by Ron Brocato
Eight-time state cross country champion Brother Martin is in a rebuilding year after having graduated four of its highest scoring state meet participants. But head coach Drew Haro is excited about his returning veteran runners as his Crusaders build momentum for runs at the district and state championship meets.
Brother Martin has been state runner-up for the last two years, but the top runners who took the team to the silver trophy have departed, including Noah Mooney, whose time of 15:03.2 earned him a third place finish. Also finishing in the top 11 last year were Jack Collins (6th place), Patrick Trainor (9th), Braeden Dunne (10th), and Anders Maitrejean (11th). In leading the Crusaders to a 39-point finish, the five earned All-State recognition for their efforts.
Maitrejean is one of two 2024 state meet veterans with high expectations. He has trimmed his 15:41.7 time recorded in last year’s state meet to a personal best of 15:10. Carson Mills, who placed 17th as a freshman, has recorded a personal best time of 15:07 since becoming a sophomore. In meets run earlier in October, Mills placed third in the Pete Boudreaux Invitational and ninth in the prestigious Frank Horton Invitational in Tennessee.
Haro was pleased with the performances, considering the hot summer weather has limited his young runners’ outdoor activities. “We took two teams to the Frank Horton meet. Our B team won its race and the A team finished second to a Tennessee team that was ranked 13th in the country,” Haro said. “I thought it might be fun to see where we stand.”
Mills and Maitrejean are joined by four runners, who will be among the district’s best as the season progresses. Will Lionnet, who finished 29th in the state meet, ran a 15:52.46 in the Boudreaux meet, good enough for sixth place. The senior has been clocked in at 15:21 this year. Sophomore Daniel Bonilla and juniors Caleb Carmouche and Julien Campos give depth to Haro’s squad. All have run in the mid-15 minutes.
Brother Martin figures to again be one of the top cross country teams in Division I. Its main competition comes from district rival Jesuit, Catholic High of Baton Rouge, and Ruston. Jesuit has dominated Louisiana cross country recently, having won four consecutive division championships. Brother Martin has been runner-up the last three years. “What people forget, for the last several years that Jesuit has won – and they crown that group the greatest of all time, and that’s not without merit – but from 2016 to 2020, Catholic High won five in a row.”
The Crusaders stand among the state’s best Division I cross country programs, having won state titles in every decade since fielding the initial team in 1970. And Haro, a member of two championship teams as a student in 1999 and 2002, looks to continue that winning tradition.
The Crusaders' next outing is the Jack Schommer Invitational meet on Oct. 25 on the City Park course.
by Ron Brocato
As the District 9-5A and state cross country meets approach, the Brother Martin Crusaders continue to improve.
During recent weeks, Coach Drew Haro’s young team brought home two meet championships. Although running with a limited team, the Crusaders’ varsity squad won both the Oct. 11 Pete Boudreaux Catholic High Invitational and the Oct. 18 Watson High School Classic in Clinton, MS. Carson Mills’s third place finishes in the two 5,000-meter events highlighted the team’s first-place efforts.
Haro was pleased with the Crusaders’ showing in Baton Rouge, noting, “The varsity controlled the race, winning by 34 points over meet host Catholic High. Our harriers were short-handed, too, as we took precautions with a few of our top runners keeping the big November picture in mind.”
Mills covered the 5,000-meter Highland Course in Baton Rouge in 15:37.99. The Crusaders had 2 other top 10 finishes from William Lionnet and Caleb Carmouche, who finished sixth and eighth, respectively. Lionnet turned in a time of 15:52.46, and Carmouche clocked in at 15:57.46.
Mills, competing in the Gold Division race at the Watson Classic, bettered that time to 15:35.31. Lionnet, Daniel Bonilla, and Carmouche were also among the top 20 finishers at the Watson meet. Lionnet ran a 15:59.90 to claim the No. 10 spot while Bonilla placed 11th with a time of 16:00.98. Carmouche followed in 15th place, running the distance in 16:07.01.
In the Watson Silver Division event, where the Crusaders finished in third place, Brayden Bulloch, Ian Acosta, and Nathan Oubre were the team’s low scorers.
“Our junior varsity and junior high runners continued to improve as the competition improved as well,” Haro said. “Jude Abadie tied the eighth grade 2-mile record with a 10:43.28.” His time was good enough to give the young runner second place points in the St. Aloysius Cross Country Invitational. Teammate Joshua Carmouche (11:50.39) finished in seventh place.
Leading into the final month of the season, Brother Martin will be pointing for low scores in the District 9-5A meet on Oct. 30 at the City Park course and the state championship meet on Nov. 17 in Natchitoches.