In Our Stride — RIIL Class Championships

When I spoke with Cumberland head coach Kerrie Carpenter at Ponaganset, she put Saturday’s competition into perspective. The Clippers arrived with a plan: compete with intent, learn from the course and sharpen the details that make each runner better—and the team stronger.

The RIIL Class Championships offered an opportunity to do all three on the same course that would host the state championships a week later.

There are lessons within the race. Every athlete steps to the line with a different level of experience and something specific to work on. For Cumberland’s more accomplished runners, the foundation is set. They’ve done the crawling and walking. Now the work comes down to smaller refinements: finding a better rhythm, understanding the course and recognizing where the next improvement can come from.

Others are still building that foundation, learning how to put the pieces together over five kilometers. Their next step might look different, but it deserves the same attention. Class year alone doesn’t determine where a runner stands. A freshman might already have an advanced feel for racing, while a veteran still has details to sharpen.

That was my takeaway from the philosophy Carpenter shared: recognize where each athlete is, then help them take the next step. Across a roster, those individual gains become part of the team’s progress.

A beautiful final day of October provided the setting. Athletes, families and supporters gathered around the team tents, bringing a welcoming feel to a championship Saturday. Around Cumberland’s tent, the meet had its own gathering place—a little piece of home at Ponaganset.

Then came the work on the course.

Cumberland’s girls placed third among nine scoring teams in the Class A race, finishing with 70 points behind La Salle Academy’s 38 and North Kingstown’s 59. Junior Cecelia Ludwig led the Clippers in third place at 18:54.89. Seniors Gabriella Stoothoff and Anna Bianchi followed in seventh and eighth, crossing just over two seconds apart in 19:18.04 and 19:20.12.

Three runners in the top eight gave Cumberland a strong start to its team score. Freshman Madelyn Stephens placed 21st, and sophomore Rebecca Davis finished 31st to complete the scoring five. Freshman Elise Markarian rounded out the Clippers’ lineup in 42nd.

The boys finished 10th among 12 scoring teams with 218 points, one point behind ninth-place East Providence. Bishop Hendricken won with 19.

Seniors Brayden Rivello and Ethan Libby led Cumberland in 24th and 29th, finishing at 17:13.41 and 17:21.48. Junior Tyler Pinch followed in 41st, with sophomore Henry Camden in 60th and freshman Mason Black in 67th completing the scoring five.

Freshman Carter Stoothoff crossed just behind Black in 68th, and fellow freshman Luke Conroy finished 73rd. The single point separating Cumberland and East Providence offered a clear reminder of how much one scoring place can mean.

Together, those 13 finishes gave the Clippers more than results. They gave each runner something to bring back to practice: a better understanding of the course, a detail to refine and a clearer sense of how to approach the next race.

The Rhode Island State Championships return to Ponaganset on Saturday, November 7, with state honors and New England berths on the line. Cumberland now has a week to apply what Saturday revealed.

Same course. Bigger stage.

The next stride starts with the work between them.

Reporting: Erik Smith. Results: IN STRIDE TIMING via MileSplit. Girls results · Boys results · State championship schedule