Gavin and Callum Sherry of Conard Move To 3rd and 4th Fastest Ever At Wickham Park

By Mary Albl of DyeStat

Photos by John Nepolitan

Twin brothers Gavin and Callum Sherry of Conard High enjoyed an historic moment together on Friday afternoon. In their final in-state race this fall, the Sherrys made sure to leave their mark as they finished 1-2 at the Connecticut Cross Country State Open Championships, a first in state history. 

Gavin Sherry, who has been the state’s top runner for the past few years, defended his title from 2019, covering the 5,000-meter course at Wickham Park in Manchester in a time of 15 minutes, 16 seconds. His time is the third fastest on the course, behind only to Darien graduate Alex Ostberg. Brother Callum bettered his ninth-place performance from two years ago with a runner-up finish, clocking 15:22, good for the fourth-fastest time ever on the course. 

“It has been a fun and rewarding experience watching two of the best runners in Connecticut history on a daily basis, let alone watching how much heart and soul they commit when toeing the start line,” Conard head coach Ron Knapp said. “When combined with their strong mental focus and talent, it makes them a formidable duo. I have been fortunate to be a part of their incredible journey and look forward to their continued success.”

Third place was captured by Manchester senior Aidan Puffer (15:25), who is committed to run for Northern Arizona next fall. 

Ridgefield upset the state's top-ranked team, Xavier, tallying an impressive 82 points, with three runners in the top 20. Xavier was second (110) and Hall was third (112). 

The Sherry brothers, who are both committed to run for Stanford University, will look to see if they go 1-2 again next Saturday at the New England Championships in Thetford, Vt. 

On the girls side, it was a dominating individual effort from Somers’ Rachel St. Germain. The senior ran 18:02 to claim her first Open title, winning by 46 seconds, and clocking the 10th fastest time on the course.

At the last Open in 2019, St. Germain finished in 38th place, running 20:27. The runner-up was freshman Brooke Strauss of Glastonbury (18:48), while New Milford’s Sydney Kelleher was third (18:49). Favored New Milford won the team hardware with 94 points. Glastonbury was second (124) and Hall finished third (171 points).