It's not often that two sets of brothers and sisters are a part of the same athletic program. But that is the case this year with the Binghamton cross country and track programs.

Kaylee and Josh Stone are from nearby Windsor, New York. Kaylee graduated from Windsor High School in 2017 and Josh three years later. Ryan and Kyra Guerci, who are twins, hail from Nanuet, New York and both of them graduated from Nanuet High School in 2019.

This year marks the first time that all four of them will be part of the same program. Each family member has been there for one other through the good times, tough times and especially during the current pandemic. They all are excited about the prospect of being a part of a program this year that has become like another family to them.

Deep Roots

Growing up in Windsor, Kaylee was more into gymnastics than running. When she got injured, however, it led her to consider other alternatives.

"I was a gymnast for several years until I got injured and then decided to try a less dangerous sport," Kaylee said. "I was thinking about swimming or trying out for the volleyball team but our parents had both run track in high school. So I ended up running cross country."

Josh, meanwhile, was determined to play football during the fall season but when he saw Kaylee excelling in cross country, he made a switch. 

"From the time I was a little kid I always wanted to play two sports - track and football," he said. "Up until 10th grade I played football but after watching my sister have so much success in running and after having some of my own success in track my freshman year, I decided to make the switch and become a full-time runner."

For the Guercis, meanwhile, the path towards running track and cross country was a lot more direct. Their father was the head coach at Pearl River High School and brought along Ryan and Kyra to one of his summer camps.

"We first started up running when our dad brought us along to his cross country summer camps for his Pearl River team," Kyra said. "It was there Ryan found he really liked running. On the other hand, I was always interested in watching races, but I was confused why people weren't just going faster to beat the runner ahead of them in races. It looked easy enough!"

Ryan and Kyra both competed in track and cross country for Nanuet High School. Both were named all-state in cross country as seniors in the fall of 2018. Ryan was third in the boys' Class B New York State (NYS) meet as a senior while Kyra was 11th in the girls' race. Ryan went on to win the Class B NYS outdoor track title in the 3,200 the following spring. Although their father was not their coach during that time, he was still a big source of support and guidance.

"Having our dad as a cross country coach has helped so much over the years," Kyra said. "We have learned from him how to consistently train and he's always willing to answer any running questions that we've had."

Beyond their father, however, Ryan and Kyra leaned on each other most of all. They became very close through their common bond of running.

"Throughout the years, we've gotten closer when it comes to running," Kyra said "Our conversations range from talking about our runs and how fast they were or weren't, our training schedules, racing strategies, etc. Ryan is the one with all the running knowledge, so I've gone to him lots of times on how to pace during races with different competitors."

Like the Guercis, Kaylee and Josh Stone have also become close through the shared bond of running. It started back before Josh took up cross country and he was at all of his sister's races at Windsor. It continued after Kaylee was at Binghamton and she was able to go back home to watch Josh compete for Windsor.

"I don't remember a race in high school Josh didn't attend," Kaylee said. "His support meant a lot to me and I have always tried my best to be a role model for him and be someone he could always count on."

"Kaylee made it to every single one of my meets that she could," Josh said. "She has been such a big inspiration to me throughout the years. She brings out the best in me and always believes in my goals and dreams."

Coming to Binghamton

If one were to ask the Stones and Guercis five years ago if they would wind up at the same college with their siblings, the answer would have been "no." But as time went on, their mindsets changed.

Kaylee graduated from Windsor High School in 2017 after winning three straight conference titles in the 3,000. She was also 11th at the New York State Class C Meet her senior year. Her original thought was to leave the Binghamton area and go away to college. But as Josh supported her and eventually got into running himself, she began to have a change of heart. 

"Josh was a big part in my decision to go to Binghamton," she said. "I always thought I wanted to go away to school but the older we got, the closer we became."

By the time Kaylee arrived at Binghamton in the fall of 2017, Josh had a full schedule of his own meets. Still, he was able to follow his sister's progress from a distance.

"Once Kaylee moved to the collegiate level, the meets were further away and conflicted more with my schedule," he said. "But I still watched her on Flotrack whenever I could."

The decision of Ryan and Kyra to both go to the same college wasn't their first choice either. But as their senior years at Nanuet progressed, they had a change of heart.

"Originally, we considered not going to the same school during our senior year, but it soon became apparent that wasn't for the best," Ryan said.

"After meeting with the coaching staff and the team we just knew that Binghamton was the right fit for both of us," Kyra said.

Throughout their freshman year at Binghamton, Ryan and Kyra helped each other get adjusted to college life.

"We're not sure what we would do without each other at Binghamton," Ryan said. "We rely on each other more than we realize. We would go to one another's rooms if we ever needed a break from work, needed help, or just wanted to hang out and play Super Smash Bros on the Nintendo Switch. And it was definitely nice having someone to lean on whenever our suitemates were busy."

For Ryan, his freshman cross country season provided him with an early breakthrough. He was named second-team all-conference after placing 14th overall at the America East Championships in October 2019.

