Colin Tierney didn’t have a shortage of solid cross country performances this season. But the Hendricken junior saved his best for the end.

Tierney led the Hawks at the New England Championships in Maine, finishing in 14th place overall. His work, combined with the next four Hendricken runners across the finish line, was enough to lift the Hawks to a New England title.

“Going out there, our job was to run with each other and go for the title,” Tierney said.

The showing at the New England meet came on the heels of solid races at both the Class A Meet and the Rhode Island state championship. In both races, Hendricken won the title, and Tierney was a big reason why.

He finished in sixth at the Class Meet and fifth at the State Meet.

“He works hard, and the most important thing to him has always been the team,” Hendricken head coach Jim Doyle said. “I think he’s learned from my nephew Conor and Tyler Henseler and Alex Doherty, the seniors that are leaving. He has it in his mind to continue that tradition. He knows how important that is.”

On a team filled with consistent runners, Tierney was perhaps the most consistent. He wasn’t always first on the team, but he was usually close to it, adding valuable points to the total.

Along with Doherty, Conor Doyle, Henseler, Collin Manning, Michael Potter and Greg Beaudette, Hendricken developed a solid group of runners who pushed each other and, more importantly, succeeded because of it.

“It’s really good,” Tierney said. “It leaves leeway. As much as you’re a team, you want to strive to run faster than your teammates to help out your team. It’s always an in-team competition among us. It allows us to excel.”

With another year left in his high school career, Tierney has set lofty goals. Already a standout in both indoor and outdoor track as well as cross country, he’s been training with the hope of leading Hendricken to another crown, and picking up some hardware of his own along the way.

“He’ll be in the mix for the state championship,” Doyle said. “That’s his goal, to win an individual state title for cross country. He’ll be right in the thick of things. He has the ability and the mind to do it.”