the season. Actually executing that was amazing."

In Division 2, Harwood Union senior Erin Magill won in 20:35.50, while the U-32 girls won a thriller in a tiebreaker over Middlebury with both teams scoring 64, forcing the sixth runner to decide the championship. 

For the boys, U-32's Stephen Looke won in 16:51.90, leading his team to a dominating victory with 24 points, making it a Division 2 sweep for the Raiders. 

In Division 3, Thetford's Malcolm Silver-Van Meter clocked 17:43.50 for the victory, with Delaney Bullock of Puntey School running 20 minutes for the girls title. In the team race, the Northfield girls scored 53 points to win the program's first championship. 

Team Champions

Boys D1 - Essex 49 points

Girls D1 - Champlain Valley 44 points

Boys D2 - U-32 24 points

Girls D2 - U-32 64 points

Boys D3 - Stowe 49 points

Girls D3 - Northfield 53 points