The Wilbraham & Monson Academy Boys Cross Country team had one of its best seasons in school history, and with that came postseasons awards … lots and lots of awards.

Four runners – Jeff Zeng ’28, David Zhou ’26, Kayden Chhoun ’25 and Bruno Alvarez Camacho ’26 – were named to All-New England Prep School Athletic Council teams for 2024. WMA went undefeated during the regular season for the second straight year and won three invitationals before placing second at the New England Division III Championships in November.

“It was a very anticipated season,” Coach Danielle Vartabedian explained. “We knew coming into this season that we had a lot of potential for big things. Having ended last year on a high note, not graduating our main talent and also this year bringing in new talent, (we knew) we had the potential for major success. And we did. But what made these successes even sweeter was that we did it as a family. The guys are a close group, and they push each other.”

Quotes from Coach Vartabedian

Regarding Jeff, All-NEPSAC: “Jefferey was our new freshman, and he hit the ground running. He was not only our top runner most of the season, but he was humble, kind and always open to any advice that his teammates had to offer. Everyone was happy for him; he has a lot of potential.”

Regarding David, All-NEPSAC: “David has continuously shown improvement in every season of cross country and track. He has never stalled out or plateaued. It's amazing seeing his work ethic and his drive to succeed. He pushes himself at every practice and every meet until he finds out what his limits are, and then surpasses them. He is such a nice and generous person, always helping others, so when he got first for our team at champs and broke our 5K school record, everyone was happy for him.”

Regarding Kayden, All-NEPSAC Honorable Mention: “Kayden has been the top runner for our team for three years. He has also been a great leader, and is humble and hard working. He started off the season slower than normal and had to rediscover his fire. When he did, he was continuously dropping his times. By the time we got to champs, (when) it mattered the most, he ran an amazing time, and made the team and himself very proud.”

Regarding Bruno, All-NEPSAC Honorable Mention: “Bruno was new talent for us this year that we didn't expect. He was relatively new to running and ended up being a natural talent. Bruno was our No. 3 runner most of the season, but unfortunately was battling constant injury. We weren't sure if he would be able to compete in New Englands at his usual level. Lucky for us, he's got grit and was able to go out there the day of champs, dig deep and run the race of his life with an amazing personal record.”