By S. Quinn DeJoy and J. Murrer

Nov. 9, 2016:  The Bronxville girls' cross country team won the Section 1 Class C Championship last Saturday, with senior Kaitlin Ryan leading the Broncos and finishing first overall in 19:29.3.

It was Bronxville's 20th consecutive sectional title and 30th overall since 1981. In the race held at Bowdoin Park, eighth-grader Avery Widen finished second for the Broncos in 6th place (21:12.8), sophomore Emma Mandanas, 10th (21:44.6), sophomore Gigi Chrappa, 13th (21:59.6), sophomore Lyric Abbott, 14th (22:06.7), senior Sydney Coddington, 17th (22:25.8), and senior Lindsay Nobles, 18th (22:27.4). 

It was a sweet victory for the Broncos, who have been plagued by injuries this fall. Two of their top runners, Olivia Scotti and Patty Haggerty, were out for the season, and the team needed to step it up for the win.

"I thought it went really well," said Ryan. "I just went out hard from the gun, and I think that benefited the entire team. That was definitely our best performance this fall. We really came together as a team."

The seven varsity team members all had personal or seasonal bests in the race, and Coach Jim Mitchell could not have been happier.

"This is such a different team from last year," noted Mitchell. "Kaitlin has been a rock for five years now but the emergence of Avery, Emma, Gigi, and Lyric, the solid running of Sydney, and the return of Lindsay is the story of the year; it will be very interesting to watch them develop over the coming years."

The State Championship race is next Saturday at 9:30 am at Chenango Valley State Park in Chenango Forks, New York. The Bronco girls won six straight state championships before losing to East Aurora in 2014 and 2015. East Aurora has moved back up to Class B this year, but the Class C field still remains very competitive.

Go Broncos.

Pictured here (L to R): Lyric Abbott, Kaitlin Ryan, Sidney Coddington, Lindsay Nobles, Emma Mandanas, Gigi Chrappa, and Avery Widen.  

Pictured here (L to R):  Lindsay Nobles, Coach Jim Mitchell, Sydney Coddington, and Kaitlin Ryan.