"In the beginning of the cross country season, I had to get used to the longer 8k distance which took a few races but by the conference meet, I feel like I had it nailed down," he said. "Being named All-Conference was the icing on the cake of the whole experience with an amazing team that I got to bond with during my freshman year at Binghamton."

The 2019 cross country season, however, was a difficult one for Kaylee. After earning all-conference honors in the steeplechase during the 2019 outdoor track campaign, she wasn't able to stay healthy that fall. She was able to find encouragement, however, in being able to go to Josh's meets.

"I had spent the entire summer training for a season that I wasn't able to complete," she said. "On top of that, I did not feel like myself because I was sick. Although I was not able to travel to the meets with the team, I stayed back in Binghamton and went to Josh's local cross country races. His meets gave me something to look forward to on the weekend when I was supposed to be competing with my own team."

Josh had a standout senior cross country season, which included winning the conference and sectional titles. He was the runner-up at the New York State Class B Meet, placed seventh at the New York Regional Meet and 78th at the National Meet. At the end of the year, he signed his National Letter of Intent (NLI) at a ceremony. Three years earlier, he was at Kaylee's NLI ceremony and now she was there at his event.

"My signing day was definitely a day I will remember forever," he said. "I remember sitting up there with Kaylee three years prior. It felt I little like I was carrying on a legacy. But more than anything, I was just happy my family was all there."

It was the family-oriented culture of the Binghamton program that was a key factor in Josh's decision to follow Kaylee to Binghamton.

"If this program had not become like a second family to me, I would have not pushed for Josh to come to Binghamton," Kaylee said. "There are members of this team that I will keep in touch with for the rest of my life. I couldn't be happier with my decision to come to Binghamton and I hope Josh finds himself feeling the same way at the end of his career as a Bearcat."

The New Normal

In March 2020, the world of sports changed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Both the college track season at Binghamton and the high school track season at Windsor were canceled. All schools transitioned to online learning and the state of New York was in lockdown mode for much of the spring. The Stones and the Guercis did not have the support system of their entire teams anymore – but they still had each other.

"The last five months have been a struggle for everyone in our family," Josh said. "Kaylee has really helped me when I have questions about training and has helped to really guide me through all the uncertainties of both the current situation and of college life in general. Other than that, she has just been someone else training and showing me that we aren't doing this for nothing." 

Living out in Windsor, however, has had its advantages for the Stones during these past several months.

"We are both the type of people to make the best of everything," Kaylee said. "We are fortunate enough to live out in the country where we go kayaking together and walk our goats. It is unfortunate that we will not be able to have our season this fall but our family is healthy and we will have other opportunities coming in the future."

The Guercis, meanwhile, have also gotten closer during this time of uncertainty. They too have bonded in ways beyond running.

"We've spent more time with our family during the past few months and just having each other has helped us a lot," Kyra said. "Whether we were making chocolate chip cookies or getting our favorite ice cream together, we were never really alone. We have faith that although the future is still uncertain, as long as we're together we'll be okay and get through this."

Ryan and Kyra have had different assigned workouts during the spring and summer but still talk about their progress with each other.

"We don't exactly run together with our paces and mileage being pretty different," Kyra said. "But we do go back and forth talking about our runs and what to do for core training for the week."

Looking Forward

Binghamton University reopened in August and while the fall cross country season were postponed, it marked the start of Josh and Kaylee once again attending the same school. When they are finally allowed to compete, they will be part of the same program for the first time in four years. It is something both of them are looking forward to.

"I am super excited to be in the same program with Josh," Kaylee said. "I hope that we can compete at least one out of the three seasons we are supposed to have. Either way it will feel good to be wearing the same colors again. When we ran together for Windsor, he was able to keep up with me for some of the workouts and now there's no way I will be able to keep up with him!"

"The last time Kaylee and I were on a team together seems like such a long time ago," Josh said. "It was a lot of fun to see each other at practice and be able to even run together. I truly am excited to see her more often once again and I'm hoping to make the most out of this next year with her."

Ryan and Kyra also returned to Binghamton to join a program that has in many ways become a second family to them.

"Binghamton's cross country and track team has definitely become a second family to us," Kyra said. "Being surrounded by people who love what they do and support each other from workouts to classes is such a great atmosphere and we wouldn't trade it for any other team. Coach Annette Acuff and Pat Murray have been so supportive with all the adjustments freshman year brought and have always listened to us when we needed them to. We love Binghamton and are looking forward to the next few years here improving on both the track and in our classes."

ARCHIVED STORIES

Kaylee signs with Binghamton (Dec. 7, 2016)
The Guercis sign with Binghamton (Dec. 12, 2018)
Josh signs with Binghamton (Jan. 15, 2018)
2019 America East Outdoor Championships - Kaylee Stone third in 3,000 SC (May 4, 2019)
2019 America East Cross Country Championships - Ryan Guerci is 14th (Nov. 2, 2019)