After an early sprint, Logan Blaine ’14 gave it all he had, surging forward to hold his fifth place finish only three seconds before an Exeter rider.
Last Saturday, all four of Andover’s Boys A riders placed in the top ten for the first time this season at the Grafton Notch Road Race.
Respectively, Ian Whittall ’14, Nick Swenson ’15 and Co-Captain Sean Burkitt ’14 swept the eighth through 10th places, finishing only five seconds apart.
“It was encouraging having all of us finish in the top ten. We were all feeling really strong and we were able to close down all the breaks so it came down to a sprint finish. We were happy with the results,” said Swenson.
In the Boys B group, Paxton Hyde ’15 finished first, winning the final sprint over a Gould Academy rider by two seconds.
“I was in the lead group for most of the race. In the final stretch, I went into a sprint and was able to pull ahead and win the race,” said Hyde.
Co-Captain Zoe Chazen ’14 did not fail to impress, finishing first in the Girl’s A group with thirteen second lead over archrival Melissa Seib ’15 of Gould.
On Wednesday, at the Profile School Road Race, Chazen finished in second as her final push could not propel her past Seib. The two have fought for first and second place in every race this season.
“I was a sitting duck. I was in the lead for most of the race and I knew Melissa was going to sprint past. They say strategy comes with experience, so I hope it wont happen again,” said Chazen.
Liana Margolese ’15 and Mandy Reichenbach ’14 finished fourth and sixth respectively in the Girls B group.
Sean Burkitt ’14 finished first for Andover and sixth overall with a time of 1:10:42.
Ian Whittall ’14, Logan Blaine ’14 and Nick Swenson ’15 placed in 13th, 14th and 16th, respectively.
Andover’s next race is at Procter on Wednesday, May 21.
