Eva Mihova, Ella McCalla, Carina Winiecki, Elizabeth Conlon, Emerson Dennis, Odessa Dennis, and Mia Horgan. Photo submitted by C. Winiecki.

By S.Q. DeJoy and J. Murrer 

Nov. 19, 2025: The Bronxville girls’ cross country team won the New York State Class C Cross Country Championship held this past Saturday at Bowdoin Park in Wappingers Falls. Freshman Mia Horgan had an outstanding finish placing first in a field of 132 top runners from around the state.

“Winning states as a team was honestly such an amazing feeling, especially after all the hard work that went into our season,” said Horgan.  “Winning states as a freshman was so rewarding, and I could not have done it without the team. I speak for the whole team when I say the second-place finish last season fueled us to push ourselves.”

Last year at states, the Broncos scored 64 points and were edged out by a strong East Aurora team who won the race with 62. After suffering that loss, the team was more determined than ever to take home a State Championship.

“The days leading up to the race were on the scarier side,” said junior Carina Winiecki.  “We knew there was some really good competition like Saranac and East Aurora, and we knew we had something to prove after losing the state title to East Aurora last year by 2 points. I could feel the energy getting more and more fiery as the race came closer, and I knew it would only make us stronger.”

The state meet features the best cross country runners in New York, including individual qualifiers and the top teams from each of the eleven sections across the state. The Bronxville team won the race with 78 points and was followed by Saranac with 87 and East Aurora with 106. 

Horgan won the Class C race in 17:51.70 qualifying for the New York Federation Championship, which will be held on Saturday at Bowdoin Park. Winiecki placed 10^th in the team competition and was followed by junior Ella McCalla (16^th, 20:06.10), junior Emerson Dennis (22^nd, 20:22.10), freshman Elizabeth Conlon (29th, 20:47.50), 8^th-grader Odessa Dennis (32^nd, 20:53.30), and Eva Mihova (42^nd, 21:20.50).

“My team worked really hard all season, and I felt like everything finally came together on race day, especially after having lost first place last year,” said McCalla. “This year, we were all very emotional and thankful after our race when we found out that we won states.”

The girls’ cross country team at the school before heading to the New York State Championships. Photo submitted by C. Winiecki.

McCalla and Winiecki reached states three years in a row, and the third time delivered the result they had been chasing despite losing some top runners to graduation.

“My sophomore year, I ran at states with Mia, Carina, and Emerson, along with three seniors-- Maddy Williams, Charlotte Black, and Fiona Keveney,” said McCalla. “It’s been amazing seeing how the team has changed but still stayed strong every season.”

“With such an outstanding young team, it was amazing to see freshman and even middle schoolers stepping up to perform even under such high stakes,” added Winiecki.  “I am so proud of our team, and we cannot wait to send Mia off to compete at Federations.”

Three runners from the Bronxville boys’ cross country team qualified for states as individuals. Julian Gonzalez placed 13^th in the Class C race in a time of 16:13.40, Matthew Jensen placed 16^th in 16:19.90, and Will Hogue placed 50^th in 17:16.60.

Go Broncos.