Wearing bib number 245, Kieran Scannell battles for the lead in his last high school cross country meet for Phillips Exeter prep school located in Exeter, New Hampshire. Scannell was unbeaten in the prep school ranks this fall. He is the son of Lynn Swanson and Tim Scannell of Grand Marais.
Kieran Scannell’s last season of high school cross country running was almost perfect.
The Grand Marais native recently won the prestigious Interschols Loomis 5K in 15:24 to lead his team to first place in the 15-team field that serves as the schoolboy prep title in New England.
Before leaving to attend school in Exeter, New Hampshire, Scannell ran against his friend and long-time competitive nemesis Matt Welch of Proctor on August 30.
The dynamic duo duked it out on the Pincushion Mountain Trails with Welch winning and Scannell finishing comfortably in second place. Welsh was unbeaten this fall, running away from the competition to win the Minnesota boys’ state cross country title. Welch is now attempting to qualify for Nike Nationals in Eugene, Oregon where he will compete against the nation’s elite high school runners.
As sophomores Scannell and Welch ran many races to the wire in cross country and track. Last year both recorded best times of 16:02 for 5K and this year Welch’s best time is 15:21, a scant 3 seconds faster than Scannell, so not much has changed in regards to the runners’ abilities and growth as runners.
After his race against Welch, Scannell left Grand Marais to attend Phillips Exeter Academy in Exeter, New Hampshire, where he is finishing his last two years of high school. At Phillips Exeter Scannell won all of his races and remained unbeaten in the prep school ranks.
Kieran is the son of Tim Scannell and Lynn Swanson of Grand Marais.
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