Boys XC eyes state title; girls look to rebuild squad

Longtime Weston High School Cross Country Coach John Monz said the focus of coaches and athletes depends on the color of surrounding trees.

In the early part of every fall season, while the leaves are still green and temperatures still show summer has yet to round the corner, the emphasis is on aerobic training – building a base for success. 

As the leaves begin to change and fall in October, practices consist of faster work and ensuring athletes are starting and finishing each race strong. 

By the time the leaves have all fallen, Weston teams are competing for league, sectional and state championships – and race results are the only priority. 

“We spend a lot of time getting each team and individual focused and prepared for what they have to do,” said Monz. “The kids recognize where they are, what their goals are and we build off of that.”

Entering the 2026 season, the boys and girls cross country teams are in different spots. 

The boys team is coming off a Dual County League Foley Division title, a Division 2C title and a fifth-place team finish in the MIAA state championship. 

The team returns five of its top seven athletes, and Monz said the group has its sights set on an even higher finish at the state level this season.

“It’s a pretty experienced group,” he said. “They have the mindset of wanting to train hard. They have ambitions in the league and at the state level and improve on that fifth place.”

Monz said it will be no small feat to finish higher, as the other contending teams are returning most of their athletes as well. 

In the team’s first two events of the season, the Wildcats defeated Bedford and Waltham easily and kept up with Cambridge Ringe and Latin, who Monz said is the top-ranked team in Massachusetts. 

On the girls side, the Wildcats are coming off of a season where eight athletes participated. That number has increased to 13 this season, and Monz said the team should hold its own in Dual County League competitions. 

“We’re completely rebuilding the squad,” said Monz of the girls team. “We graduated our top group and we have some people new to cross country that are figuring things out.”

In its first meet of the season, Weston defeated Waltham but lost to Bedford. Monz said the team’s freshmen have been working extremely hard to prepare for the remainder of the season, and he hopes the team will be competitive. 

“The boys and girls are both very supportive to one another,” said Monz. “It makes for a very positive atmosphere around the program.”

If the weather holds, the teams will travel south to Rhode Island on Saturday for a meet with top teams from Massachusetts, Rhode Island and New York.