Huntington Girls’ Winter Track Wins First Ever Suffolk Title
The Blue Devils were hoping for a top three finish, but they did even better. The Huntington High School girls’ track and field team won its first ever Suffolk indoor championship in convincing fashion last Saturday at Suffolk-West in Brentwood.
A series of spectacular performances helped the Blue Devils accumulate 74 points in the Suffolk small schools championships and top runners-up Shoreham-Wading River and Westhampton Beach by a wide margin.
Many Suffolk coaches believed that Huntington was the favorite entering the competition, but Blue Devil coaches Debra Cheskes and Shawn Anderson weren’t so sure. “I thought we could grab a top three spot, but we were a little shocked we won and by such a large margin,” said Anderson, the team’s assistant coach. “As was the league championship, this was a total team effort and everyone came to compete and did so exceptionally.”
Tara Byrnes Repeats as Shot Put Champ
Senior Tara Byrnes successfully defended her Suffolk shot put title with a toss of 35-09.50, a personal best distance. “Before the meet, Tara came up to me and told me, ‘I’m ready,’” Anderson said. “Clearly she was.” Twin sister Ellyn Byrnes placed sixth with a throw of 30-05.00. Junior Nina Cartwright finished 15th with a toss that measured 28-00.00.
Petryk’s Best Performance Ever
After qualifying four athletes for the 1000m run, Huntington’s coaches figured it would be an exciting race and they were right. Senior Suzie Petryk turned in the finest performance of her career, running a smart, tactical race on the way to her first county crown.
The teenager sat on the “shoulder” of Eastport-South Manor sophomore Taylor McClay for three laps before overtaking her in the final 300m stretch. “She didn’t look back,” Anderson said. Petryk crushed the three minute barrier and finished first in a new school record time of 2:57.47, which broke Kristen Kiraly’s previous Huntington mark.
Petryk’s time ranks her No. 1 in Suffolk and No. 6 in the state according to Milesplit.com. Sophomore teammates Alexis Pastorelli (3:16.98) and Louise Koepele (3:24.21) finished 10th and 12th, respectively. Eighth grader Sophie Dellecave (3:24.95) finished in a personal best time of 3:24.95 to place 14th in the field of 23.
“It felt truly fantastic,” said Petryk about winning the 1000m county title. “I couldn’t have asked for a better race. So many girls on our team had amazing performances. It was a really wonderful way for me and the other seniors to enjoy our last county championships.”
Moreno Dazzles in Long Jump
Blue Devil track and field newcomer Taylor Moreno displayed her dazzling talent by winning the long jump county title with a leap of 16-11.75. The junior later captured fifth place in the triple jump with an effort that measured 34-09.00.
Versatile team newcomer Ryann Gaffney ran a sensational race, finishing third in the 55m hurdles in 9.22 after qualifying for the finals with a preliminary round time of 9:12. “These were almost a half-second faster than her previous bests,” Cheskes pointed out.
Senior Kayla Eidle continued a long string of consistently superb performances in the 1500m race walk. The teenager again lowered her school record, this time to 7:50.57 to finish fourth in Suffolk.
In what many felt was the deepest 600m field ever assembled in Suffolk, junior Alexandra Koumas battled to a sixth place finish in 1:40.66, her best time of the winter and just 9/100ths off the current school record, which the teenager set last year.
“I think our team has put a lot of effort into this season and it really showed today,” Koumas said. “We were all super excited and wanted to keep the momentum going after winning the league title. Most of all, I think today showed the depth that we have on our team and in our program.”
H-ton Wins 4x800m Relay
Entering the race as the underdog, Huntington’s 4x800m relay team of Pastorelli, freshman Nicole Abbondandelo, Koumas and Petryk also won a Suffolk crown.
Leading off the race, Pastorelli ran well to put the Blue Devils in a solid fourth place position. Abbondandello slowly gained some ground in the next leg and moved Huntington into second place, trailing only Miller Place. Koumas was superb in the third segment, steadily closing the gap with Miller Place and finally overtaking the leaders on the second lap of her leg before handing off to Petryk. “From there, Suzie just powered home and ran a powerful leg,” Anderson said.
The Blue Devils finished first in 9:51.23, more than 11 seconds ahead of runner-up Miller Place. The time set a new Huntington High School record in the event.
In other action for the Blue Devils:
• Sophomore Marina Ruzic matched her best performance ever to take fourth place in long jump with a leap of 16-05.25.
• Huntington’s 4x200m relay team consisting of Moreno, Shand, Ruzic and Gaffney brought home the baton in 1:49.77, a mere 1/100th of a second behind runner-up Amityville (1:49.76) and heels of first place Miller Place, which finished in 1:49.36. “This was a super exciting race,” Anderson said.
• Savannah Richardson took fifth place in the high jump with a leap of 5-00.00. The height broke Jackie Bodnar’s indoor record of 4-11.00 set in 2007.
• Abbondandello continued to make strides in the 3000m run. In a fast competitive race, she placed fifth overall in a time of 10:58.95. “This season she has been a learning curve for Nicole and she continues to race well every time she steps on the track,” Anderson said.
• Junior Lexi Mills notched a huge personal best in triple jump, leaping 32-07.00 to take 15th place.
• Eighth grader Hadley Clayton continued making big strides as she lowered her personal best time in the 1500m run by almost seven seconds to 5:33.12.
Cheskes was ecstatic about how Huntington performed in the county championships, with school records being broken and the Blue Devils notching one personal best after another. “This is a deep and talented team and they worked so hard all season,” Cheskes said. “It paid off in the end for them.”
Final team scores: 1. Huntington-74; 2. Shoreham-Wading River-45; 2. Westhampton Beach-45; 4. Miller Place-34; 5. East Islip-31; 6. Bayport-Blue Point-30; 7. Kings Park-28; 8. Hauppauge-26; 9. Eastport-South Manor-19; 9. Amityville-19; 11. Islip-17; 12. Harborfields-16; 13. Mercy-12; 13. Port Jefferson-12; 15. Deer Park-11; 16. Bellport-10; 17. West Babylon-8; 17. Comsewogue-8; 19. Mount Sinai-6; 19. John H. Glenn-6; 21. Southampton-4; 22. East Hampton-2; 22-Rocky Point-2.