Girls Cross Country was announced as the New England Preparatory School Track Association (Interschols) Division I Champions this past Saturday. After a heartbreaking one point defeat during the championship race last season, the team came back stronger, scoring a total of 62 points. Amelia Alvazzi ’26 placed second in the race with a time of 18:35 and Anya Budzinski ’26 came in tenth with a time of 19:44. Co-Captain Emma Hagstrom ’25, Zoe von Eckartsberg ’26, Tara Menon ’26, Anya Budzinski, and Alvazzi all placed in the top 20, receiving All-New England honors.
Hagstrom recalls the anticipation and excitement, before and after the results were declared.
“We heard second place, and they announced it really slowly. We were squeezing each other’s hands, and it was Loomis. We were like, ‘We won this!’ Then, they said the winners were Phillips Academy Andover. We all started screaming. We freaked out, and I went to go grab the plaque, because I’m the captain, and then we got some gold medals for the team, and we were so happy,” said Hagstrom.
According to Ela Budzinski ’28, the air of the meet was electric, especially with it being the last one of the season.
“The atmosphere was really exciting. I know a lot of people have been looking forward to it. It was surreal that it was here. There were a lot of teams there, and the energy was really high. Everyone was really excited for the last meet of the season,” said Ela Budzinski.
The team struggled with injuries throughout the season, with the entire Varsity roster racing for the first time together only very recently. Hagstrom noted the emphasis captains and coaches placed on staying healthy leading up to the Interschols race.
Hagstrom said, “We’ve been focusing a lot on really good, high-quality warm-ups. I always tell the girls when we do the warm-ups, I’m not trying to waste your time. We do this so we can prevent injuries, if possible, and we do all the little things to make sure that we’re staying healthy and we’re at the lowest risk of getting hurt.”
The hilly nature of the course played to Andover’s strengths but still required a well-thought-out strategy from captains and coaches, who toured the course earlier in the week to strategize. Alvazzi added that her training gave her a strong finish, propelling her to second place.
“It was a pretty hilly course, and everyone was saying it was a slow course. I wasn’t expecting much, and I was aiming to place in the top five, but then, Andover works hills so much that in the end, I was able to kick and place second, and I was able to PR, which was really great,” said Alvazzi.
During the season, Girls Cross Country created a supportive team environment. Ela Budzinski mentioned how athletes pushed one another to grow and improve, helping build bonds between the runners and ultimately aiding in the win.
Ela Budzinski said, “[The team] was so welcoming for the whole season. Working together and training together. Through all the hard workouts, we lifted each other up, and we were prepared. The course was really hilly, but we worked on hills the whole season. We just lifted each other and picked each other up when we were down.”
With both mental and physical strength being so vital to success in the sport, Girls Cross Country intentionally incorporates mental training and team bonding alongside physical workouts. Hagstrom shared how the team focuses on the key values of collaboration and encouragement.
“Cross Country is a sport that is a little bit closer than other sports, just because our sport is so mentally tough, everyone who does it is mentally strong, and you form such good bonds with them. We do team warm up together. We all meet in front of Sam[uel] Phil[lips Hall] every single week. It’s super fun. All the Seniors come down. It’s in front of Sam Phil, when we all do our cheer, do strides, and do a team huddle. I would say our teamwork honestly has gotten us to where we have been this season. If we weren’t a unit and didn’t work as a team, we would not have been able to do this. It really took everyone on the team, everyone buying into this, everyone working hard together, and everyone doing the little things to make sure that we could get this done,” said Hagstrom.
