Sachem Patch Cross Country Rewind

The Sachem East boys cross country team opened the season for the third consecutive year at the Bear Mountain Invitational, taking first place.

Sachem lead by Ryan Scarpelli who posted the fastest time of the day on the 3-mile course at 15:56, and it was soon after that teammates Zach Patsy (16:43), Thomas Rascona (17:10), Franklin Perez (17:27), and Jimmy Houghton (18:15) crossed the line. Jimmy Houghton (18:15), John Bruno (18:29), and Liam Dale (18:32) were right there as well.

Sachem North's Kelly Lavan finished fourth for the girls in 19:43. Katie Michta placed 10th in 20:04.

The Sachem North boys cross country team placed second overall in the varsity A race at Bear Mountain. The team was led by Colin Eberhardt who was fourth overall in a time of 16:31, Mike LoSchiavo who was 16th and Brandon Hayes who was 20th.

First year cross country runner Anthony Coccia, who was the team's fifth runner, placed 39th overall, ran an excellent race, according to coach William Holl. The freshmen team placed third overall in the freshmen race and was led by John Onken, 5th overall, and Patrick Lavan who was 14th overall.

East Girls Start Strong

Last week the Sachem East girls cross country team won their first dual meet against Sachem North to start their dual meet season, 21-36.

Then it was off to compete at the VVS Invitational this past weekend in Verona, N.Y.  This is the 5K course where the State Championship Meet will be held.

East was originally ranked 28th in the state. In this Varsity III race, they were competed against Canandaigua, ranked fifth and Cicero-North Syracuse, ranked 10th.  East finished second, beating Cicero-North.

Rachel Paul led the way winning the entire race with a time of 18:24. Melanie Notarstefano (19:58), Shannon O'Hehir (20:14) and Danielle Vazquez (20:20) finished 8th, 9th, and 10th, respectively. Kaitlin DiMartino was East's 5th scorer who finished 22nd with a time of 21:29.

"With such a strong start to their season, they have made their mark and are showing that they are a force to be reckoned with," said East coach Jaimie Sison. "Summer training and dedication to their team is paying off and they are ready for a competitive and exciting season ahead."

This Tuesday they will go against Lindenhurst at Belmont Lake State Park andwill go on to compete at the Suffolk Coaches Invitational on Saturday, September 24.