By Christopher Hunt
KINGS PARK – Bronxville coach Jim Mitchell only yells during races. The rest of the time he’s pretty even. He won’t berate a runner that fails. Instead he might coddle only a little, with a simple, “It’s okay.”
But he’s honest. Always honest. It didn’t matter that his team is young – three freshman, two sophomores – when they bombed last week, he told them so.
“I told them it was the worst race in school history,” Mitchell said. “They understood. There was no tears, no pouting.”
The Broncos proved they can take a punch though and were the best girls team at the St. Anthony’s Invitational Saturday at Sunken Meadow Park, winning the Small Schools race with 26 points. Bronxville scored its top 5 in the first eight spots, within 68 seconds of each other.
“We just got back to doing what we do,” Mitchell said.
What they do is the essence of cross country. Pack-running. Mary Cain finished second in the 2.5-mile race in 15:28.64 with Meredith Rizzo behind in third in 15:33.32. Amelia Phillips (16:35.25), Courtney Campbell (16:36.42) and Emelie Hoffer (16:36.83) strung together a 6-7-8 finish, all within a second of each other.
The coach called the debacle at Bowdoin Par an anomaly. Phillips collapsed in the final kilometer and the rest of the team struggled in the heat, finishing third but with a 21:50.07 average for the 5K course. He joked that his “Bronxville Blondes” don’t handle the heat well but said after this race they are back on track.
Friends’ Academy senior Kira Garry won the individual title in 15:12.04, leading from the start. Garry took advantage of a shorter course to try being more aggressive. She created some space on the field in the first half mile and held off Rizzo and Cain by making her move up Cardiac Hill. Yes, she made her move going up Cardiac.
“I wanted to get out hard because the last couple weeks I’ve started the races a little too comfortable,” said Garry, who is considering Princeton, Harvard and her mom’s alma mater, Yale. “I think this was a good time to run a 4K. I want to get used to getting out harder.”
St. Anthony’s earned a one-point victory over Ward Melville in the Varsity A-1 race, 45-46. The Friars were led by Lauren Lavoro (15:22.35) and Garbriella Vezza (15:25.04), who finished fourth and fifth, respectively. After fourth scorers, Ward Meville held a three-point lead. But Sloane Russ made the different in the fifth position, finishing 14th while Ward Meville’s fifth crossed in 18th place.
Ward Melville’s Mary Kate Anselmini, the national steeplechase champ, won the race individually in 14:53.16, the fastest time of the meet. West Islip’s Ali Foote ran off Anselmini’s shoulder until Ward Melville’s senior surged after Cardiac and broke free.
“I got to the top of Cardiac and just let it all go on the downhill,” she said.
Holy Trinity’s Colleen Schmidt ran her first invitational of the season after an MRI two weeks ago discovered thigh splints in her right leg. She missed two weeks of training before starting again last week. She finished sixth in 15:39.71.
“I felt good around the start but at the end, after Cardiac, I was out of it,” Schmidt said. “I feel like on the inside I wish I was where I wanted to be. But I know I’m just getting back into it.”
Northport won the Varsity A-1 race led by freshman Brigid Brennan, who finished in 15:18.91. For Brennan, she rebounded from tough winter and spring track seasons that made her feel timid headed into the cross country season. Northport scored 43 points. St. John the Baptist was second with 86.
“Today I ran with some confidence,” Brennan said. “That was the big difference. My coach and my teammates talked to me and that helped a lot.”
Reach Christopher Hunt at chunt@armorytrack.com.