By Michael Letendre
Thursday is race day in Bristol and that means both the boys and girls cross country programs from Bristol Central, Bristol Eastern and St. Paul Catholic will be in action in a very special event.
The City Series Championships will be up for grabs from Rockwell Park, at 3:45 p.m., as the Rams, Lancers and Falcons all have good chances in winning the titles in 2023.
Last year, on a cold Saturday morning from St. Paul Catholic High School, Eastern’s Kaelyn Gonzalez (22:00) won the girl’s race as a freshman but the Rams defeated the Lancers 23-35.
St. Paul Catholic bested Eastern 22-38 while Central flipped the host 27-28 over a nip-and-tuck battle.
Gonzalez is back to defend her title while runner-up, St. Paul Catholic junior Maddie Bielecki (22:43), will push the sophomore over the course at Rockwell Park.
Central returns seniors Sophia Stark (third place, 22:54) and Katie Tran (fourth, 23:03) and the duo should be in the mix for the title as well.
On the boys side, there will be a new individual champion crowned.
Central’s Frankie Porrini (17:16) earned the past two individual city series championships.
On that frosty morning, Central just nipped Eastern 27-28.
The Lancers topped the Falcons 24-33 while Central defeated St. Paul Catholic 22-35.
St. Paul Catholic senior Matt Doherty (fourth place, 18:03) will again be one of the featured harriers at the race as will Central’s Patrick Wininger (sixth, 18:35) who helped round out the top-six in 2022.
Eastern sophomore Jase Koczur can’t be underestimated either and should factor into the top-10 — or better.
No matter what happens on Thursday, the two races are going to have plenty of surprises and tremendous on-the-course action before things are said and done.
Honoring Bristol’s finest
On Thursday, the squads will honor the memories of Lieutenant Dustin DeMonte and Sergeant Alex Hamza who both gave their lives in the line of duty on October 12, 2022.
A moment of silence will be held in honor of the duo before the races commence.
Doing it for Ramirez
The races will be dedicated to former Bristol Central harrier Angel Ramirez (Class of 2020) who is no stranger to city series championships.
Ramirez is battling stage 4 brain cancer and all three programs have raised money for his family.
The teams will be wearing ‘Angel Strong’ tee shirts in the squad’s school colors and Ramirez will be the honorary starter at the City Series bout.
Again, this won’t be your average Bristol City Series Cross Country event.
Let’s look at the competitors
Here is a list of some of the runners (barring injury, illness and the like) that you’ll see hit the course at Rockwell Park on Thursday afternoon:
Boys
Bristol Central
*Patrick Wininger, sr.
*Noah Pellerin, fr.
*Nicola DiMatteo, jr.
*Naythan Pellerin, fr.
*Aiden Georgakopoulos, jr.
*Alex Mulligan, so.
*Beckham Barse, so.
*Rowan Hennessey, sr.
Bristol Eastern
*Jase Koczur, so.
*Brendan Tartarelli, jr.
*Cole Beland, so.
*Aidan Gezelman, jr.
*Kyle Kelley, jr.
*Jonathan Casarola, jr.
*Dylan Prince, jr.
*Thomas Stout, so.
*Cameron Nguyen, fr.
*Christian Ferraro, fr.
*Szymon Winiarczyk, so.
St. Paul Catholic
*Matt Doherty, sr.
*James Rinaldi, sr.
*Aiden Conklin, sr.
*Cody Wilson, fr.
*Michael LeBouthillier, so.
Girls
Bristol Central
*Sophia Stark, sr.
*Katie Tran, sr.
*Emersyn Mazzei, fr.
*Kazimiera Cavallari, so.
*Johannie Juarez, sr.
*Janelle Brand, sr.
*Emma Cavallari, so.
*Ruth Smith, jr.
Bristol Eastern
*Kaelyn Gonzalez, so.
*Kaydence Meyer, jr.
*Lauren Ayotte, sr.
*Rita Gao, sr.
*Princess Priscilla Dilone, jr.
*Isabel Bray, jr.
*Brooklynne Whitlock, jr.
*Eleni Prytko, so.
*Rocxana Rodriguez, jr.
*Maisy Berry, fr.
St. Paul Catholic
*Gretchen Radcliff, so.
*Maddie Bielecki, jr.
*Charlotte Jennings, sr.
*Amelia Jennings, so.
*Alexa Akier, fr.
*Emily Gray, jr.
Last season’s results
Boys 2022 City Series Cross Country – Saturday, October 15
BRISTOL CENTRAL 27, BRISTOL EASTERN 28
BRISTOL CENTRAL 22, ST. PAUL CATHOLIC 35
BRISTOL EASTERN 24, ST. PAUL CATHOLIC 33
from St. Paul Catholic High School – 3.1+ Miles
Individual results – Top 10
City Series Champion – Frankie Porrini (Bristol Central), 17:16
Runner-up – Dominic Tartarelli (Bristol Eastern), 17:51
3. Chris Roy (Bristol Central), 18:01
4. Matt Doherty (St. Paul Catholic), 18:03
5. Jack Mulcunry (Bristol Eastern), 18:11
6. Patrick Wininger (Bristol Central), 18:35
7. Colin Reilly (St. Paul Catholic), 18:35
8. Brendan Tartarelli (Bristol Eastern), 19:16
9. Aidan Gezelman (Bristol Eastern), 19:17
10. Lance Archibald (Bristol Central), 19:25
Girls 2022 City Series Cross Country – Saturday, October 15
BRISTOL CENTRAL 27, ST. PAUL CATHOLIC 28
ST. PAUL CATHOLIC 22, BRISTOL EASTERN 38
BRISTOL CENTRAL 23, BRISTOL EASTERN 35
from St. Paul Catholic High School – 3.1+ Miles
Individual results – Top 10
City Series Champion – Kaelyn Gonzalez (Bristol Eastern), 22:00
Runner-up – Maddie Bielecki (St. Paul Catholic), 22:43
3. Sophia Stark (Bristol Central), 22:54
4. Katie Tran (Bristol Central), 23:03
5. Gretchen Radcliff (St. Paul Catholic), 23:58
6. Charlotte Jennings (St. Paul Catholic), 24:17
7. Lauren Ayotte (Bristol Eastern), 24:24
8. Lynae Lewis (Bristol Central), 24:47
9. Emma Cavallari (Bristol Central), 24:57
10. Calista Oria (St. Paul Catholic), 25:40
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