Cross-country coaches were born to beat the clock. There’s not a second that goes by that they wouldn’t like to just reach out … grab one … and crunch it. In fact, just the mere thought of trimming even a tenth of a tick off one itsy-bitsy second will find them urging their stopwatches to “make my day!”

Dennis Cullinane is no different.  The Deerfield Academy girls cross country coach   packs a stopwatch, too, and when it comes to getting his charges to cram more distance into less time, he’s become one of the best in the business in the New England prep school ranks. As for making predictions on his clockwork, well, that’s another story. For that, Cullinane relies on a different timepiece – a calendar.

“I’ve been coaching here for six years now,” said Cullinane, “and after my first year,” a year in which the Big Green finished ninth at the New England Championships, “I felt it would take us five years to make it to the top.”

Well, bingo! It’s been five years since his self-imposed countdown to the top began and there’s Deerfield, right where Cullinane said it would be: No. 1.

To his credit, it would appear as though the Deerfield mentor was able to get each and every one of his runners to buy into his quest to be best during that five-year span, as Cullinane’s clans never encountered a single speed bump as they churned their way toward the top rung. Following that ninth-place finish in 2007, his girls placed eighth the next year. In 2009, they finished sixth. From there, it’s been a steady trip to the medals podium. In 2010, Deerfield placed third, last year, it was second, and now, it’s No. 1.   

“I’m not a bit surprised that we won the title,” said Cullinane of the school’s first blue ribbon ever garnered from the New England Prep School Athletic Conference Division I Girls Cross Country Championships, “but I am surprised by the magnitude of the win.”

What Cullinane meant by the magnitude of the win was the margin of victory. The Big Green literally ran away with this crowning achievement and never looked back. Like golf, low score wins here, too. So when Deerfield pulled in with 39 points, Choate was left to fight off the rest of the field by finishing a distant second, 69 points behind at 108. Phillips Exeter wound up third with 132 points.

“I was situated about 500 meters into the (5 kilometer) race course taking pictures,” explained Cullinane, and what he saw coming at him that day will remain with him – pictures or no pictures – for quite some time. “I remember watching a wall of green and white uniforms leading the pack … it was an awesome sight,” added the proud mentor, “and I knew if our kids could maintain their positions, this race would be over early.”

Well, they did, and it was. The Big Green, which played bridesmaid in this event last year, finishing second to Nobles, was this year’s bride. Deerfield proved to be a runaway bride as well, as it placed four runners in the top 10 and six in the top 15 during the title trek, which was hosted by Loomis-Chaffee School. Deerfield’s dominance at the front end of the race allowed it to put this showcase on ice before 20 of a field of 98 runners had made it to the finish line.

“I was expecting our kids to put on a real solid effort and, barring something totally unexpected, like an injury, I was very confident of a victory, but I must say I wasn’t expecting the dominance we showed,” said Cullinane. “That’s simply because each and every one of these girls dug down and came up with their best effort of the season. And as a cross country coach, that’s exactly the way you want it … saving the best for last.”

With the sound of the starter’s pistol, Cullinane’s duties as coach could now be refocused on becoming the team’s primary cheerleader and some of his sis … boom … bahs had to be directed toward another Cullinane, his niece, Devinne Cullinane (14). No nepotism here, however. This Cullinane could run for Joe Shmoe and still be the leader of the pack, as witnessed by what she’s done at Deerfield the past two years.

The latest feat by this two-time winner of the Moreau Hunt Trophy, which is annually presented to the team’s most valuable runner, was a third-place finish in this fall’s New England classic in a time of 18:22, just 1:05 off the gold-medal pace. That’s up five slots from her eighth-place finish last year. In fact, the New England race marked the first time this fall Cullinane was positioned to watch someone’s backside cross the finish line in front of her. That’s because she was undefeated entering this showdown, having won both the Canterbury and Westminster Invitational meets as well as a clean sweep through her dual meets.  

 Lilah Lutes (14) was right on Cullinane’s heels, finishing fourth in 18:26, while Phoebe Morss (15) was eighth at 18:44 and Emma Decamp (13) was 10^th in 18:47. Tatum McInerney (13) and Molly Hunt (14), meanwhile, were 14^th and 15^th with respective times of 19:14 and 19:19.

