Greyducks Win Borough’s for Fourth Year in a Row

The Stuyvesant Greyducks, the girls’ indoor track team, waited as the results of the Borough Championships were released. When they heard the official announce that Hunter College High School had come in second, they screamed with joy, knowing they secured first place for the fourth year in a row.

The team travelled to Armory Track to participate in the Manhattan Borough Championships on February 4, and they had one goal in mind: to keep the streak alive. Stuyvesant had won the three previous championships and wanted to continue their dominance. They did just that, taking home first place for the fourth year in a row.

The team performed well in both the field and track events, something they have not been able to do so far this season. In the field events, senior and co-captain Daria Shifrina came in first in the triple jump (32 ft, 7in) and placed second in the long jump (14 ft, 7.25in) and high jump (4ft, 4in). Senior and co-captain Venus Nnadi finished in first in the pole vault (7 ft).

The Greyducks also set the pace in a number of track events. Junior Clara Mohri came in first twice, once in the 1500-meter run (5:11:34) and again in the 3000-meter run (10:38:39). Freshman Julianne Yotov came in second in the 3000-meter run (11:23:13) after Mohri. In the 1500-meter race walk, amazingly, all 10 competitors were Greyducks. Stuyvesant took all the free points from the event. Juniors Bernice Chen (8:27:68), Jeanette Cheung (8:35:85), and Kayla Lew (8:38:92) came in first, second, and third, respectively.

“We have a lot of girls on the team who have worked really hard this season. They’ve shown the dedication and determination required to be successful,” coach Carl DiSarno said when asked what he attributes the recent success to. He also noted that many of the Greyducks had to compete in multiple events or compete in an event outside of their comfort zone.

In particular, he pointed out senior Anya Wang, who had to compete in three events (the 4x200-meter relay, 55-meter high hurdles, and 4x400-meter relay) in a span of 10 minutes. “It was unfair and unfortunate, but she didn’t complain and just did what was asked of her. Lots of girls had that attitude today, and that’s what I am most proud of,” DiSarno said. Wang finished 12th in the 55-meter high hurdles, but helped the Greyducks finish fourth in the 4x200-meter relay and third in the 4x400 relay.

“It was hell having my events back to back to back, but I think the reason I kept going was the fear of ending the season on a bad note, not only for me but for everyone on the team,” Wang said.

This season was not one without challenges for the team. Nnadi was injured for the majority of the season. In fact, her first events of the season came at Borough’s. Remarkably, she finished first in the pole vault and third in the triple jump. Without one of their captains leading the way, everyone had to step up and hold themselves accountable. “We had a quick transition from cross country to indoor track and girls had maintained their effort to give 100% at practices,” Lew said. “At every meet, there was endless support between the girls, as we cheered on every member during their race. We are continuing our long streak of winning Borough Championships, and it wouldn’t be possible without the girls’ enthusiasm and dedication to the sport and team.”

For most of the members on the team, the season ended with Borough’s, but eight Greyducks competed in the City Championships on February 17. Nnadi qualified for the pole vault, Shifrina for the triple jump, Yotov and Mohri for the 1500-meter and 3000-meter runs, and the quartet of Chen, Lew, Cheung, and sophomore Cecilia Bachana for the 1500-meter race walk. “We’re going to give them a few days rest before we really start ramping up the workouts to get them ready for the PSAL Championships,” DiSarno said.

In the PSAL championships, the best athletes from all over the city competed. “City’s was really exciting. It was very fast-paced, and I got pretty swept up in it. The sprinters were especially fun to watch, and I think everyone got invested in athletes they had never seen before,” said Bachana.

Shifrina finished 11th in the triple jump while Chen, Lew, Cheung, and Bachana finished third, fourth, fifth, and sixth respectively in the 1500-meter race walk. Nnadi finished fifth in the pole vault, Mohri came in seventh in the 1500-meter run and in fourth, with Yotov in fifth, in the 3000-meter run. The Greyducks came in ninth overall in the competition. “I wanted to finish in the top ten, so I was very pleased. Seven of the eight girls that competed won medals, so I’m very proud of that,” DiSarno said.

Though the indoor season has just finished, he is already looking ahead to the outdoor season. “I’m looking forward to Outdoor because we should have several girls [who were injured during Indoor] back healthy. We did well in the individual events indoors, but our relays struggled without some of our injured runners,” said DiSarno.

This indoor season has been a roller coaster ride for the Greyducks as they started off slow in the first few weeks but turned it on in time for Borough’s. Despite numerous injuries throughout the season, the Greyducks were able to persevere and retain their title as the best team in Manhattan.