Girls' Cross Country

MAPL CHAMPS

2012

The cross country running experience at Blair is for athletes of all levels of ability and commitment, and the camaraderie and competitive spirit of the girls' team makes for a rewarding experience. Our goal is to assist students in achieving their potential in this sport, wherever their starting point may be. The accent on good sportsmanship and the inclusion of all runners in most events is integral to our philosophy of sport.

Blair’s location in Warren County, New Jersey, is a dream for long-distance runners. Our standard 5K cross country course covers the flats and hills of Blair’s golf course and is a wonderful setting for meets, including the New Jersey state prep championship meet, held here each fall. The course is decidedly “viewer friendly” as it winds through various loops, starting and finishing on the track in front of the stands.

A fair portion of cross country team training takes place on the picturesque Paulinskill River “rails to trails,” which includes 26 miles of dirt and cinder paths just off campus. In addition, Blairstown boasts miles of rural roads, offering runners an aesthetically pleasing training environment that is easy on the legs.

The cross country season runs from early September to mid-November, including a five-day preseason training period that helps prepare runners for the season. Blair competes in the Mid-Atlantic Prep League (MAPL) against Lawrenceville, Hun, Peddie, Hill and Mercersburg, and the team competes in several regional invitational meets, including the Canterbury Invitational in Connecticut, the Newark Invitational in New Jersey and the Paul Short Invitational at Lehigh University. We conclude the season on Peddie Day in November, when, along with all fall sports, we vie for the coveted Kelley-Potter Cup with arch-rival Peddie School.

About Coach Browse

Head coach R. Latta Browse, appointed in 1982, graduated Phi Beta Kappa in 1978 from Middlebury College with a BA in mathematics. In 1989, he earned an MALS in Islamic studies at Columbia University and, in 1991, received his CAS in mathematics from Wesleyan University. Latta taught high school mathematics as a Peace Corps volunteer in Malaysia from 1978 to 1981. For two years, he taught at Antwerp International School as an international baccalaureate math teacher. Over the years, Latta has served in a variety of capacities, including housemaster of Davies, West and Mason Halls, dorm resident in Locke, and sophomore class monitor. He has also served as head or assistant coach for a myriad of sports, including JV soccer, JV baseball, varsity soccer, varsity baseball, winter track and boys' cross country. Latta is currently head coach of the girls' cross country team. He is married to Carolyn Conforti-Browse '79, a veteran English teacher at Blair. They have two children: Tyler '08 and Annelies '13.

Contact Coach Browse at browsl@blair.edu for any questions.

About Coach Francis

Blair welcomes Kat Francis, who will work in the math department and serve as assistant girls' cross country coach in the fall and crew coach this spring. Kat completed her undergraduate degree in accounting at Ramapo College of New Jersey, where she worked as a rowing coach for the Nereid Boat Club in Rutherford, leading their first women’s varsity quad to Youth Nationals, along with a women’s varsity single. After college Kat gained experience in accounting at Withum, Smith + Brown, PC in Whippany, as well as a rowing coach for Gippsland Grammar during a year abroad in Australia. Prior to coming to Blair, Kat worked at Fordham University as a women’s head rowing coach and at RowAmerica Rye as assistant rowing coach.

View directions to athletic events. To read recaps about past events, go to the "Team News" tab above.

View photos from the 2021 season on Blair's Photoshelter.