East Impressive with Track Recruits

In the lobby at Sachem High School East, three track girls stood anxiously answering questions about their athletic careers and futures, which will take them from Farmingville to Purdue, Air Force and Bucknell. They hesitated when they spoke of their accomplishments, which is ironic since they are quick to finish races and even quicker when their team needs them for a burst of energy on the track.

Brittney Dippel (Air Force), Lisa Luchsinger (Purdue) and Caitlyn Ryan (Bucknell) are completely different runners, but all are, "the best of the best," according to assistant varsity coach Dan Schaub. "They are always doing the right thing and never really want to brag about what they do. It's so rare to see kids who are so consistently good and so consistently humble. They have that quiet confidence of getting things done the right way."

Dippel, who said she isn't sure if she'll run competitively at Air Force, had a feeling she'd be attending the academy since she wanted to do something, "extraordinary in life," and felt the military catered to her needs.

A hurdler by trade, she has dabbled in the discuss this year and is a four-year track star at East, where she is ranked No. 7 in her class out of 603.

Ryan is thinking of going pre-med at Bucknell, one of the nation's premier distance running schools. She was considering LaSalle, Wagner and Lafayette, but when the coaching staff told her she'd be one of the top 10 entering freshman on the team next year that pretty much sealed the deal.

She runs the 3,000 and 1,500-meter races and the 2,000-meter steeplechase. An All-County runner in the 3,000, she's four seconds shy of breaking the school record for that event (10:27).

"She has the ability to put in the long miles," Schaub said. "It's tough physically and mentally. She has a very different kind of ability, runs in long intervals and does long workouts."

Luchsinger is one of the best sprinters in Suffolk County. Purdue competes in the Big Ten, meaning she'll have her work cut out for the next four years. At East she competes in the 100-meter dash, 200-meter dash and the 4x100-meter relay. She came in 8th at nationals in the 200 and 9th in the 100.

She's looking forward to taking her ability to that premier level of collegiate track.

"I just want to get better," she said, "and being in an atmosphere that's that competitive I can do that."

She's been a county champion an eye-popping 11 times in various events over her varsity career.

It's because of her, "unrivaled sprinting ability," Schaub said. "Since she came around as a ninth grader, she has been a one of the elite runners in the county. She competes with some of the best kids in the nation."

Another year of East girls track, and another set of accomplished girls off to new heights.

What else to look for with SEGVT? Last year the girls finished second in League I and fourth at the division championships. Head coach Pete McNeil said junior Alyssa Genduso, who qualified for the state meet in the pole vault last year, will be equally as good in the event this season.

Look for Kristen Faulkner and Sarah Hansen to be ultra-competitive in the high jump.

Aside from Ryan at distance, East has Melanie Notarstefano, who set the school record in the 2,000-meter steeplechase last week.

Brittany Christiansen is a gifted junior shot putter to keep an eye on and racewalkers Kelly Maranchuk and Amanda Catherall should bring plenty of promise to that event since they're only sophomores and are already competing at the national level.