HIGH SCHOOL PREVIEWS / GIRLS CROSS COUNTRY / ‘Shea Steps Out From Behind Shadow: [SUFFOLK Edition]

Liam McHugh. STAFF WRITER. Newsday, Combined editions; Long Island, N.Y. [Long Island, N.Y]. 09 Sep 2000: 

For the first time since 1994, someone not named Jillian Mastroianni will be crowned Suffolk Class B cross country champion. With the five-time county, and four-time state champion now pushing the pace in the college ranks, a new crop of girls will look to separate themselves from the pack, and run for glory-not simply for second place.

Miller Place’s Meghan O’Shea, a senior and runner-up to Mastroianni last fall, is the logical candidate to step into the spotlight.

“She’s a hard worker, and she likes the underdog role,” Miller Place coach Fran Sullivan said.

That makes sense considering she’s been running in Mastroianni’s distinguished shadow for years, but for now, O’Shea better adjust to being thought of as the favorite.

“O’Shea is definitely the best runner [in the county], and Miller Place is clearly the team to beat,” Shoreham coach Paul Koretski said.

With most of last year’s squad back, including its top three of O’Shea, sophomore Kim Caramanica and freshman Daisy Goldstein, Miller Place will look to lay claim to its fifth straight county crown and sixth in seven years.

Koretski’s team, which returns sophomore Toni Lynn Salucci (fifth in B last year), and senior Karen Esnes, will be competitive. Sayville’s Lindsay Dalpiaz and Caitlyn Brady will look to prove there is life after Jill.

Class A: Last season’s Class A team championship was a nailbiter, and this year shouldn’t differ much, except that more teams will be in the mix. In 1999, Bay Shore nipped Patchogue- Medford, 79.2-82. Bellport was third with 96 points. This year, all three of those teams, plus Floyd and Longwood, could seize the top spot.

Floyd returns the reigning Class A county champion, junior Ginine Lucarello, who showed big-race toughness at the county meet when she outkicked Patchogue’s Katie Wrinkle.

Bellport’s Theresa Fath is coming off an impressive spring, and could give Lucarello a run for her money.

Class C: Bayport, the 1998 Class B champion, dropped to C because of enrollment last year and picked up right where it left off, winning the Class C team championship. Led by junior Diane Heiser, Bayport finds itself in good shape to repeat.

Class D: Shelter Island brings back the top two finishers in Class D, seniors Vanessa Hamblet and Jackie Kestler.

Top teams: Floyd, Bellport, Longwood, Bay Shore, Patchogue- Medford, Miller Place, Sayville, Bayport-Bluepoint, Shelter Island. Key runners: Floyd junior Ginnine Lucarello; Longwood senior Jessica Lee, junior Stephanie Henderson; Bellport seniors Theresa Fath, and Tammie Mentzel; Bay Shore freshman Ryan Hoffman; Patchogue-Medford sophomore Beth Malenovsky; Whitman senior Jane Bianchi; Miller Place senior Megan O’Shea, sophomore Kim Caramanica, freshman Daisy Goldstein; Sayville senior Lindsay Dalpiaz, freshman Caitlyn Brady; Shoreham Wading River sophomore Toni Lynn Salucci; Shelter Island seniors Vanessa Hamblet and Jackie Kestler. Races to watch: Suffolk Coaches meet, Sunken Meadow, Sept. 23, 10 a.m.; Suffolk Sectional and Division Championship, Sunken Meadow, Oct. 27, noon; Suffolk State Qualifier, Sunken Meadow, Nov. 2, noon; State meet, Utica, Nov. 11, 10 a.m.; State Federation meet, Nov. 18, 10 a.m.c

CROSS COUNTRY

Chaminade Tops. Collin Martin placed fifth with a time of 16:31 to lead Chaminade to the team title in the 5,000-meter championship race at the Briarwood Invitational in Philadelphia. Brendan Brown ran a 16:40 and Brandon Basso 16:51 to finish ninth and 10th, respectively.

