Boca Warriors Win Fifth XC State Team Title and MS Club Girls Runner-up Trophy at FLYRA
Thirty-six Warriors produced an individual championship, two team podiums and the strongest Medal showing in BW XC States history.
LAKELAND, Fla. — Boca Warriors closed the 2026 Florida Youth Running Association State Cross-Country Championships with a 2k elementary boys team title, a MS club girls 3k runner-up team podium, an individual state championship and 16 individual medals performances at Holloway Park.
Thirty-six Warriors competed across six races on October 30–31. Nearly half of the delegation placed in the XC States podium, with 20 athletes performing their personal bests (PR) at this highly competitive field.
The conditions tested the athletes in different ways. Friday’s elementary races unfolded in humid temperatures of approximately 84°F, with winds around 15 mph in a new 125m longer than the legacy 2k course. Saturday morning was cooler, but the 3K fields brought together many of Florida’s strongest middle-school runners. This was possibly one of the biggest FLYRA State Cross-Country stage in the meet’s available results history, joining nearly 2,500 finishers across 14 championship races - a growing sport.
The Warriors handled both days with composure, depth and championship-level teamwork, like in practice.
Elementary Boys Turn Five Top-13 Finishes Into State Gold
The 3rd–5th grade boys delivered one of the finest team performances in Boca Warriors history.
Fourth grader Brody Milek won the 250-runner race in 7:40.79, joining the club of post-race Milesplit interviews. Brody is currently the 9yo AAU XC National Champion and it was his second individual FLYRA gold after winning the K–2 1K in 2024 where he holds the course record.
After him, the Warriors placed five athletes among the first 13 medalists:
Brody Milek: 1st, 7:40.79
Gabriel Hirakuri Lehmkuhl: 8th, 7:56.77
Andrew Conley: 9th, 7:57.01
Micah Howard: 12th, 7:58.01
Giancarlo Zafrilla: 13th, 7:59.86
In team scoring, those finishes counted as 1st, 4th, 5th, 7th and 8th for a total of only 25 points. A perfect cross-country score is 15, meaning the Warriors finished only 10 points from perfection.
Boca won by 72 points over second-place Conchita Espinosa Academy, 25–97, in a championship containing 21 scoring teams.
The most revealing number may be 19 seconds—the difference between Boca’s first and fifth scorers. Brody provided the individual victory, and the tightly packed group behind him secured the team championship.
The Warriors’ depth extended beyond the five scorers. Riaan Barot placed 30th, Zander Noal 34th, Roger White 35th, Landon Glasser 41st, Logan Lopez 50th, Samuel Hirakuri Lehmkuhl 55th and Kent Viswanathan 147th.
This championship became Boca Warriors’ fifth FLYRA state team title since 2019 and the first boys’ FLYRA team championship in the program’s results archive. It follows girls’ state titles in the 2019 MS Open 3K, 2021 MS Club 3K and the 2023 and 2024 girls elementary 2K races.
Brody also joins Arielle Gorlovetzky as the only Boca athletes in the history with multiple individual FLYRA victories.
Club Girls Place Three Consecutively and Take State Silver
The Boca club girls combined elite front-end speed with the depth needed to finish runner-up among nine strongest scoring teams.
Camila Boucher led the Warriors in fifth place, running 10:59.62 for 3K. Arielle Gorlovetzky followed in sixth at 11:05.75, and Katerina Skutnik completed a remarkable fifth-through-seventh sequence in 11:12.64. Impressively, all three well under newly released NHSTFXCCA MS XC All American Standards.
Only 13 seconds separated Boca’s first three runners.
Jasmarie Hernandez placed 18th, Faith Gladstone 19th and Tejasvita Minnamareddy 20th, giving the Warriors six top-20 finishers. Olivia Aaronson added a 22nd-place performance.
Boca’s scoring order of 4-5-6-15-16 produced 46 points, placing the Warriors second behind No Excuses RC and comfortably ahead of third-place Gulf Coast Runners.
The team was completed by Daniela Boucher in 35th, Diane Fiederer in 45th and Norah Kraev in 52nd.
The result also continued a remarkable record of consistency. Katerina and Faith now share the program lead with seven medal finishes each across the combined FLYRA and FLRunners history. Faith’s state performance was her 10th recorded race across the two meets in these grounds, spanning six seasons—the longest competitive tenure of any BW athlete in the available database. Some of our elite 6th grade girls like Arielle & Kat have been training & racing since the 2nd grade. Out of 254 6th grade girls who raced this weekend, Arielle was 1st, Kat was 2nd & Teju 5th. 3 out of the top 5 - 6th graders in the State are Boca Warriors. Out of the 859 MS girls 5 girls broke the 11:00 barrier. Camila became the 2nd Boca Warrior (Makaela Morilla 2024) to accomplish that feat.
