By S. Quinn DeJoy and J. Murrer

Dec. 16, 2015: The second meet of the winter track and field season is a special event for the Bronxville teams. The meet is named after Jim Mitchell, who has coached girls' track and field at Bronxville for thirty-six years. Mitchell's illustrious coaching career has been recognized at the local, state, and national level and in 2006 Mitchell was inducted into the National Track and Field Hall of Fame. 

The Mitchell Invitational, which was held at the New Balance Track and Field Center at the Armory last Saturday, is somewhat different from the usual track and field meet that features multiple competitions throughout an entire weekend day. The Mitchell meet is abbreviated and features some of the best track and field athletes in the area. 

"It started as an alternative to the all-day Saturday meets," commented Mitchell. "It was designed to provide great competition in a limited number of events."

Great competition may have been an understatement. At this year's meet, seven participating athletes recorded the fastest high school times in the U.S. this indoor season. Bronxville's Kaitlin Ryan was one of those seven speedy racers. She finished first in the 1000m with a time of 2:56, and was followed across the finish line by teammate Hilary Rizzo. It was a great race for Rizzo, who set a personal record with a time of 3:01.75. 

Nine years ago, the meet included about twenty teams, but the meet has become so popular that the entries are now cut off at about 35 teams. Some of the biggest schools in southern New York were in attendance, including Monroe-Woodbury, New Rochelle, Newburgh Free Academy, and Ward Melville. Class C Bronxville always holds it own when competing against these giant school districts. The girls’ team came in third overall behind New Rochelle and Newburgh, and the boys' team finished 14th. 

Unlike most track and field meets, which begin in the morning and stretch late into the afternoon, the Mitchell Invitational began at 5:00 pm. Mitchell believes the shortened time frame is good for the athletes. 

"A big aspect of the great performances is that the athletes do not need to wait around for hours and hours. And," noted Mitchell, "I get a chance to meet up with old friends." 

For a list of top ten finishers, see below. 

Go Broncos. 

Top Ten Finishers: Girls

1000m
Kaitlin Ryan, 1st, 2:56.00
Hilary Rizzo, 2nd, 3:01.75
Clio Dakolias, 9th, 3:14.57 

600m
Laura Holland, 2nd, 1:41.81
Kirsten Ircha, 3rd, 1:42.33
Sophia Sulimirski, 9th, 1:49.26 

4x200m Relay
Margot Richards, Caroline DePaul, Grace Randall, Sophie Kohlhoff, 6th, 1:50.14

4x1500m Relay
Gigi Chrappa, Sydney Coddington, Olivia Scotti, Bela Lamadrid, 5th, 21:21.56

High Jump
Caroline Kirby, 11th, 4'6"     

Top Ten Finishers: Boys    

1000m
Sean Ryan, 8th, 2:41

300m
Nick Sutherland, 4th, 37.07

4x200m Relay
Ara Atayan, Andrew Murray, Nick Sutherland, Seamus Watters, 7th, 1:39.18

High Jump
Arman Vranka, 10th, 5'3"

Shot put
Avery Kane, 8th, 38' 3.75"

Pictured here:  The Broncos and Coach Jim Mitchell at the Jim Mitchell Invitational at the New Balance Center at the Armory.

Photos by Charlotte Rizzo