UC Races Tough at Bowdoin! Girls Win! Boys 3rd!
The Union Catholic girls, ranked NJ No. 1/US No. 7, made a huge statement when the Vikings scored a convincing win at the Bowdoin Park Classic and the UC boys finished a very strong third on Saturday in Wappingers Falls, N.Y.
In the girls Division 2 race, sophomore Paige Sheppard fueled the attack for the Vikings with a runway victory in 18:11.3, a second faster than she ran to win the Nike Northeast Regional Championship last November at Bowdoin. Sheppard’s time is the second fastest by a NJ girl in course history. Charlotte Bednar of Lawrenceville ran 18:00.0 to win the NE Regional in 2019.
Sheppard’s victory sparked a 1-4-5-12-15 finish for the Vikings, who averaged 19:30.0 and outscored New York power Saratoga Springs in the Division 2 race, 35-93. Princeton ranked No. 9 in NJ, finished third with 96. The four other scorers for UC’s all underclassmen squad were sophomore Sophia Thompson, fourth in 19:25.4, junior Ella Solorzano, fifth in 19:37.0, freshman Jasmine Parran, 12th in 20:06.9, and junior Emmy O’Hearn, 15th in 20:14.1.
In the boys competition, UC, ranked No. 5 in the state, placed third with 148 points and averaged 17:08 on the rugged layout. The only teams to finish ahead of UC were No. 1 ranked CBA and No. 4 Haddonfield.
Senior Evan Weber led the way for the Vikings, placing 11th in 16:33. Senior Aidan Cichocki was 31st in 17:12, sophomore Finn Riely placed 34th in 17:15, senior Michael Devine was 41st in 17:15, and freshman Manny Sanchez finished 41st in 17:23.
