By Michael Letendre

SIMSBURY – The Bristol public high schools were in the mix at the Stratton Brook Cross Country Invitational from Simsbury on Saturday.

And at Stratton Brook Park, the 3.1-mile course saw Bristol Central’s girls program top Bristol Eastern while on the boys side, the Lancers were a few places better than the Rams.

It’s been a tough start to the season with the heat and practice being what it was due to the treacherous conditions.

On the girls side in Simsbury, the Rams finished fifth overall in the large school division while the Lancers placed seventh.

Central’s wheelhouse of Sophia Stark (11th, 24:07) and Katie Tran (14th, 24:44) weren’t far off the top-10 pack while teammate Emma Cavallari (22nd, 26:09) also ran well.

For Eastern, senior Lauren Ayotte (31st, 27:38) was the top finisher for the Kingstreeters.

She was followed in order by Calliope Gallagher (32nd, 27:47) and Rita Gao (33rd, 28:07).

Windsor, with 47 points, won the girls event while Norwich Free Academy (41) earned the nod for the boys.

For the boys, Eastern finished sixth, two spots ahead of the Rams (eighth).

Individually, Patrick Wininger from Central was a top-five finisher.

He placed fourth overall with a stellar time of 17:55 while teammate Rowan Hennessey (35th, 20:38) and Braydan Dwyer (38th, 20:58) showed some gumption on the course.

“[It was a] good day,” said Central coach Tamara Stafford-Kirk. “We have a long way to go but I’m encouraged by our performances, especially with a smaller team this year. Patrick Wininger had a great run finishing fourth and for the girls Sophia Stark and Katie Tran got us off to a strong start. We also had some super JV performances led by Beckham Barse.”

“Our freshmen look strong too led by Noah Pellerin, Naythan Pellerin, and Emersyn Mazzei.”

The future is once again bright for the Central cross country programs.

The top three runners for the Lancers boys included Jase Koczur (20th, 19:32), Cole Beland (24th, 20:00) and Brendan Tartarelli (33rd, 20:34).

This week, Central is at Hubbard Park in Meriden to battle Plainville and host Platt in a CCC South showdown at 3:45 p.m.

Bristol Cross Country

Stratton Brook Invitational
from Stratton Brook Park, Simsbury (3.1 miles)
Girls – Large Division
Team results – Champion: Windsor (47 points), South Windsor (61), Simsbury (76), Foran (77), Bristol Central (120), NFA (121), Bristol Eastern (174).
Top 10 finishers – Karina Chan (NFA) 22:00 for 3.1 miles at Stratton Brook Park, 2. Alyssa Ella Drenga, South Windsor 22:10, 3. Hannah Donzella, Windsor 22:19, 4. Adrianna Gonzalez, Foran 22:28, 5. Gracelyn Lacoss, Windsor 22:31, 6. Grace Smith, South Windsor 23:09, 8. Olivia Dyki, Foran, 23:17, 9. Chiara Papa, South Windsor 23:17, 10. Evelyn Schwartz, Windsor 24:02.

Bristol Central Finishers

11. Sophia Stark, 24:07

14. Katie Tran, 24:44

22. Emma Cavallari, 26:09 

34. Lynae Lewis, 29:05

39. Ruth Smith, 31:05

Bristol Eastern Finishers

31. Lauren Ayotte, 27:38

32. Calliope Gallagher, 27:47

33. Rita Gao, 28:07

37. Kaydence Meyer, 30:26

41. Brooklyn Whitlock, 31:23
Boys – Large Division
Team results – Champion: Norwich Free Academy (41 points), Avon (54), Simsbury (82), Xavier (84), South Windsor (157), Bristol Eastern (165), Windsor (175), Bristol Central (179), Foran (190)
Top 10 finishers – Luke Davis, Simsbury 17:03, 2. William Lancaster, Avon 17:40, 3. Sawyer Barile, NFA 17:46, 4. Patrick Wininger, Bristol Central 17:55, 5. Patrick Croughwell, NFA 18:03, 6. Jesse Croteau NFA 18:07, 7. Brahm Bulow, Avon 18:20, 8. Robinson Meuse, NFA 18:26, 9. Joseph Meade, Foran, 18:33, 10. Caleb Davis, Simsbury 18:39..

Bristol Central Finishers

35. Rowan Hennessey 20:38

38. Braydan Dwyer 20:58

47. Nick DiMatteo 21:46

55. Aiden Georgakopoulos 23:41

Bristol Eastern Finishers

20. Jase Koczur, 19:32

24. Cole Beland, 20:00

33. Brendan Tartarelli, 20:34

39. Kyle Kelley, 20:55

49. Szymon Winiarczyk, 22:24

53. Jonathan Casarola, 22:48