The Sachem East girls cross-country team traveled upstate- way, WAY, upstate- to compete in the New York State Public High School Championships, finishing a fantastic 6th place in a stellar field. Featuring four teams ranked in the Saucony Flo 50 National Rankings, including Saratoga and Fayetteville-Manlius who together have won eight out of the last nine National Championship Meets held in Oregon, East weathered the muddy, cold conditions to top a number of quality teams to both pull out a sixth place finish and secure an automatic bid to the New York State Federation Championships next Saturday. It is the first “auto” qualifier for the Fed Champs Meet in East program history.
The Arrows were led by junior Alex DeCicco’s 13th place finish (18:47) who garnered All-State honors by finishing in the top 20. Val Romero (49th-19:30), Rachel Ruggiero (65th-20:06), Karli Murphy (70th-20:14), Tiffany Ly (78th-20:23), Caitlin O’Hehir (98th-21:02), and Jill Manfredi (100th-21:14), all contributed to the scoring. Also putting together a good day was Elise Ramirez of Sachem North who placed 37th, crossing the line with a time of 19:19.
Despite this being their first State Cross-Country meet, the young squad was unflustered by either the level of competition or the rough conditions.
“We’ve run well against these strong teams all season,” stated Coach Dan Schaub.
However, the rain and snow mix while previewing the course, the slippery deep mud, and staying literaly on the Canadian border, were all new for the squad.
“Cross Country is all about training and focus,” added Schaub. “These girls know how to focus and put it all together on race day. Just another day at the office. No different.”
Next up for Sachem East is the New York State Federation Cross Country Championships held this coming Saturday in upstate Wappingers Falls. After winning the Suffolk County Championship and then finishing as the top Long Island team at the State Public High School Championships these last two weeks, what can we expect at Feds?
“For us, it will really be no different than the Eastern States or State Meet races,” explained Schaub. “Different courses, but almost the same competition. It’s a great opportunity and should be lot’s of fun!”
Girls race time is 12:15 and combines the top XC programs from across NYS encompassing all Public School classes, Private schools, and Catholic schools.
-Submitted by Sachem East coaching staff