MS Club Boys Finish Fourth in a Deep State Field
The MS boys placed fourth among nine club category super competitive teams with 92 points, led by three athletes inside the top 16.
Banks Stroup finished ninth in 10:15.93, followed just 1.73 seconds later by Brayden Milek, who placed 11th in 10:17.66. Both under NHSTFXCCA MS all American standards. Logan Minors medaled 16th in 10:34.01.
Martin Micolta placed 34th, Oliver Valderrama 39th dropping over 2 minutes from his time at Flrunners & beating more than half the field; and Zareh Tirinkian debut a 75th to complete Boca’s six-runner lineup.
The historical analysis adds perspective to the front three. Banks and Brayden recorded the two fastest Grade 7 mile-equivalent paces in the entire Boca database on 10/10 course, at approximately 5:30.41 and 5:31.34 per mile. Logan’s performance ranks fourth among the 64 recorded Grade 7 performances.
The club boys finished behind three exceptionally close and larger teams—No Excuses RC, NEXTRUN and Hillsborough Harriers—and once again demonstrated that Boca belongs in Florida’s leading middle-school club-team conversation.
Strong Performances Across Club Future Groups
First grader Tucker Ayer represented the Warriors in the K–2 boys 1K. Tucker medaled 13th among 58 boys in 4:19.93. His performance ranks third among the 10 Grade 1 results currently documented in the Boca historical database. He'll have a legit shot to be the State Champ next season and join the base that Arielle, Brody and Samuel shined.
The elementary girls competed as a close three-athlete group in a field of 184 runners. Medley Gromosaik led the Warriors in 73rd at 10:28.52, followed by Chloe Ricard in 76th at 10:32.17 and Sasha Uditsky in 79th at 10:41.34. Less than 13 seconds separated the three girls. Stay with it, girls, in time you will see just how great you can be at this sport. Our next generation is already arriving.
In the Open Girls 3K, Adelina Ching earned a medal finish, placing 17th among 161 runners in 13:24.58. Haysa Ebrahim placed 27th, Sophie Chhabra 28th and Mila Valderrama 107th.
Every one of these performances contributed to the complete picture of the Warriors’ state championship weekend—from a first grader learning to compete while having fun on the state stage to experienced middle-school athletes racing near the front of elite fields.
The Strongest BW Showing in FLYRA’s podium
Boca Warriors’ FLYRA cross-country history begins in 2019. Since then, the program has recorded:
226 individual FLYRA finishes
136 different athletes
5 individual state victories
11 individual top-three finishes
51 top-10 finishes
86 top-20 finishes
14 team podiums
5 state team championships
The 2026 delegation of 36 athletes was the second largest in the verified history, behind only the 39 athletes who competed in 2024.
More importantly, this year’s 16 medals earned are the most Boca Warriors have recorded in a single FLYRA championship season. The previous high was 15 in 2024.
Across the combined FLYRA State and FLRunners Invitational archive, Boca Warriors now have 406 verified results from 151 athletes, with 29 team podiums and 15 team championships.
Those numbers describe more than one successful weekend. They show a program developing athletes over time, building competitive teams across multiple age groups and creating opportunities for beginners to grow into state and national contenders.
The joy of the Sport: Championship Results represent more than numbers
These remarkable results were made possible by the consistency surrounding the successive seasons and club program legacy—Coach Crate’s experience and unwavering dedication, parents who drive, travel and support the team, and athletes who trained as a pack through the elements, overcoming demanding challenges while still being kids, friends and having fun in this sport!
Congratulations to every Warrior who represented the club at the 2026 FLYRA State Cross-Country Championships—and to the teammates who trained and prepared alongside them but could not compete because of injury, scheduling conflicts or other circumstances. Your commitment, friendship, encouragement and daily effort helped build this team’s success, even if you were not at the starting line this weekend. One meet never define your season or your progress. Your next opportunity is ahead, and the entire team sincerely misses you and is always proud of you.
The elementary boys returned home as state champions. The club girls returned as state runners-up. Across the roster, the Warriors returned with confidence, experience and proof that Boca Warriors’ championship tradition continues to grow.
View the complete FLYRA results.
Interested in joining Boca Warriors? Boys and girls ages 5–15 of all experience levels are welcome. Contact the team to schedule a free first practice or competitive evaluation.
Data note: Official results identify the elementary event as a 2K. Email document from meet director available at pre-meet information page confirmed 2,125-meter measured Holloway Park course beginning in 2026 (and includes FLRunners Invitational addition). Official finishing times and places remain unchanged, and all 3K races remain 3,000 meters.
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