By S. Quinn DeJoy and J. Murrer          

Oct. 5, 2016:  The Bronxville School Homecoming concluded on Saturday, October 1, after a week of activities and athletic contests. Some of the Bronco homecoming activities were relatively new, but many were time-honored traditions.

One long-standing event that unofficially marks the start of Homecoming Week is the painting of the Midland Avenue shed. Every year, the seniors on the field hockey team gather in the cloak of darkness to turn the shed into an artistic masterpiece. This year's painting, a tribute to Maurice Sendak's Where the Wild Things Are, could be the last, as the shed may not survive the Hayes Field reconfiguration project. Seniors Ellie Walsh, Mia Bettino, Mallory Bates, Ellie Briskin, Maia Carpentieri, Sophie Kohlhoff, and Caroline Krall were happy to continue the tradition of "redecorating" the shed.

"We were really excited to get to do it this year," said co-captain Bettino. "Since the shed might be taken down before next fall, we wanted to make it good. We spent a lot of time on it!" 

The field hockey girls showed enthusiasm for Homecoming Week with their artwork, but it certainly did not stop there. The high school showed its school spirit with multiple themed days, including a new theme day in which the students "woke up to Homecoming" and came to school dressed in their pajamas. Food Truck Night, also a new event this year, was a big hit on Thursday night during the girls' soccer game.

For three straight nights, the Bronco turf teams hosted games under lights, and girls' tennis, girls' swimming, and boys' and girls' cross country participated in competitions off-site. Game summaries are below.

For Homecoming photos, click here.

Field Hockey (8-3)

The field hockey team defeated Edgemont 5-0 in its homecoming game on Friday evening. Scoring for Bronxville were Ellie Walsh (2G), Hannah Weirens (2G, 1A), Maia Carpentieri (1G), and Hadley Barr (1A). The Broncos, ranked No. 5 in all of Section 1 by LoHud, are the top-ranked team in Class C and have lost only to No. 4 Rye, No. 3 Mamaroneck, and No. 2 Scarsdale. There are four games left in the regular season, including a home game against Pawling today.    

Girls' Soccer (9-1-1)

The girls' soccer team kicked off homecoming games on Thursday night with a 5-0 victory over Rye Neck with goals by Sarah Wagner (2), Rachel Peacock, Mason Warble, and Alex Doukas. Shannon Hendrick, Catherine Faville, and Sally Reynolds had assists for the Broncos, and goalkeepers Maddie Coyne and Romy Tarantino each had a save. The Bronco girls are ranked at the top of Class B and are No. 10 in the LoHud Power Rankings. There are five games left in the regular season, and the Broncos will face Irvington at home tomorrow.

Boys' Soccer (8-3)

The boys' soccer team shut out Alexander Hamilton 4-0 on Friday night with goals by Will Vranka (2), Zach Zucker (1), and Jeb Burnell (1) and assists from Matt Toal (2) and Gabe Morato (1). The boys' team is ranked third in Class B behind Rye Neck and Blind Brook and will face Blind Brook at home on Saturday at 10:00 am. 

Football (2-2)

After coming off a 41-12 victory over Tuckahoe, the Broncos faced their first Class C opponent, Dobbs Ferry, on Saturday evening. The Broncos, who were missing several key players, gave up 32 points in the first half and suffered a 39-7 loss to the Eagles. The 2-2 Broncos take on a 1-3 Rye Neck team at home this weekend at 1:30 pm. Class C has only four teams this year, including Woodlands (4-0), Dobbs Ferry (3-1), Bronxville (2-2), and Rye Neck (1-3). 

Girls' Tennis

The girls' tennis team faced a competitive Edgemont team on Thursday of Homecoming Week. After the first six matches, the score was tied 3-3 with Edgemont winning all the singles matches and Bronxville winning the first three doubles matches. It all came down to the fourth doubles team of sophomore Alexandra Brumbaugh and senior Maryasa Krivitskaya, who won 6-2, 6-2 to give the Broncos the victory and a share of the league title for the third consecutive year. The team plays their final regular season match on Thursday at home against Keio.

Girls' Bronxville-Tuckahoe Swimming (3-1-1)

The Bronxville-Tuckahoe swim team defeated Byram Hills 87-75 last Saturday. The Broncos had six first-place finishes thanks to the individual efforts of Georgia Veru (100yd free, 200yd free), Emily Gjertsen (200yd IM, 500yd free), Alisa Fominykh (50yd free), and Caroline McGrath (100yd butterfly). Two Bronco relays also placed first: the 200yd medley (Fominykh, Gjertsen, McGrath, and Katie Canty) and the 200yd free (Fominykh, Veru, Charlotte Yerkes, and Canty). The next meet is away on Thursday against Putnam Valley-Mahopac.

Cross Country

More than 20 teams competed at the Woodlands Invitational on Saturday. The girls' varsity team placed second behind Ursuline with Bronxville's Patty Haggerty placing fifth and Sydney Coddington, thirteenth. The freshman team placed second overall, with Molly Palma finishing third and Eve Balseiro, seventh. The Dibbini sisters, Bella and Sophia, had a strong outing for the JV team, finishing fifth and seventh, respectively.

The Bronxville boys' team placed sixth. Sophomore Matt Rizzo was the first to finish for the Broncos and came in fourth overall. The freshman boys had a strong showing as freshman Tim Murray won the race and eighth-grader Ethan Waggoner placed second.

Go Broncos.

Pictured here:  The field hockey team painting the shed on Midland Avenue.

Photo by Sarah Kraemer