“Running for my uncle really isn’t any different than running for my father,” admitted the younger Cullinane, who is just one in a long line of family members who runs. “They both have a knack of bringing out the best in you.

“My dad, who spent a lot of time coaching me during my younger years, and my mom, both ran in college. My dad ran cross country, while my mom was a marathoner and has run the Boston Marathon a number of times,” added the younger Cullinane, who broke into the sport when she was 5, which is about 11 years ago, now.

Being the youngest of six siblings, “I had five older brothers,” explained Cullinane, who owes much of her early running experience to the weekend fun runs that were held around her Hampton, N.H., hometown. “But always finishing last to your five older brothers took the fun part out of it,” quipped Cullinane.

Fortunately for uncle Dennis, who is a former state high school cross country champion and Boston Globe All-Scholastic Team member who later ran for the University of Maryland, Devinne has progressed from worst in her house to one of the best in New England.

“I’m extremely proud of her,” said the elder Cullinane, “but then again, I’m proud of all the girls … cross country is a team sport.”

Cullinane, who went into this fall’s showdown having stated that “this is the best cross country team Deerfield has ever had,” was so confident in his team’s talent and depth, he listed three possible scenarios this New England showcase could take – and had Deerfield prevailing in all three.

“The best-case scenario was that we won by scoring in the 40s,” explained Cullinane. “The middle-case scenario was we finished in the 60-point range and the worst-case scenario was that we finished in the 80s. But even then, I still felt we had the talent and the depth to prevail. To win with 39 points and to win by 69 points, though … I was shocked by those numbers.”

He shouldn’t have been. He welcomed back all but one of his primary runners from last year’s silver-medal club. In addition, heading into this fall’s title trek, Deerfield had enjoyed its second consecutive undefeated regular season.  Plus, it had defeated all comers in the prestigious Canterbury Invitational Meet for the third straight year and captured the Westminster Invitational as well.

As for future prognostications, this Big Green mentor may want to quit while he’s ahead. But one thing’s for sure: after finishing ninth, eighth, sixth, third, second and first in his quest to be best, “We’ve finally run out of wiggle room,” quipped Cullinane.

Big Green girls cross country coach Dennis Cullinane isn’t the least bit shy in explaining his interpretation of why his runners have been doing so well so far this season.

“This is the best girls cross country team Deerfield Academy has had since the school went coed back in 1989,” said Cullinane.

In other words, the veteran mentor is saying this is the best girls cross country team Deerfield has ever had, and although he has only been here for six of those years, there’s plenty of evidence to back up his sentiment – evidence that would include some hardware already earned this fall. 

What really brings Cullinane’s opinion into focus, however, is the fact that his squad finished second at the New England Championships last year, “and we have everyone returning from that team.”

 Getting the current season off and running by capturing the Canterbury Invitational – which annually boats a 25-team field – for the third consecutive year certainly won’t hurt expectations any. Then, one week later, they lugged the Westminster Invitational trophy home with them after successfully defending their title in that 10-team affair.

This is not the only girls team that is enjoying success so far this fall, however, as the school’s other three programs have also been ringing up way more wins than losses and if this trend continues, the Big Green could be sending all four of its girls teams into tourney play for the first time ever.

“I think the goal of any athletic director is to be competitive in every sport,” said Chip Davis, the school’s AD, “It’s always nice to have those one or two teams that are considered to be the frontrunners but ideally, it’s great to see the wide-spread competitive success we’re enjoying so far this fall … especially from our girls teams”

 Heading into this weekend’s action, Deerfield’s other three girls squads (field hockey is 7-3, soccer is 6-3 and volleyball is 5-3) are enjoying great starts and most of the boys teams are doing well, too. The Big Green’s defending New England champion water polo team currently stands at 11-3, cross country has won the coveted Canterbury crown and placed second at the Westminster race. The soccer team (3-5-1) has rebounded from an 0-4 start to go 3-1-1, while football “has been ravaged by injuries this season,” said Davis, and has played a big part in a 1-3 start. Despite the injuries, which include a broken foot to quarterback Damien Vega, the Big Green has hung tough, dropping a 27-26 decision to Taft and a 21-14 game to Hotchkiss.

