By S. Quinn DeJoy and J. Murrer

Feb. 8, 2017:  At the New Balance Track and Field Center at The Armory on Saturday, the Bronxville boys' and girls' track and field teams swept the Class C Sectional Championships. The girls' team scored 187 points to second-place Valhalla's 74, and the boys' team outscored second-place Valhalla 123.5-62.5.

In the boys' middle distance races, the Rizzo double duo-twin brothers, Matt and Alex, won their respective races. Matt placed first in the 1000m with a personal record of 2:37, beating the competition by almost five seconds. Alex won the 1600m in 4:28, also a PR. Liam Siegal scored for the Broncos by placing fourth in the 1000m.

Seamus Watters contributed to the Bronco win by finishing first in the 55m hurdles, fourth in the 300m, and third in the 4x200 relay with teammates Jack Keifer, Tommy O'Connell, and Damien Meehan.

The Broncos scored points in all the relay events. In the 4x800m, the Rizzo brothers, Siegal, and Jack Kochanski placed second, and in the 4x400m, Nick O'Brien, Kevin Formato, Julian Thomet, and Griffin Kiefer placed sixth. 

The 4x800m relay team. Photo by C. Rizzo. 

Andrew Murray was Bronxville's highest scorer, winning the long jump 19' 8" and the triple jump 40' 9".  Both events were personal records. Murray also scored points by placing third in the 55m dash.

The Broncos had a good showing in field events with Luke Redman placing third in pole vault and teammate Damien Meehan finishing sixth. Meehan also placed third in the high jump. Avery Kane won the shot put and was third in the weight throw, and Tripp Judkins was right behind teammate Kane, placing second in the shot put and fourth in the weight throw.

Avery Kane throwing the shot put. Photo by M. Judkins. 

The Bronco girls' team scored in every event except the race walk, where they had no entrants. Overall, the girls won eight sectional titles, which included five individual and three relay wins.

It was an exceptional weekend for senior Kaitlin Ryan, who clocked a sub 2:50 in the 1000m at the Armory Invitational last Friday, setting a personal record of 2:49.75. She ran against some of the best high school runners in the country and placed a close second behind Rachel McArthur from Patriot High School in Virginia. Ryan returned to the Armory on Saturday for the Class C Sectional Championship and set yet another PR in the 1000m with a time of 2:48.42. Stanford-bound Ryan is currently No. 3 in the USA at this distance. 

Kaitlin Ryan at sectionals. Photo by C. Rizzo. 

For the Bronxville girls' team, middle distance is the sweet spot. In the 600m, Bronxville girls took eight of the top ten spots, with Caroline Brashear finishing first, Laura Holland, second, Maeve Sullivan, third, Rachel Peacock, fourth, and Betsy Marshall, sixth. Following winner Ryan in the 1000m race were Clio Dakolias, who placed third, Emma Mandanas, fourth, and Olivia Scotti, fifth. Ryan had her second win of the day in the 1500m race (4:43.93), Patty Haggerty placed second, and Gigi Chrappa and Sydney Coddington, fifth and sixth, respectively. 

Laura Holland (L) and Caroline Brashear (R) in the 600m. Photo by C. Rizzo. 

The Bronxville girls' relay teams are well known for their speed. The 4x200m relay (Sabrina Mellinghoff, Grace Randall, Alisa Kanganis, and Sophie Kohlhoff), the 4x400m relay (Sullivan, Marshall, Eve Balseiro, and Brashear), and the 4x800m relay (Olivia Scotti, Avery Widen, Mandanas, and Haggerty) all won their respective races.

In field events, Marina Alfano broke a school record in the 20lb weight throw with a distance of 26'5". The previous record, 25'11", was set by Joanna Freeman in 2005. Amanda Shkreli placed third in both the shot put and 20lb weight throw. Balseiro won the high jump, Mellinghoff and Caroline Ircha placed second and third, respectively, in the triple jump, and Jules Gravier placed second in the pole vault.

The Bronxville girls' indoor track and field team has won the sectional championship for 21 consecutive years.

Go Broncos.

Pictured at top:  Rizzo places first at the sectional championships. Photo by C. Rizzo.