2023 Section 9 Cross Country Preview

It’s that time of year again. The best time of year. High School Cross Country is around the corner. The last push of summer miles is underway with captains gathering their teams before Monday, August 21st arrives. Athletes know that championship races run in the late Fall are built on these hot and humid days in July and August. Section 9 has continuously produced top athletes in the state of New York and we expect no shortage of amazing performances in 2023. Before we get wound up in the whirlwind of the 2023 XC season, we must first, as we do, lay the groundwork based on what has come before.

Revenge tour to VVS from Warwick

The 2023 NYSPHSAA XC Championship will once again be hosted at Vernon-Verona-Sheril (VVS) High School. Given a second year by the state committee due to the pandemic. The course features a windy, bumpy, wooded trail between open fields with a finish line in the football stadium. To get there out of Section 9 will be quite different this season. With Bear Mountain undergoing maintenance and construction, Warwick Valley will host the Section 9 Championship at Sanfordville Elementary School on Saturday, November 4th. The site of the 2006 NYSPHSAA State Championship, the Sanfordville course is a stark difference from Bear Mountain. We’re excited to see Championship Cross Country run entirely on grass (in spikes!) and over rolling hills in November. Runners will be able to get a taste of the course early on September 9th at Warwick’s Wave Mania Invitational and then October 28th at the OCIAA Championship.

Warwick Boy’s Head Coach Mike Potter had to say about Hosting the Section 9 Post Season :

Warwick Valley is excited to play host to the 2023 OCIAA and Section 9 Championships.  No stranger to hosting big meets, we plan to provide an athlete and spectator friendly course on a well manicured all grass 3.09m loop that will make for a memorable experience for all.  Many thanks to our Athletic Director Greg Sirico and Supt of Schools Dr. David Leach for opening up our facility.

Gone but not forgotten

Graduation hit Section 9 pretty hard. Collin Gilstrap and Collin Catherwood’s remarkable 2022-23 seasons for the Crusaders may be a tough act to follow. They were the one-two punch for a talented Monroe-Woodbury team that won a Federation title last Fall with Gilstrap taking the overall victory. Adam Furman from Tri-Valley also graduated. The West Point bound runner won the Class D Championship and led the Tri-Valley squad to their own team title at VVS (We got plenty more Furman in Section 9 to look out for… more later).

Of course, on the girls' side, Karrie Baloga ended her spectacular Section 9 Cross Country Career with a victory in the Class B Championship race. Section Champions, Ava Carsley from Valley Central (Class A) and Leah Richardson James I. O’Neill (Class C) also graduated to further shake up the chase to States.

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Class by Class Break Down : The Heavy Hitters

For Class A girls, Incoming Freshmen Olivia Heim from Monroe-Woodbury, who took second in last year’s Section Championship, is the front runner. Behind her is the speedster Shaylen Goslar. The senior from Pine Bush was 5th in last year’s Class A Race and represented Section 9 at the state level all three seasons from the 600m on up to the 1500m. Warwick’s Alyssa Dovico is a name to watch for one of top ‘next-five-in’ to make the trip to VVS.

If 2022 was the year of the Collins, 2023 may be the year of the Gavins. Incoming Junior, Gavin Catherwood from Monroe-Woodbury looks to run the path big brother left behind. Luckily, he has no shortage of experience in big time races. If you don’t know Senior Gavin Rossi from Minisink Valley you’ll get to know him soon enough. Gavin had some impressive and gutsy races in the indoor and spring season (my personal favorite was his take it from the gun, negative split, PR in the state 1600m out the unseeded section). Andrew Lee of Kingston was the first person not wearing Purple in last year’s Class A Race, plus he spent all spring tearing up the steeplechase (aka XC on the Track).

We’ll talk about what a move from Wallkill in Class B may mean for the Girls race, but in the meantime the Cornwall Green Dragons, who scored 30 points last November, bring back all but one of their scorers. Having Karrie Baloga leading the pack certainly helps, but Kerry Murphy, Sophia Semo, Olivia Cibirka and Frances Teague seem more than ready to keep the train on the tracks. Goshen Senior Gianna Catalano found her stride late last season with two solid runs at OCIAAs and Sections, earning her a trip to States. Watch out for New Paltz sophomore Cilo Miller who placed 7th in the MHAL championship as a freshman.

I made the mistake of going out on a run with Goshen Junior Noah Klugman this summer. He had me on the ropes by mile 2. The Gladiator is the top returner from a Class B that sees a lot of movement both from graduation and reclassification of schools. Behind him I see a pair of Green Dragons, seniors Oliver Jang and Chris Murray. Beacon has been quietly wreaking havoc on the section since their arrival a few years ago, and 1:55 800m guy Henry Reinke will be a player in the Class B Race this fall.

