By Michael Letendre
Who’s going to top the Bristol Central boys cross country team this season?
It’s not going to be an easy endeavor to square off against the Rams from the various cross country courses and venues the Central Connecticut Conference has to offer this year.
The CCC South always has programs with a good runner or two, but Central’s top-five should be able to rival just about every program in all the conference.
At the top of Central’s unit is the outstanding Frankie Porrini, looking for some big things as the fall season approaches.
The senior standout is one of the top seniors, not just in the CCC, but at the state level as well.
He’s looking to build upon an amazing finish to the outdoor track and summer running seasons and it’s surprising more publications around the state aren’t making him a top pick on the courses this year.
Last fall at the Class L championships, the then junior posted a finish of 17:21 – good for 11th place overall.
Over half the athletes that finished in front of him in the Class L title race have graduated, positioning Porrini as a possible top-five competitor if everything falls into place this year.
His finish at the Ls was impressive from the course at Wickham Park in Manchester while he improved his time to 17:13 at the State Open event over an extremely loaded field.
Porrini certainly put the work in during the outdoor season and when the heat was turned up over the summer, he responded with some tremendous efforts.
His showings in the 1600 meters at the State Open (seventh in mile at 4:17) and then posted an amazing 6:03 in the grueling 2000 meter steeplechase testified his outstanding abilities.
He was able to compete with some of the best athletes in the country during the summer and he’s bringing all that experience back to Bristol Central for his last season of scholastic running.
Porrini is a smart athlete who understands when to kick on the course and will be Bristol’s featured runner this fall.
Along with Porrini, fellow seniors Chris Roy (18:48 at the Class Ls, 55th place), Lance Archibald (19:00), and Scott Petrosky are back in the mix as well as junior Pat Wininger (19:29).
There’s also a boatload of hungry underclassmen looking to break out as the season moves along for the Rams cross country program.
Central finished the 2021 Class L Champions in 11th place and should be able to crack the top-10 this time around.
What could stop Central this season?
Besides health, there appears to be little that opponents are going to be able to accomplish against the squad – especially in CCC South meets.
Guided by veteran head coach Tamara Stafford-Kirk, this program is ready to compete and will have a busy season before the CCC South and state championships roll around.
The Central team is headed for the 41st Annual Stratton Brook Invite this Saturday at 10 a.m. in Simsbury to start things off this year with more meets to follow.
Here’s how Central’s CCC South slate pans out:
Bristol Central Boys Cross Country – 2022**
Tuesday, September 13 – Central at Berlin and Platt (Pistol Creek)
Tuesday, September 20 – Central at Plainville and Middletown (Plainville Middle School)
Monday, October 3 – Lewis Mills and Maloney at Central (Rockwell Park)
Thursday, October 13 – City Series meet (St. Paul Catholic High School)
**Meet time for all CCC events is 3:45 p.m.
