PITTSFIELD - The depth of the Division 2 girls field at the Western Massachusetts Cross Country Championships Saturday led Holyoke Catholic coach John Goda to believe his team could finish anywhere from second to sixth.

The Gaels' best runner did not have her best day, yet the team earned second place behind two-time champ Mount Greylock which cruised with 38 points on the 3.1-mile course at Berkshire Community College.

Holyoke Catholic finished with 112, Lenox placed third with 115 and Cathedral was fourth with 127.

"We didn't have our best day because Staci (Rezendes) struggled but the rest of the kids picked it up," Goda said. "That was great."

The Gaels placed third last season which snapped a four-year run in the top two.

"We had to stay strong," senior Jenn Cardinal said. "We weren't going to give it up to anyone. Last year was rough and we wanted to do better."

Cardinal was 39th last year in her first sectional championship. She led the Gaels Saturday with an eighth-place finish in 20 minutes, 18.83 seconds.

"I wanted to do really good this year and make it to states for the first time," Cardinal said. "I feel I'm part of the (Holyoke Catholic) tradition."

Rezendes placed 15th in 20:57.14 but it was the work of Sarah Jones, Audrey Boraski and Sarah Dingee which sealed the Gaels' finish. Jones finished 18th in 21:12.86, Boraski placed 32nd in 22:04 and Dingee was 41st in 22:30.73.

Sophomore Natalie Mako of Frontier Regional was the top local finisher, placing fifth in 20:12.25. Classmate and teammate Amy Graham was 17th (21:10.19). The Red Hawks finished sixth with 152 points.

"I've got a lot of experience," Mako said. "I know how to prepare and what I should be doing and how to heal after the race and recuperate. I've learned a lot from the people on my team and my coaches."

Brittany Dalton and Julie Roberts led Hampshire Regional to fifth place with 135 points.

"I was happy," Dalton said. "I was proud of all of them."

Dalton finished 10th in 20:32.08 while Roberts was 12th in 20:52.79.

"I had a pretty good run," Roberts said. "I'm generally not a strong finisher but I finished strong today."

Abigail Imelio placed 13th in 20:53.48 to lead Granby to ninth with 263 points.

Division 2 boys

Mount Greylock had 81 points to win the boys championship. Lenox finished second with 112 and Monument Mountain third with 127.

Hampshire placed seventh (171) followed by Holyoke Catholic (181) and Frontier (266).

Ryan Thornhill was 14th in 17:35.43 and Ian Barber 18th in 17:46.11 for Hampshire.

Sam Powell placed 19th in 17:47.91 for the Gaels.

Caleb Chapley finished 15th in 17:39.34 for the Red Hawks.

Mike Moran can be reached at mmoran@gazettenet.com.