“We’ve got a big D on our front and a big target on our back,” quipped Cullinane, but it’s no laughing matter, especially for Deerfield’s opponents. His team, which went undefeated during the regular season and has bested about 28 teams during that streak, isn’t about to sneak up on anyone with that sort of resume.

Cullinane’s niece, Devinne Cullinane (14), has made him proud. After placing sixth at last year’s New England meet, she has shown this year that that was no fluke, winning at Canterbury in a time of 19:41, and was first to finish at Westminster as well.

Even with such solid foes as Exeter, Andover and Northfield Mount Hermon still remaining on the schedule, Cullinane feels he has the depth for his squad to continue its winning ways hopefully to and through the New England Championships.

That depth includes senior tri-captains Tatum McInerney, Rose Fisher and Dashiell Shulte, as well as Emma DeCamp (13), Molly Hunt (14), Lilah Lutes (14), Olivia Mehm (14), Kyle Davis (14), Lauren Isley (17) and Phoebe Morss (15).

Boys Cross Country

After finishing second at the New England Cross Country Championships the past two years, the Big Green boys are hoping to make it up that last rung of the ladder this fall to give Deerfield its first boys and girls sweep of the championship in school history.

All the pieces were in place, as coach Mike Schloat lost just one of his top five runners to graduation. He had the horses up front and the depth as well this fall to allow this Deerfield mentor to be thinking  “this could be the year.” Those hopes and dreams were put on hold, however, shortly after the Canterbury race when Reed Horton (14), Deerfield’s No. 4 runner who placed 11th at the invitational, developed a stress fracture in his leg a few days later.

“He will have an X-ray taken next week,” explained Cullinane. “If it has healed, he could probably make it back in time for the New England meet. If it’s not, it’s doubtful he would have enough time to get himself back in running shape for the championship race … we should know by Wednesday.

With Horton on the sidelines, the Big Green may not end up with enough points to finish on top or to even finish second for a third consecutive year. With three weeks remaining until show time, however, it’s so far … so good.

That’s because Deerfield’s one … two … three punch has been pretty much finishing one  … two … three. Robert Beit (13) placed second at Canterbury (16:38), while he won the Westminster race in a meet record time of 16:55. Ben Wood (13) and George Reich (13), who, along with Teddy Romeyn (13), serve as tri-captains, have also been chipping in. Wood was fifth at both Canterbury and Westminster, while Reich was seventh at Canterbury and third at Westminster.

“With Horton in the lineup at No. 4, he helps bridge the gap to our second wave of runners,” explained Schloat. That second wave consists of Ethan Brand-LaBarge (16), Romeyn, Gene Thagard 915) and Warner Brown (13).

Field Hockey

If there is one thing you can count on during the fall at Deerfield Academy, it’s that the Big Green field hockey team will earn a berth in the playoffs. This program, which has captured six Western New England titles over two decades of playing time, has extended its season on 16 occasions. And from the looks of things, another invite should be in the mail soon.

The Big Green has won eight of its first 10 games and outscored its opponents by a 3-to-1 margin: 31-10.

“We’ve gotten off to a terrific start and I just hope it continues,” said coach Kristen Viega. “We’re a young team … we have only five seniors on the roster … but the few seniors we do have, have shown great leadership and have helped instill confidence in the younger players and made this a very determined team. “

Three Big Green players have collected two-thirds of Deerfield’s goals this season. Mettler Growney (13) has 12 points on eight goals and four assists, while Lucy Lytle (15) has six goals and three assists for nine points.  Maggie Shilling (14), meanwhile, has eight points on seven goals and one assist.

Things have been going quite well down at the other end of the field as well, as goalie Katherine Heaney (16) has allowed just 10 goals in 10 games.

The rookie netminder has received a great deal of help from her defensive corps in front of her, which includes Emily Yue (16), Louisa Hanson (13), Julia Hamilton (14) and Lindsey Ziglar (13).