Longwood Girls Take Second. The Longwood girls cross country team finished second in the varsity B race at Bear Mountain State Park in Suffern. Jessica Lee ran three miles in 19:10 and finished third, and Stephanie Henderson was fifth (19:22). Newsday, Combined editions; Long Island, N.Y. [Long Island, N.Y]. 17 Sep 2000:

Henderson Shows Tough Side: [NASSAU AND SUFFOLK Edition]

Jim Baumbach. STAFF WRITER. Newsday, Combined editions; Long Island, N.Y. [Long Island, N.Y]. 24 Sep 2000: 

Stephanie Henderson is a mere 5 feet, but it’s dangerous for opponents to overlook her. The Longwood junior is a talented cross- country performer, and she’s also one tough customer.

“People see me on the starting line, and they think I’m frail,” Henderson said yesterday with a smile. “When people throw elbows at me, I’ll give it right back.”

Exchanging elbows is normal procedure in cross country, where much of the first half-mile is spent jockeying for position. And Henderson can jockey with the best of them.

In yesterday’s Suffolk Coaches Invitational girls Varsity A race at Sunken Meadow State Park, Henderson gained the lead midway through her run and never relinquished it in winning the 3.1-mile event in 20 minutes, 10.3 seconds. Southampton’s Megan Gubbins was second, 33.5 seconds behind Henderson.

One glance at Henderson and you might wonder how she compensates for such small strides. “It’s my quick feet,” said Henderson, who won the same race (20:02.2) at last year’s meet.

Shoreham-Wading River sophomore Toni-Lynn Salucci, competing in only her second race at Sunken Meadow, won the Varsity C race in 20:23.6, 3.3 seconds faster than Theresa Fath of Bellport.

“I heard her footsteps behind me before Cardiac [Hill], but not after it,” said Salucci, referring to Sunken Meadow’s renowned incline in the stretch. “I just kept pushing.”

Lindsey Scherf of Scarsdale (Section I) won the Varsity B race in 20:06.3, which was the fastest time by a girl. Longwood won the team title in A, Patchogue-Medford was the B champ and Shoreham was tops in C.

Port Jefferson junior Brendan Sullivan and Bellmore JFK senior Elliot Rosenblum used their friendly rivalry to set the pace in the boys Varsity C race. Sullivan, who was first in 16:47.2, and Rosenblum, who took second in 16:57.6, raced ahead of the pack early and chatted in the process.

“As we ran past the crowd, which was chanting my name, Elliot said, ‘Everyone’s here to root for you,'” Sullivan said. “It’s good because it lets us know it’s just a race. We kept each other going the whole race.”

SUFFOLK COACHES INVITATIONAL

At Sunken Meadow State Park-3.1 miles

GIRLS: Varsity A-1. Stephanie Henderson (Longwood), 20:10.3; 2. Gubbins (Southampton), 20:43.5; 3. Lee (L), 20:51. Team Scores: Longwood 67, St. Anthony’s 78, McKee Tech (Staten Island) 117, St. John Villa (S.I.) 132, Mepham 137. Varsity B-1. Lindsey Scherf (Scarsdale, Sect. I), 20:06.3; 2. Lucarello (Floyd), 20:47.1; 3. Saas (Patchogue-Medford), 20:59. Team Scores:Patchogue-Medford 78, Floyd 80, Bay Shore 95, Bayport-Blue Point 116, Sachem 117. Varsity C-1. Toni-Lynn Salucci (Shoreham-Wading River), 20:23.6; 2. Fath (Bellport), 20:26.9; 3. Demaro (SWR), 20:35.6. Team Scores: Shoreham- Wading River 43, Bellport 57, Suffern (Sect. I) 110, Connetquot 138, Port Jefferson 143.

A week after winning the Suffolk Coaches Invitational at Sunken Meadow, Longwood‘s Stephanie Henderson’s encore was an overwhelming first-place finish in the girls race. Henderson finished in 18:06, 14 seconds ahead of Shoreham-Wading River’s Toni-Lynn Salucci, who was first among the small school runners. Salucci, a sophomore who won the Class C race at the Suffolk Coaches meet, is making her name as the smaller-schools runner to beat.

“As soon as I felt the other girls were dying, I tried to pick it up,” Henderson said. “This was a fast course, I was just hoping for a time in the low 18s.”

Finishing third in 18:41 was Amy DeMarco, a senior from Shoreham competing in her first year of cross country. In the previous autumns, DeMarco spent her time as a field hockey player, and said the decision to make the switch was a tough, last-minute one.

“I miss the team concept of field hockey, but I feel I’m better at this,” DeMarco said. “This is something I’d maybe like to do in college.”