Class C Girls has been the O’Neill show for quite a bit. Last year, Leah Richardson led the ENTIRE *insert mascot name here* team across the finish line before any other competitor. Look for Erin Smith, Kaelyn Mitroka and Tessa Hendrickson to take over the pacing duties for this years race. Nataly Zempoaltecatl (Fallsburg) and Greta Sutherland-Roth (Rondout Valley) were chasing the O’Neill Girls last fall, we’ll see if they can break up the *insert mascot name here* pack.

*James I. O’Neill is one of many teams impacted by new NYSPHSAA rules that demands schools change mascots that depict Native American imagery.*

In the boys race there’s a lot of uncertainty in Class C. I’ll dive into the impact of Mount Academy moving down later, but there may or may not be some confirmed moves/transfers that will be a factor this season.

Better-late-than-never time to point out; incoming freshmen, athlete maturation, consistent and passionate training, families moving in and out, and transfers have huge ramifications for individual and team outlook for the upcoming season…

What we know: Carson Darling and Peter Dacunto from O’Neill are the top 2 returners in Class C as we knew it in 2022. I toed the line with both of them at the Highland Falls Firecracker 5k on 4th of July, and yes, they were pretty quick. Vincent Smaldone of Red Hook, Justin Cardwell from Dover, and Parker Pawliske of Chester (or Seward? Shadow or Merged program… who knows. We’ll find out in 3 months) all ran tight races to round out the top 10 in the 2022 race.

We’ve got a very Furman future in front of us. Anna Furman (Tri-Valley) as an 8th grader ran well under 20 minutes at Bear Mountain and over a minute in front of then freshmen Violet Bliss of Pine Plains. Everyone in the Girls’ Class D race returns for 2023 from 1 through 11. As far as I know Mount Academy girls are still classified in Class D, and all 5 scorers come back with Jenaya Swinger, Anne Scott and Abby Brenner rounding out their top 3. Amanda Intrieri from Webutuck placed 3rd in last years Championship race and should be set up for a big senior season.

I dedicated an entire section to the Boys’ Class D Clash below because it’s a doozy.  For those that aren’t wearing a Pine Plains and Tri-Valley uniform, Senior Jake Legato (Burke Catholic) will attempt to make a third appearance at States. Sophomore Dylan Vasquez (Millbrook) also will be in the picture, the talented athlete was the Class D Pentathlon Champion this past spring.

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OTher STORYLINES

In the hunt: Class D BOYS TITLEFIGHT

Class D Boys has been dominated the past few years by an impressive string of Tri-Valley teams, however the Pine Plains crew may be the favorites going into the season. With Tri-Valley graduating their 1-4-5-6, The Bombers return their entire scoring cast led by Junior Maxwell Decker and Senior Jared Heggenstaller. This can’t be without stating Van Furman and Craig Costa went 2-3 in last years Class D race, behind Adam. With teams like Sullivan West and Rhinebeck moving up to Class C there may not be much in the way to muddy up the point battle between these two squads. Get excited about small schools.   

New Kids on the Block

I don’t know about you, but I get pretty fired up when I see an Eighth Grader score in a big race. Looking at last year’s Section meet, outside Olivia Heim, there were some fresh names to look out for the next 4 years. Charlotte McFarland and Ireland Hurley from Kingston were the Tigers 3rd and 4th runners, and Rosario Dovico of Warwick Valley led the Purple Wave’s young squad at Bear Mountain last November. In Class C, Kaelyn Mitroka from James I O’Neill and Greta Sutherland-Roth of Rondout Valley placed inside the top 10.  Cal Farrel of Burke Catholic finished 13th in the Class D Race for the Eagles Second runner. And after Anna Furman, Layla Wilkin of Sullivan West and Shelby Quinn of Millbrook contributed scoring performances for their teams. We look forward to seeing these young athletes compete… as soon as they finish freshmen orientation.

On the Move

Perennial power Mount Academy Boys gets moved down to Class C where a rebuilding James I O’Neill team will fight for a trip to VVS. Class B Champion Donovan Baird returns for the Mount. The Junior ran 16:05 at Bear Mountain in a tight Class B race, a run that would have put him ahead of the Class C pack by 40 seconds. I know, I know… two different races… we’ll see how it shakes out in November. What we can guarantee is that the O’Neill boys will be decked out in Goodr sunglasses and I’m here for that vibe.

Also on the move is Wallkill. The Panthers didn’t field a full girls’ team in the Class A race last year, but they did have two fantastic performances by then Junior Emma Dilemme and Freshman Caitlyn Murphy. While they may not have the full firepower to be in the mix for a team title, there are certainly individual seats at the table to be had in Class B.

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We’re hoping to keep up with all the Cross Country madness throughout the fall. As with any year, new runners will emerge from a summer of consistent and solid training. Teams will assemble like the Avengers. The leaves will change. A Chill will fill in the air. We can’t wait to see everyone at the starting line in November. We're back!