The Hopkinton High School boys cross country team might not have been expected to win the Tri-Valley League Showcase meet based on the head-to-head matchups, but the pre-meet prognostications did not matter once coach Laura McKenzie’s team started running.

“I think on paper, Ashland looked a little bit faster than us,” McKenzie said. “But the boys just raced. They raced hard, and that was the big difference.”

Hopkinton showed off its depth during that Oct. 19 meet in Wrentham, with all five runners turning in solid performances.

“I love when that happens,” McKenzie said. “It took all five of them, and we knew it would. They are mentally tough, you can’t really discount that.”

McKenzie admitted that the TVL Showcase was “nerve wracking.”

“You know they are giving it everything they have, and you hope it’s enough,” she said. “And it was.”

The win in the showcase meet is part of a strong fall campaign for the Hillers. Hopkinton captured the TVL title by winning its first four dual meets of the season, checking off one of the team’s major preseason goals.

Stephen Leighton and Sean Finnegan placed first and second in the showcase and have been two of the Hillers’ top runners all fall. Darian Leo and Cam Arnold are two more returning standouts who have been in Hopkinton’s top five throughout the season.

McKenzie figured she would have a strong team with so much experience coming back.

“You never know what you are going to get, but I think my team is strong and they are racing well,” she said. “Whenever I can get them to stop looking at their watches and just race, it comes together.”

This year’s team blends experience with young talent. Hopkinton has three freshmen — Matt Fitzgibbons, Lucas Arnold and Jack Cooper — in its top 10. Cooper won the freshman race at the showcase meet, and Avi Ghosh, another strong runner, captured first in the JV race.

Hopkinton placed sixth in the state divisional meet last fall, and a top-seven performance would land the Hillers back in the all-state meet. McKenzie said the team has exceeded even her lofty expectations and has focused on improving throughout the year.

“They want it, they want to win and do the best they can,” she said. “It’s been a good season. It’s been fun. But we still have more to do.”