Mount Greylock senior Rafa Mellow-Bartels posted a 10th-place finish.
ADAMS, Mass. -- An eight-mile, mostly uphill climb to the the highest point in the commonwealth is enough of a challenge for any runner.
For Mount Greylock Regional School senior Rafael Mellow-Bartels, Sunday brought another problem.
"I think, for me, the main challenge was just running without anybody around me," Mellow-Bartels said after completing the 48th annual Mount Greylock Road Race.
"It was kind of foggy for the last two miles, so I couldn't see anybody. I had my watch, so I knew how far I was, and I knew my pace. But I didn't know where anybody else was. I think that was the challenge for me."
Mellow-Bartels may have to get used to those times when no one can match his pace.
On Sunday, he averaged 8 minutes, 41 seconds per mile over the 8-mile course to finish in 1:09.28, good for 10th place overall and first in his group, men 19 and under.
The race saw 176 runners post a time, with finishes ranging from just more than an hour to just less than three hours.
Erik Vandendries of Chestnut Hill was the first person across the finish line at the summit, clocking a time of 1:00:29, 20 seconds ahead of runner-up Steven Brightman of Providence, R.I.
The first woman to hit the tape was Huntington, Vt.s, Kasie Enman in 1:05:15. Turners Falls' Liv Lohmeier was the second woman to finish the race in 1:11:17.
The top Berkshire County runner on Sunday was Frederick King (1:06:44) of Housatonic in seventh place. Williamstown's Sarah Rowe (1:24:05) was the fastest county woman.
Four Mount Greylock cross country team members competed in Sunday's race "for training and for fun," Mellow-Bartels said. Last fall, he and teammate Patrick Holland helped the Mounties finish eighth in the Division 3 State Championship meet; this year's high school season gets underway on Saturday at Berkshire Community College.
"I wouldn't say I had a goal coming into [Sunday's race]," Mellow-Bartels said. "It was the first time doing this, just doing it to have some fun with some of my teammates. ... I was aiming for an hour and 15 minutes. I ran an hour and nine minutes. So I think that's a good outcome."
Photos from this race to come.
The top 10 finishers plus Berkshire County runners on Sunday included:
1. Erik Vandendries, 1 hour, 29 seconds; 2. Steve Brightman, 1:00:49; 3. Michael Narcisi, 1:03:05; 4. Adam Cook, 1:03:13; 5. Ben Taska, 1:03:24; 6. Kasie Enman, 1:05:15; 7. Frederick King, Housatonic, 1:06:44; 8. Raphael Bruno, Pittsfield, 1:07:02; 9. John Beaver, 1:07:18; 10. Rafa Mellow-Bartels, Williamstown, 1:09:28; 17. Ian Nesbitt, Clarksburg, 1:14:37; 25. Patrick Holland, Williamstown, 1:18:02; 25. Luke Irwin, Williamstown, 1:18:11; 27. Boaz Slater Lee, Williamstown, 1:18:23; 34. Jonathan Igoe, Williamstown, 1:20:32; 44. Adam Howland, North Adams, 1:23:09; 52. Sarah Rowe, Williamstown, 1:24:05; 57. Daniel Wheeler, Lanesborough, 1:25:07; 65. Christine Tower, North Adams, 1:28:00; 66. Carmel Kushi, Pittsfield, 1:28:07; 67. Kelly Maginnis, Pittsfield, 1:28:18; 68. Allison Mead, Dalton, 1:28:23; 82. Amanda King, Great Barrington, 1:33:03; 84. Christine Arace, Pittsfield, 1:33:08; 110. Brandee Nelson, Great Barrington, 1:41:27; 122. Melissa Canata, Lanesborough, 1:45:34; 123. Robert Markwith, Pittsfield, 1:45.53; 124. Kristie McLaughlin, Sandisfield, 1:46:04; 128. Leanne Curran, Lee, 1:46:41; 130. Megan Tucker, Dalton, 1:47:47; 137. Kelly Ott, Pittsfield, 1:50.06; 143. Wendy Zunitch, Pittsfield, 153.03; 145. Kate Meierdiercks, Otis, 1:53.40; 162. Tony Riello, Pittsfield, 2:02:29; 166. Todd Hamilton, North Adams, 2:09:03; 167. Donna Palma, Pittsfield, 2:09:10; 175. Sara Markwith-Padgett, Pittsfield, 2:58:36.
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A Rare Bird: Koperniak Stands Out in Triple-A
By Frank MurtaughThe Memphis (Tenn.) Flyer
With Major League Baseball’s September roster expansion just around the corner, Berkshire County baseball fans will be watching to see whether 2016 Hoosac Valley High School graduate Matt Koperniak gets the call from the St. Louis Cardinals. Heading into Tuesday night’s action, Koperniak had 125 hits this summer for the Cards’ Triple A affiliate, the Memphis (Tenn.) Redbirds. He is hitting .309 this season with 17 home runs. In his minor league career, he has a .297 batting average with 56 homers after being signed as a free agent by St. Louis out of Trinity College in 2020. This week, sportswriter Frank Murtaugh of the Memphis Flyer profiled Koperniak for that publication. Murtaugh’s story appears here with the Flyer’s permission.
MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- I’ve interviewed professional baseball players for more than two decades. There are talented players who, honestly, aren’t that interesting away from the diamond. They’re good ballplayers, and baseball is what they know. There are also very interesting baseball players who aren’t all that talented. Now and then, though, you find yourself in the home team’s dugout at AutoZone Park with a very good baseball player who has a very interesting story to share. Like the Memphis Redbirds’ top hitter this season, outfielder Matt Koperniak.
That story? It began on Feb. 8, 1998, when Koperniak was born in London. (Koperniak played for Great Britain in the 2023 World Baseball Classic.) “My dad was in the military,” explains Koperniak. “He was in Italy for a bit, then England. But I have no memories of that time.” Matt and his family moved back to the States — to Adams, Mass. — before his third birthday.
Koperniak played collegiately at Division III Trinity College in Connecticut, part of the New England Small College Athletic Conference. He hit .394 as a junior in 2019, but beating up on the likes of Tufts and Wesleyan doesn’t typically catch the eye of major-league scouts. When the coronavirus pandemic wiped out his senior season, Koperniak received an extra year of eligibility but, having graduated with a degree in biology, he chose to sign as a free agent with the St. Louis Cardinals.
“I’ve always loved baseball,” says Koperniak, “and it’s helped me get places, including a good school. My advisor — agent now — was able to get me into pro ball, so here we are.” He played in a few showcases as well as for the North Adams SteepleCats in the New England Collegiate Baseball League, enough to convince a Cardinal scout he was worth that free agent offer.
The Redbirds hosted Memphis Red Sox Night on Aug. 10, the home team taking the field in commemorative uniforms honoring the Bluff City’s Negro Leagues team of the 1930s and ’40s. Luken Baker (the franchise’s all-time home run leader) and Jordan Walker (the team’s top-ranked prospect) each slammed home runs in a Memphis win over Gwinnett, but by the final out it had become Matt Koperniak Night at AutoZone Park. He drilled a home run, a triple, and a single, falling merely a double shy of hitting for the cycle. It was perfectly Koperniak: Outstanding baseball blended into others’ eye-catching heroics.
“It’s trying to do the little things right,” he emphasizes, “and being a competitor. The Cardinals do a great job of getting us to play well-rounded baseball. Everybody has the same mindset: How can I help win the next game? You gotta stay in attack mode to be productive.”
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