Girls XC Takes on Rhode Island During Homecoming Weekend

This past weekend, the Blue Wave Girls Cross Country team traveled up to Warwick, Rhode Island to compete in the Ocean State Invitational.  This meet is unlike most of the other races that the girls partake in; teams from all over the Northeast travel to Rhode Island to have a fun time and compete in a meet that doesn’t count in their record. However, although it is not an official state meet, it is far more intense than any other regular meets this year. Pump-up music blasts, an announcer narrates the overall performances, and the atmosphere is highly competitive given the vast amount of exceptional athletes that come up to race.

The team has had a strong start to the season with an undefeated record of 11-0, beating the number-three-ranked Ridgefield this past Tuesday. The invitational was a great way for the strong team to PR in times and excel. Senior Anne Johnston owned the 5k course, scoring 13^th out of 101 people in the Varsity Championship with a time of 19:39.9. Other strong performances were led by seniors Amanda Percarpio and Kate Halabi, as well as junior Sarah Lehan.

Freshman Emilia Callery had an outstanding race, truly showing her great potential. Callery has already had an amazing first season, placing first in the freshman race at the Wilton Invitational. At the JV race she medaled 4^th with a time of 21:32. She ran the race in a very smart way, not letting people pull her out too fast and pacing herself perfectly. This was very impressive considering it was her first time running a 5k.

Darien scored 10^th place in the Varsity Championship and 5^th in the JV race. Senior Kate Halabi summed up the overall experience of Rhode Island, “The course is beautiful and it’s a really big, high-energy meet. Our freshman standout Emilia Callery placed 4^th in the JV race in a field of 272 individuals which was amazing.” Watch out for Blue Wave Girls Cross Country in their next meet at Todd’s Point in Greenwich this Tuesday, September 30^th. 

The team at Rhode Island sporting their homecoming superhero outfits.