Article by Grace Catinella, ’21:
The results are in for the CHSAA Varsity Intersectional (Catholic State Championship Meet) held at Van Cortlandt Park in the Bronx. On November 14th, the Girls Cross Country Track Team traveled into the city to compete for the top spot, for many of the girls, this meet finished their Junior Varsity career.
Margaret McLoughlin, 21’, who is the captain of the team, shined brightly with a fifth-place finish overall. Freshman Kelsey Nichols was the Firebird’s second scoring girl; combined with her teammates rounding out the top scorers, she and her fellow running mates took the team to a fifth-place finish in the championship race. In a normal season, this win would qualify the team for the NY State Championship Meet. Victoria McLoughlin ‘21, Grace McKenna ‘21, Lauren Tarpey ‘22, and Maggie Dolloff 21’ led the team to the overall JV Intersectional team title.
Some other highlights from this season include wins from October 14th at the NSCHSGAA Class Divisional Race with team victories in both the Senior Division, led by Margaret McLoughlin and the Junior Division, led by Isabella Coshignano. At the NSCHSGAA League Championships, Margaret McLoughlin led the team to an overall third-place finish. Kathleen Healy ‘22 also qualified for the “All-League” team with a top ten finish.
Along with all of the teams at Kellenberg Memorial, our Lady Firebird runners dealt with some fundamental changes in their season, such as mask-wearing and a daily taking of temperature. “Running this season meant I got to be a part of an amazing team and I was also able to push myself harder than I ever have. In my opinion, that outweighs the annoyance of running with a mask by a long shot,” says Grace McKenna. “One of the high points of the cross country season in my opinion was definitely the League Championships. Seeing everyone’s hard work pay off through troubling times like this really gives you confidence in knowing that we can persevere in the face of hardship. The team collectively ended the season so much stronger physically and mentally.”