Spring will bring a fresh start for the Bromfield girls track team, with many new members and a new coach. Ray Dunn has stepped up to the position after joining the team last spring as an assistant coach. With a close second at the Outdoor State Championship in 2008 and a State Class Indoor track title fresh in their minds, Bromfield track and field athletes are ready to hit the ground running.
Dunn brings enthusiasm and energy to the team. He has worked to assimilate the team’s past training and traditions into his own coaching methods. “I really have 50-plus goals for the outdoor season, that each member of the team will do her best,” says Dunn. “I hope we can make the right choices for each runner to grow their capabilities.”
Seniors Katherine Finnegan, Lisa Reedich, Lexie Daniells, Niki Jordan, and Emily Jones will provide leadership and experience as seasoned, returning athletes.
“I’d like to make sure that our seniors—which are a terrific group of athletes—are able to pass on our winning tradition to the younger team members,” Dunn says.
Senior cross-country athletes Emily Reedich and Kristina Kronauer will also be guiding members on the team, as both have chosen to run track for the first time. They look to be valuable assets in the mid-distance and distance events this season.
Finnegan has her eye on the 400-meter record, set by Arianna Lambie in 2003. The goal is within reach for the 2008 District long jump and 200-meter champion. Finnegan took a strong sixth place in the 300-meter run at the Indoor State Championship. Finnegan also ran as the anchor leg of the 4×400-meter relay team, which took its talent to a new level this past winter. Mimi Narbonne, Kim West, and Lexie Daniells joined Finnegan to finish fifth at the All-State Championship and qualify for the Nike Indoor National meet on March 15. After placing 23rd there, the team is now fired up for a record-setting outdoor season.
“We are all really motivated to succeed at All-States this year,” says Finnegan. “We have been really close to winning the All-State title in the past, but we fall short by just a small margin of points. This is a team goal that we’re all willing to strive for.”
Distance runners Reedich and Jones are poised to finish their Bromfield running careers with their 18th varsity season. Reedich is an outstanding performer in the 800 meters, mile, and two-mile run. Jones will toe the line with Reedich in the mile and two-mile. Both are veteran members of the 4×800 meter relay team, which figures to be a strong contributor to the team’s overall success this season.
“I’d like to build a strong 4×800-meter relay team that can compete at the state championship level,” says Dunn. “Bromfield has won the 4×800 at Districts for the last nine seasons and I’d like to keep that string going.”
The sophomore class is one of the most talented Bromfield has seen in a long time. Mimi Narbonne, Kim West, Margaret Kibbler, and Alice Kennedy add depth to the sprinting and mid-distance events, while Emma Rothkopf, Sydney Durand, Brittany Jones, Harriet Hill, Rachel Leicher, and Katie Keefe are valuable distance competitors.
Bromfield underclassmen will once again be central elements to the team’s success. Freshman Alyssa Swindells returns as a leading distance runner and freshmen Molly Gormley and Elizabeth Noyes are set to score much needed points in the high jump. A host of promising seventh- and eighth-graders will also turn heads this season.
The team will compete in both local and out-of-state competitions, including the Penn Relays and the Hartford Invitational. Local dual meets will be a focus for younger runners as well as an opportunity for more experienced competitors to tune up their strengths before postseason racing begins.
