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| Doug Antaky Crossing the Finish Line @douglas_a_runner | Instagram |
On the boys side, there weren’t too many surprises in the individual race as Douglas Antaky won the Class A individual championship with ease as he ran 16:09 over the grueling Sunken Meadow 5000 meter course. He was over 11 seconds clear of second place and he will head upstate with an undefeated record in 2023.
Ward Melville senior Brian Liebowitz would secure his spot as one of the individuals in Class A to make the state meet as he ran 16:30 over the 5000 meter distance to place fourth overall.
The big surprise in the men’s race is Commack High School – who lacks a traditional front of the pack superstar – came away with the team county title over Smithtown and Eastport-South Manor with a score of 64 points.
In the boys Class B race, Rocky Point Sophomore Trevor Green pulled off a huge upset over the favorite Jess-Joe Augustine of Mount Sinai as he ran a blistering 16:31 to take home the win.
Augustine would still make it to the state meet as an individual as he placed third overall. Joining them will be Westhampton Beach Senior Trevor Hayes who finished inside the top 5 individuals.
In the boys Class C race, it was all Port Jefferson as they nearly had a perfect score of 15 as they had their top 5 runners place first, third, fourth, fifth, and sixth overall.
Junior Colin Veit cruised to victory as he made it to the finish line with a time of 17:14 over the 5000m distance. Behind him was Max Joyner, Andrew Schretzmayer, Carman Stanton, and Christopher Nam.
The girls Class A race saw William Floyd’s Superstar Athlete Zariel Macchia walk away with the victory as she completed the difficult 5000m course in a blistering 18:42. Macchia seemed to use this as a tune-up race as she looks to defend her Class A State Championship this upcoming weekend.
Behind Macchia, Bellport Junior Ella Masem had a big day as she would place second with a time of 19:12 and secured her spot as an individual at the State Championship meet. Ward Melville’s Anna Probst and Comsewogue’s Madison Cole also made the Bus to VVS High School for the State Meet as they rounded out the individual Qualifiers for the State Championship.
Despite Macchia’s predictable victory, she would not own the fastest time of day as she was outdone by Bayport-Blue Point’s Sophia McInnes who ran away with the Class B Victory with an incredible time of 18:20 over the 5000m course at Sunken Meadow.
Mount Sinai 8th grader Cali Gabrielson was the runner up and also ran under the 19 minute threshold, an insanely good time for any female runner, especially a girl who has yet to enter her freshman year of High School. Senior Paige Sheiffele will be joining Gabrielson on the trip to the State Meet with a 4th place finish.
Westhampton Beach will also send three individuals as Lily Striebel, Fina DiBasso and Caeden Dorn will also qualify for the State Championship as they were inside the top 5 individual finishers.
In the Class C Race, Center Moriches Sophomore Emma Gold would finish runner up and make it to the State Championship as an individual. Her teammate – and another 8th grader – Claire Castiglione will both make it to the State Meet as Individuals.
Port Jefferson Junior Gwen Connelly will also make the meet as an Individual as she placed 4th overall in the race.