Friends’ Central shines at McAlpin Invitational

Friends’ Central’s girls’ and boys’ cross-country teams kicked off their seasons Thursday at the 13th annual Frank McAlphin Cross Country Invitational at Episcopal Academy. On one of the toughest courses and one of the hottest days of the summer, FCS girls team placed fiverunners in the top 10 of 53 girls. Emily Burd won the girls’ event with a time of 22:21. Other top FCS finishers included Sydney Chamley-Oerton (second), Rose McDonnell (fifth), Amelia McDonnell (seventh) and Nyssa Shoenfield (10th). Three FCS freshman runners also completed their first varsity cross-country races with solid performances: Kristen Johnson (19th), Nia Jordan (32nd), and Jessica Horenstein (35th).

FCS’ boys’ cross-country team also began its season with a strong showing Thursday at Episcopal. In a field of more than 50 athletes, the FCS boys’ team earned five medals of the 15 awarded. The team was lead by Zachary Zwick’s third-place finish with a time of 18:56. His teammates Greg Dawson, Kevin Montressor, David Arnold and Alex McDonnell were also awarded medals for standout performances.