Levi Miller of Belfast and Molly Balentine of Hampden are among the cross country athletes who will compete at today’s New England Boys and Girls Cross Country Championships in New Hampshire.

The competition will be held at Derry Field Park in Manchester, N.H. The girls race starts at 11:30 a.m., followed by the boys at 12:30.

The Maine field of 25 boys and 25 girls is comprised of the champion in each classification and the next top 21 finishers in the four classes combined.

Maine high schools do not compete for team championships, according to Maine Principals’ Association rules.

Other top boys who qualified are Matt Dunlap of Mt. Blue in Farmington, Joey DeWitt and Corey DeWitt of Ellsworth, Benjamin Demerchant (Fort Fairfield), Waterville’s Christopher Filteau, Chris Blackstone of Presque Isle, and Sumner of East Sullivan’s Ryan O’Keefe.

The top local girls include Jolene Belanger and Casey Dunn of Bangor, Balentine’s teammates Amanda Gervasi and Molly Peverada, John Bapst of Bangor’s Maddy Glover and Nicole Lavertu, Lily Hanstein of Mt. Blue, Old Town’s Sharon Fuller, Shauna Lynch of Ellsworth, and Shead of Eastport’s Helen Pottle.

New England Cross Country

Championships

Boys qualifiers

Ben True (Greely), Levi Miller (Belfast), Brandon Bonsey (Falmouth), Eric Giddings (South Portland), Casey Diehl (Greely), Matt Dunlap (Mt. Blue), Ayalew Taye (Portland), Joey Dewitt (Ellsworth), Benjamin Demerchant (Fort Fairfield), Christopher Filteau (Waterville), Chris Blackstone (Presque Isle), Jason Heath (Bonny Eagle), Matthew Ginn (Cheverus), Alex Farrell (Morse), Mark Page (Cheverus), Miles Bartlett (Lake Region), Ryan O’Keefe (Sumner), Evan Embrey (Bonny Eagle), Spencer Troot (Richmond), Dan Crosson (Greely), Joe Roy-Mayhew (Deering), Corey Dewitt (Ellsworth), Tim Waterhouse (Scarborough), Mickey Rose (York), John Forcella (Falmouth)

Girls qualifiers

Elise Moody-Roberts (Cape Elizabeth), Jesse Wilcox (Mount Ararat), Beth Wilcox (Mount Ararat), Chelsea Jordan (York), Molly Balentine (Hampden), Jolene Belanger (Bangor), Amy Brooks (Lincoln Academy), Maddy Glover (John Bapst), Casey Dunn (Bangor), Amanda Gervasi (Hampden), Jess Violette (Sanford), Allison St. Jeanos (Sanford), Kaitlyn Saldahna (Scarborogh), Lily Hanstein (Mt. Blue), Whitney DeSena (Cape Elizabeth), Sharon Fuller (Old Town), Christie Kapothanasis (Cheverus), Lacey Cartier (Lincoln Academy), Claire Egan (Cape Elizabeth), Nicole Lavertu (John Bapst), Shauna Lynch (Ellsworth), Kalie Dunn (Yarmouth), Molly Peverasa (Hampden), Helen Pottle (Shead), Dani Suchoff-O’Rourke (Freeport)

Recent history on Tigers’ side

Dexter High has had some impressive athletic successes this season, but one group of Dexter boys has been winning for the past three years.

Over the past three seasons, Tiger golfers Matt Murray, Skye Dillon, and Brett Towle have been the medalists in 22 of the team’s 29 dual-meet matches.

That’s translated into three straight Class C state titles for the Dexter golf team.

“They’ve put in a lot of hard work and dedication,” said coach Gary Rees, who knows something about that himself.

Rees, the pro at Dexter Municipal Golf Course, just completed his third season coaching the Tigers. He came from Greely High in Cumberland Center, where he coached for 27 years and won three Class A state crowns and three more in Class B after the team changed classifications in 1991.

Rees said his Class C triple makes it a state record for number of championships won by a coach in each class.

“I just feel I owe them an awful lot,” Rees said. “I’m the coach and I’m supposed to be the one who helps them. But they’ve given me a lot, too.”

Murray and Dillon worked at the golf course in Dexter this summer, so they were around for him to give them pointers. Towle wasn’t employed at the course, Rees said, but spent a lot of time there. The coach estimated the boys played six days a week.

Dillon and Towle are both seniors and so won’t be back next year, but Murray has some big goals for the 2004 season.

“He’s already talking about 4-for-4,” Rees said.

Jessica Bloch can be reached at 990-8193, 1-800-310-8600, or jbloch@bangordailynews.net