Boys’ Cross Country is off to a promising start under the leadership of new head coach Michael Meehen. A STEM teacher at Lincoln Middle School, Meehen left a coaching position at St. Raphael Academy to take the Lincoln position.
On Tuesday, September 16th, the team had their first dual meet, for which they came in second place, and their best runner was Lucas Burdette. On Tuesday, September 23th, the team placed second again.
“I had a pretty good situation at St. Ray’s and I came over in the hopes of building a strong program in the years to come,” Coach Meehen said. “I want to compete against teams like Cumberland, East Greenwich and Barrington. And I think Lincoln can do it. I think the community is great. I think if there could be some sort of feeder program from the middle school, I think we could really put together a great program.”
Junior George Ackerman is feeling positive about the transition.
“I can tell that this coach really cares about doing his job,” said Ackerman.
This season, Coach Meehen’s goal for the team is to perform well at the class meet which will allow them to compete at the state level. About 20 teams make it to the state meet, and Lincoln is right on the cusp.
“I think we could possibly do it,” said Coach Meehen. “If not a team qualifying for states, then I’m hoping for a few individuals to qualify for states based off of the time.”
He has confidence in his star runners Ackerman and fellow junior Roman Nadrowski. Ackerman suffered a minor hip injury that took him off the trails, but he hopes to be back soon after some physical therapy and rest. Coach Meehen and Ackerman also feel hopeful and proud of freshman runners Lucas Burdette, Abdullah Kouraj, and Dylan Van Cleve.
“We have a lot of young, talented freshman runners,” Ackerman said. “I think this year, there is definitely a lot of room for improvement, more people, more talents.”
Their training since early July paid off at the injury fund a few weeks ago. Varsity finished eighth, and freshman placed sixth overall.
“Every single boy on the team had their personal best,” said Coach Meehen.
The Lions faced teams in the injury fund that they do not normally compete against. In the Northern division, they race teams from Cumberland, North Providence, and other nearby medium-sized schools in the area.
Last season, the girls’ cross country coach, Mrs. Sue Carlson, filled in as coach. Fewer people were on the team as well, so Ackerman says the team is much improved this year, although he thanks Mrs. Carlson and the coaches of his past for their help.
“I credit a lot of my success as a runner and the team’s success to the great coaches that I’ve had, especially Mrs. Carlson, because she’s been there since my freshman year. She was coaching the girls, but she had to coach the boys a lot at the time, too, because we couldn’t find a coach who could stay there for long enough,” said Ackerman.
Best of luck this season, Boys’ Cross Country!
