Blair remained undefeated in dual meets on the season in a thrilling 26-29 victory over the Hill School in Blairstown, New Jersey. Trailing 26-29 midway through the race, Blair reversed the score over the second half of the course. Perhaps the team was buoyed by the number of spectators who came out to watch Hill and Blair compete in soccer, field hockey or tennis but were drawn instead by the drama of a close cross country race.
The Hill School’s Liv Tullman took top honors in a fine time of 20:43, but Blair’s Corrine Wilm '21 nosed out Hill’s Maddie Kershner by just a step at the finish line, dipping under 22 minutes for the first time. Hill’s Maddie Kershner was next, followed by Blair's Jessica Wilm '21 and Marty Dericks '22 in 4th and 5th, respectively. After Hill’s Lillian Rizek finished 6th both teams had three girls across the line with Blair one point behind. At that point, Elise Sigety '20 and Abby Morris '20 took 7th and 8th to secure the victory. Elise was in a battle the entire race to keep contact with Rizek, while Abby made up 20 seconds on Hill’s Calla Boothe-Genthe over the final mile to again run a personal best time. Caeley Tierney '19 was sixth for the Bucs, with Cam Bentley '20 battling injury in the final varsity place.
Elizabeth Montfort '20, Lucy Clayton '21 and Kendra Payne '20 finished in a tight group for the JV, and Ilyssa Gibson '22, in another personal best 5k time, wrapped up the day for the Bucs.