The Manhasset Varsity Cross Country team just finished a spectacular season, culminating at the Nike Cross Regional championship upstate at Bowdoin Park in Wappingers Falls. Seven athletes competed in the “Championship” division race, looking to punch a ticket to Nike Cross Nationals on the infamous Glendoveer course in Oregon. Before all this was possible, the team spent the entire summer and months of the school year training to lead up to this race.
After the spring track season ended on June 18th of last year with the New Balance Outdoor National Championship, the team got straight into the summer training for cross country. With many members of the team logging 400-plus miles over the months of June, July, and August, the team came into the season fit, and ready to compete. The first day of the season came on August 28th, 2023, with the first “competition” of the season coming on September 2nd, when the team headed over to Allenwood Park in Great Neck to race against each other in a time trial. Throughout the rest of the regular season, the team competed in 5 league meets, competing against other Long Island schools. The boys went undefeated with a 13-0 record, claiming the Conference and Division titles in the process.
Also during the course of the normal season, the team competed in many invitationals on the weekends, including the famous McQuaid Invite, and the Manhattan College Invite, hosted on the nationally recognized Van Cortlandt course. Junior Stije Huinink led the team in 13:42 for 4 kilometers, leading the team to a 2nd-place finish among 25 teams in the highly contested varsity race. Senior Kenneth Lee led the way for the rest of the team, clocking a time of 14:40 over four kilometers, and making way for 11 additional Manhasset runners to earn medals in the junior varsity race.
The end of the normal season came on October 18th with the Frosh-Soph-Junior-Senior meet at Eisenhower Park, in which the team competed amongst their own grade classes. Many runners took the opportunity to perform on this fast, flat, course, running huge PRs (personal records) in the process.
The following weekend, the championship season began with the Class II County Championships hosted at Bethpage State Park. Competing against Great Neck South and Garden City, among other teams, the Varsity squad emerged victorious, bringing home the program’s 17th County Championship title. Following the race, 9 athletes earned All-County awards, with another 9 athletes earning All-Conference distinctions for their efforts. Tommy Sheerin led the way for the All-County athletes, placing 6th amongst the best runners in Nassau County. The full list of All-County athletes is as follows, in order of placement: Tommy Sheerin, Stije Huinink, Blake Sealy, Luke Giangrande, John Hogan, Alex Armendariz, Ryan Boldi, Kenneth Lee, and Mychal Duffy.
Seven days later, the boys headed back to Bethpage State Park to compete in the State Qualifier meet, needing a win in order to qualify for the NYSPHSAA State Championship the following weekend. And win they did. The team placed first against a competitive field, including Garden City and other teams, enabling them to head up to Syracuse and compete against the best runners in State Class B. The goal was clear: win the State Championship. However, the team would be up against some fierce competition: Burnt Hills High School, the state champion for the past 6 years. After the race was run, the results were in. The Manhasset Boys had placed 2nd, losing to Burnt Hills High School. Throughout the rest of the season, the team competed in the NYSPHSAA Federation Championships ( the first time a Manhasset team has ever qualified for the meet ), and the Nike Cross Regional Championships.
Although the team didn’t achieve the ultimate goal of a State Championship title, the improvement was clear from one season to the next. Last season the team placed 4th in the County and missed a berth at the State meet, and a year later they placed 2nd in the entire State. And with all but 3 members of the Varsity squad returning for the 2024 season, the objective is clear: dethrone Burnt Hills and bring home a State trophy.