Longwood won the Large school crown amassing 70 points, with Bellport narrowly finishing second with 93.

The Small school championship went to Shoreham-Wading River with 70 points, and Bayport-Blue Point finished second with 132.

SUFFOLK PAL MEET

At Firemen’s Field -3.1 miles

GIRLS: Large School-1. Stephanie Henderson (Longwood), 18:06; 2. Lee (Longwood), 19:09; 3. Smith (Ward Melville), 19:36; 4. Gabriel (Bellport (19:39); McGee (Bellport), 19:51. Team Scores: Longwood 70, Bellport 93, West Islip 283, Connetquot 293, Ward Melville 356, Middle Country 422. Small School-1. Toni-Lynn Salucci (Shoreham- Wading River), 18:19; 2. DeMarco (SWR), 18:41; 3. Wilson (Shelter Island), 18:47; 4. Gubbins (Southampton), 19:02; 5. Esnes (SWR), 19:15. Team Scores: Shoreham-Wading River 70, Bayport 132, Kings Park 174, Glenn 242, Westhampton Beach 261, Comsewogue 289, Shelter Island 332, East Hampton 436, Stony Brook 500, Babylon 544. Sept. 30

Commack 24……………………..East Islip 40

Bellport 15…………………..West Babylon 50

Smithtown 23……………….Ward Melville 38

Stony Brook 20…………..Hampton Bays 42

Stony Brook 15……………………….Mercy 50

Longwood 22…………………………..Floyd 35. Newsday, Combined editions; Long Island, N.Y. [Long Island, N.Y]. 04 Oct 2000:

Longwood 18………………………Sachem 38 Newsday, Combined editions; Long Island, N.Y. [Long Island, N.Y]. 11 Oct 2000:

Wantagh’s Jean Coleman didn’t get caught up in the mad dash that constitutes the beginning of nearly every cross country race, and that may have made the difference. Coleman, who won the girls C race in 15:33, was comfortably in fifth after the initial sprint, about 15 yards behind the leader, who appeared to be struggling. Coleman conserved energy, made her move in the woods, and never looked back as she cruised to victory 23 seconds in front of her nearest competitor.

“I just tried not to go out too fast, and then go and catch them,” Coleman said.

Laura Cummings finished fifth (15:58) to lead Bay Shore to the girls C title. Hicksville’s Sara Habib was sixth (15:58). Stephanie Henderson took fourth (15:44.49) in the B race to pace Longwood to a fourth-place finish. Newsday, Combined editions; Long Island, N.Y. [Long Island, N.Y]. 15 Oct 2000: 

GIRLS CROSS COUNTRY

Longwood 15…………….Middle Country 50. Newsday, Combined editions; Long Island, N.Y. [Long Island, N.Y]. 18 Oct 2000:

SUFFOLK DIVISION CHAMPIONSHIPS

At Sunken Meadow State Park (3.1 Miles)

Friday

GIRLS: 1. Toni-Lynn Salucci (Shoreham-Wading River), 19:30.7 2. Henderson (Longwood), 19:47.8; 3. O’Shea (Miller Place), 19:53.6; 4. Brady (Sayville), 19:54.9; 5. Demarco (Shoreham), 20:00.5 6. Cummings (Bayshore), 20:02.1; 7. Goldstein (Miller Place), 20:10.5 8. Lee (Longwood), 20:21.6; 9. Saas (Patchogue-Medford), 20:25.1; 10. Dalpiaz (Sayville), 20:28.9; 11. Hoffman (Bayshore), 20:37.7; 12. Rogers (Longwood), 20:38.7; 13. Cameron (Floyd), 20:43.2 14. Mason (Bayshore), 20:44.4; 15. Buonpane (Sachem), 20:45.3; 16. Lucarello (Floyd), 20:48.3; 17. Tumulty (Rocky Point), 20:55.0; 18. Gubbins (Southampton), 21:04.7; 19. McGrath (Connetquot), 21:08.4; 20. Wilson (Shelter Island), 21:10.4.

Overall Meet Champion-Longwood.

Division Champions-I: Longwood. II: Bay Shore. III: Shoreham- Wading River. IV: Bayport-Blue Point. Newsday, Combined editions; Long Island, N.Y. [Long Island, N.Y]. 29 Oct 2000: