Cross Country, Girls: Varsity vs. Westminster Invitational

Every great dramatic book or action movie has a moment where the protagonist is down and out, and there seems no way for them to turn things around. It is precisely at this moment, by fortitude, dedication, and force of will, that the individual, against all odds, rises to the occasion and triumphs. It is a defining moment for the character and exemplifies their greatness, as it does for any team. After two championships, followed by two rebuilding years, the Deerfield girls’ cross country squad is rising to the occasion and against all odds is looking once again like a powerhouse team. Our fleet of relatively inexperienced 9^th and 10^th graders from last year are now our veteran 10^th and 11^th grade core of strength, and have now been added to by standout 9^th graders. Working through our growing pains, the team is patient, focused, and entirely focused on the New England Championships (Choate Day) in November. Finishing second Saturday by only one point to a strong Suffield team, the girls rocked a complete set of outstanding performances at the Miller Invitational. Indeed, every girl on the team surpassed expectations. Led over the challenging hilly Westminster School course by 9^th grader Jane Mallach (4^th in 21:52) who bolted to a leading position from the starting gun, the Big Green immediately adopted a commanding presence in the field of six teams. Mallach battled almost the entire course with Westminster’s top runner, only losing contact the last kilometer, but finishing strong. Following Mallach in the varsity race were Sarah Jane O’Connor 6^th 22:21, Lilly Shuhda 8^th 22:26, Carolyn Melvin 23:04, Helen Downes 14^th 23:21, Ely Burke 18^th 23:36, and Roopa Venkatraman finishing 19^th in 23:39. Missing from the varsity roster were standouts 9^th grader Victoria Patterson, 11^th grader Nora Markey, and 11^th grader Erin Hudson. They will all return in our next meet against rivals Choate and Loomis. In the junior varsity race the girls decimated the field, finishing five in the top ten. Ninth grader Erin Howe 23:07 crushed the competition with a time that would have placed her in the top 15 of the varsity race. She was followed by Sofi Sintes 2^nd 23:42, Esme Benjamin 4^th 24:09, Captain Hannah Swinnerton 7^th 24:52, Captain Madisen Siegel 9^th 25:05, Gemma Bishop 13^th 26:09, Katie Morse 14^th 26:32, Nafi Sall 15^th 26:48, Penelope Hough 19^th 27:04, Annu Fu 20^th 27:06, Cassie Deshong 22^nd, Nikki Pelletier 25^th, and Fernanda Ponce 34^th. The girls have this coming weekend off in preparation to rock the house down in Wallingford, CT the following weekend.

For complete results visit: http://www.webscorer.com/Westminster