BURLINGTON — An afternoon that began with members of the White River Valley track and field team singing the national anthem did not end on quite the perfect note for the Wildcats dream of a fourth consecutive state title in girls track.

But strong performances, largely from athletes who can return, and a surge in program participation leaves optimism going forward for the Wildcats.

White River Valley finished third with 73 points as Peoples Academy narrowly bested Bellows Falls for the Division III state crown.

After losing three-event winner Amara Calhum-Flowers to graduation, the Wildcats didn’t quite build up the level of points needed for a repeat and saw less point opportunities in the larger field to a year prior. With Division 4 not featuring enough schools to hold a state meet, the combined 25 team field left less spots for qualifiers.

“We recruited a lot of new people, have a lot of people to get onboard,” White River Valley coach David Mattern said. “To be honest, I’m just as excited for this year, with this group. To have your best performance at the state meet is really the goal and we did that across the board so I couldn’t be prouder.”

Cassandra Armstrong shone brightest for the Wildcats, sweeping all three of her individual events with wins in the 100 and 200 meters and a successful defense of her pole vault championship. The junior also powered White River Valley to points with an impressive anchor leg in the 4x400 relay.

“For the 100, I just tried to build up as I went. I thought the second place girl (Bellows Falls’ Hadley Gleim) had me,” said Armstrong. “For pole vault, I did pretty well but I didn’t get a PR today, but that’s okay.

“For the 200, that was a season record, and I just did my best. I’m just praising God for all the wins today.”

Thrower Imari Taylor was the other major point producer on the day for the Wildcats, winning shot put and finishing second in discus while also finishing in points in javelin.

Thetford finished fifth, led by a pair of distance wins from Ava Hayden and strong performance in hurdles from Maya Dixon.

Sharon finished ninth overall and second best amongst the schools who moved up from Division 4, powered by a win and runner-up finish in the high jump and long jump, respectively, from MaCallister Grey.

White River Valley will leave this season in a markedly different place from a year prior. In 2024, with hardly any new talent, the Wildcats defended their title but Mattern was unsure of numbers going forward. Now, with a roster of close to 40 athletes across both genders and two champions in Armstrong and Taylor returning, optimism is high for the future.

Also in that roster? Singers. With the bluetooth receptors at the Burlington High School facilities on the fritz, Andrew Champagne, Andrew Fors, Aubrey MacKenzie and Ella Lafromboise stepped up to deliver an a capella choral rendition of the national anthem.

“That was pretty cool,” Mattern said.

White River Valley will graduate just one individual finalist as they look to regain the crown in 2026.

“We did some recruiting, and next year, I think we’ll be back with a really strong team,” said Armstrong.