Yes, Fayettville-Manlius (ranked No. 1 in the U.S.) won the race and yes, Saratoga Springs (ranked No. 3 U.S.) placed second, but Sachem East continued its superb season by grabbing fourth place in the New York State Public High School Championships held at Monroe-Woodbury High School this past Saturday.
The defending National Champion F-M squad scored 28 points, followed by Saratoga Springs (77), North Rockland (110), Sachem East (115), and host Monroe-Woodbury (138).
Sachem East was just five points shy of toppling nationally-ranked opponent North Rockland (currently No. 20 in the U.S.) in its best performance as a team this year.
Alex DeCicco again led the Arrows, her 18:43 on the hilly 3.1 mile X-C Course earning her an 11th place finish and all-state honors.
Val Romero (33rd- 19:32) and Rachel Ruggiero (39th- 19:43) followed closely with Lindsey Doddenhoff (52nd- 20:07) and Tiffany Ly (80th- 20:35) completing the scoring for Sachem East.
Caitlin O’Hehir (89th- 20:56) and Jill Manfredi (91st- 20:57) provided strong back-up in an outstanding team showing- Sachem East’s highest finish at States ever.
“This might be the best TEAM performance in East XC history!” stated Sachem East coach Dan Schaub.
The Arrows now travel to Bowdoin Park in Wappingers Falls to compete in the New York State Federation Championships, with the fourth place finish at States earning East an automatic spot in the meet.
In addition to the top public schools, the top Catholic Schools, New York City Schools, and Private Schools will all send their best to this massive championship race that puts a total of 270 runners on the starting line.
The girls will compete for a shot to knock off some of New York’s (and the nation’s) top squads and win a coveted top-five team plaque.