Girls Soccer

The Big Green has scored just 18 goals in nine games so far this season, but they are making them count. The Deerfield girls soccer team has already won more games this season than it did during the entire 2011 campaign. A year ago, the team finished at 5-6-3. This year, it’s off to a 6-3 start, thanks in large part to a defense allowed just 13 goals for a stingy 1.44 goals against average.

“We’ve really got a great team here this year,” said Heidi Valk. “We’ve got a good blend of veterans and a bunch of new kids who are really chipping in and making their presence known and the blend has been really paying off for us … the entire team is playing with much more confidence this season.”

Tally Behringer (14) has been the Big Green’s leading goal getter this fall with six, while Vanessa Avalone (13), Claire Goss (13) and Mercedes Fissore-O’Leary have also helped bolster the Deerfield offense.

Goaltender Libby Murray (14) has orchestrated Deerfield’s stingy defense by registering a pair of shutouts and allowed just a single goal in four other outings and has come up with an average of seven saves a game.  She has been ably assisted by some strong defensive play by Cate Wadman (13), Julia Fissore-O’Leary (15), Caroline Coppinger (15) and Allie Roberts (16).

“We’ve beaten some pretty strong soccer programs this season in Exeter, Milton and Williston,” said Valk, “and that’s helped build our confidence. We’ve still got a long way to go and a bunch of tough teams remain on our schedule, but we’ll see how far our talent and confidence will take us.”

Volleyball

Deerfield’s volleyball team has rung up a 5-3 record so far this season and appears to be taking advantage of a strong corps of returning veterans and a bunch of capable newcomers.

The top returnees are Hannah Insuik (13), who earned Boston Globe All-Scholastic honors for her play around the net last season. Plus, she also earned a berth on the Western New England All-Star squad, along with Ashley So (13).  With those two leading the way on the Big Green side of the net, Caroline Dye (14) has also returned to the fold, as has Kate Ginna (14). Some of the younger faces who have been contributing so far belong to Zahra Rawji (15), Claire Collins (15) and Maggie Kidder (16).

“This is a great bunch of kids to work with,” said coach Jon Pineo, “they really work hard, they’re focused. We still have a lot of things to work on, but they’re showing more and more improvement every time they head out onto the court.”

Last year’s squad which won just seven games during the regular season earned an invite to the A Division tournament, so this year’s edition should have a good chance as well as it enters the home stretch.

“They take the top eight teams in each of the brackets,” said Pineo, “and right now, I’d say we’re probably ranked sixth or seventh in the standings.”

Water Polo

“We’re still working to be at our best when it counts the most,” said Big Green water polo coach Mark Scandling of a program that has exhibited that trait quite frequently over the past few years. Over the past few years, Scandling has gotten his teams to just about walk on water as they have won two straight New England championships and four of the past five crowns and with an 11-3 record on the season, opponents better have their lifeguards on duty when the Big Green shows up.

“We’ve been improving primarily because of our commitment to team defense,” said Scandling, “and I think we demonstrated that sense of purpose in defeating Choate a couple of weeks ago. During the first game of the season, we allowed them to score 13 goals on us. In our second meeting this season, they scored just five.”

Overall, Deerfield’s defense has stood up to its opponents, allowing 116 goals in 15 games for an average of eight per game The Big Green offense, meanwhile, has found the back of the net 150 times. The guys in the green caps have reached double figures in 10 of their 14 contests, while opponents have reached that mark just five times, and only once in the past eight outings.

A trio of players has been defending the Deerfield goal this season, “and doing it very effectively,” according to their coach. Those three are Francesco Franzinetti (14), Patrick Hadley (14) and Tyler Early. A newcomer, Hugo Marsans (14) “has been playing excellent defense at the 2-meter position for us this season,” said Scandling.

Leading Deerfield’s high-powered offense this season has been Oscar Miao (13), Quinn Smith (14) and Conor Sullivan (15).

Boys Soccer

The Big Green boys soccer team hits the half-way mark heading in the right direction. It didn’t start out that way, however, as an 0-4 beginning had “long season” written all over it. Following a tough 4-3 loss to perennial powerhouse Kent, however, interim coach Tom Heise, who is filling in for Jan Flaska this fall, got his charges to make a U-turn in south-bound traffic and got them heading in a northerly direction.

That means Deerfield has run off a 3-1-1 showing so far in the month of October, the highlight of which being a stunning 3-2 victory over defending New England champion Hotchkiss, “and we haven’t beaten them in quite some time,” said Heise. Jackson Dayton (13) the team’s leading scorer, led the way to the upset with a pair of goals on the day, while Luke Walsh (13) scored the game winner. Andrew Shediac (13), meanwhile, turned in an outstanding performance in goal for the Big Green.

Others contributing up front for Deerfield have been Stephen Baisch (14) and Zz Salvador (14), while Adam Philie (13) heads up the defensive crew.

“I’m really proud of this entire team,” said Heise. “They’re just a wonderful group of kids and it’s been a tremendous thrill for me to have been able to coach them.

“They’re a hard-working bunch as well, “ added Heise, ”and I think that hard work is beginning to pay off.”

Football

What began as a promising season following a commanding 33-7 victory over arch-rival Northfield Mount Hermon School, has dipped to a 1-3 showing at the halfway mark as this Deerfield squad has been besieged by a rash of injuries.

Despite the loss of players, the victories haven’t come easy for the Big Green’s opponents. It lost to Taft by a 27-26 margin in what Chip Davis, the team’s defensive coordinator described as “our best played game of the season.” Then came a loss to Hotchkiss by a 21-14 count.

The biggest loss of the season was quarterback Damien Vega (13) who suffered a broken foot against Taft and will miss the remainder of the season.

As far as Saturday’s game at Exeter (4-0 on the season), Deerfield will head into the game without any official captains suiting up. Both co-captains – linebacker and fullback Ray Horgan (13) and linebacker and center JR Mastro (13) – are on the shelf with knee and shoulder injuries respectively.

Billy Smith (13), who is primarily a receiver but who played quarterback in high school has filled in for Vega at quarterback, while John Jackson (14) has proven to be the Big Green’s leading rusher.

The countdown for the Deerfield Academy girls cross-country team continues.

Over the past five seasons, the Big Green girls have inched closer and closer to the top step of the medals podium at the New England Prep School Cross Country Championships.

In 2007, Deerfield finished ninth in the pack. The next year, the girls were eighth, followed by a sixth-place finish in 2009. Then, in 2010, Deerfield wound up third to qualify for a bronze medal and its first podium stop. This year, the Big Green took one more step up, finishing second and capturing a silver medal.

But that’s no second-place smile you see on coach Dennis Cullinane’s face in the team photo.

“Runners are never happy,” said Cullinane. “I felt we should have won the race and the girls felt the same way. I’m very proud of them for finishing second, but we all feel as though we could have done just a little bit better.”

Nobles led the pack with 16 points, while Deerfield ended up a distant second with 37 points. Loomis finished third, while Exeter and Hotchkiss wound up fourth and fifth respectively.

The difference in finishing first and second for the Big Green was that one of its runners was forced to drop out due to breathing problems, while another posted her worst finish of the season. “Unfortunately, if both runners had been able to run their typical race, we would have won the crown easily,” explained Cullinane

And so, Deerfield’s countdown continues for that elusive gold, “but I’d rather be defending our first title next year than still chasing it,” quipped Cullinane.

Leading the way for the Big Green, which prepped for the championship race by posting the first undefeated regular season (5-0) showing in school history, was Alanna McDonough ’12, who placed second, while Devinne Cullinane ’14 was eighth. Lilah Lutes ’14 was 14^th, as Olivia Mehm ’14 wound up 32^nd.  Rose Fisher ’13 wound up 42^nd, with Carlie Enzerra ’14 ending up 45^th.

Cullinane was the recipient of this year’s Moreau Hunt Award, while the Big Green will have tri-captains next fall. They will be Tatum McInerney ’13, Dashiell Schulte ’13 and Fisher.

“We feel good about our chances of finally reaching the top next year,” said Cullinane. “Alanna (McDonough) is the only primary runner we’re losing to graduation, so if our returning nucleus can continue improving and we’re able to get a couple of the top recruits we’ve been looking at, I think we’ll be in pretty good shape.