Bridgewater Residents Take High Honors in Spooky Sprint

A total of five Bridgewater residents were among the winners during the Somerset Family YMCA Spooky Sprint through Somerville Oct. 22.

Gerry Szachara and Steve Mandraccia, both of Bridgewater, and Meghan LcLooe, Carla Larson and Eileen Dobol, all of Bridgewater, were some of the top winners in the men's and women's categories, respectively.

According to a release from the YMCA, more than 150 runners participated in the 5K run/walk, and 40 volunteers were available to help participants steer along the course that wound through downtown Somerville.

“For a first-time event, we did very well," said Sarah Nathans, executive director of the Somerville YMCA branch, in the release. "We were extremely pleased by the number of runners who came out and we also want to thank our many volunteers and generous sponsors for their help in making the event a success. This was a great start to what we hope will become an annual event in Somerville.”

The overall first-place winner was Somerville resident Noel Vega, 17, with a time of 17:15.45. The top female runner, the release said, was Green Brook resident Geena Roccchietti, 12, with a time of 23:24.64

Other top male winners included Thomas Kelly, of Neshanic; Matthew Tarentino, of Somerville; Park Glezman, of Hillsborough; Brian McDonough, of Farmingdale, NY; Aaron Kowalski, of Somerville; Jeffrey Farneski, of Milford; James Paul, of Somerville; and Ali Ibrahim, of Hillsborough.

Other female first-place winners in their age groups included Emma Vernoia, of Hillsborough; Courtney Gregory, of Somerville; Meghan Hayes, of Hillsborough; Meredith Burke, of Somerville; Lisa Calicchio, of Warren; Lisa Lamarca, of Neshanic Station; and Margaret Weinberg, of Somerville.