Off and running

Indoor track athletes get into gear at West Point meet

By RICHARD A. ROSS

WEST POINT, NY — Weekends are times for many high school kids to sleep in. But no such luxury exists for indoor track and field athletes, who arise in the dark on Saturdays to board school busses bound for West Point for the meets that start at 9:00 a.m.

For the runners, jumpers and throwers from Liberty, Sullivan West, Eldred and Tri-Valley, the meet on December 8 marked only the second week of competition in the young season. But when it comes to making strides in events, time is of the essence.

Committed and hard-working, many of these fine athletes have their sights set on spring track and use this time to build strength, speed and endurance. Kids who choose to take the winter off find themselves at a severe disadvantage to the dedicated winter-track athletes, who reap dividends with the arrival of balmier weather.

The weekly sojourns to West Point will soon be sandwiched around developmental meets, slated to begin at the refurbished Paul Gerry Field House at Sullivan County Community College on December 17, with a subsequent meet scheduled for December 19. For much of the winter, the college will host two meets per week.

Far more accessible and convenient than Gillis Field House at West Point, the meets at SCCC feature competition among the county high school indoor track teams. The meets at West Point include all of the other teams in the OCIAA, split into two groups by size and held over two days.

In the first two weeks of the season, Monticello was separated from its county rivals as it was slated to compete in the ‘A’ meets held on Friday nights, while the other schools went at it in the ‘B’ meets on Saturday mornings. This past weekend’s ‘A’ meet was cancelled by inclement weather.

On December 15, Monticello will be reunited with Eldred, Sullivan West, Liberty and Tri-Valley in the OCIAA relays at West Point.

On December 8, the aforementioned schools, minus Monticello, competed in Division IV events at West Point. For many of the athletes that are veterans from the 2006-07 campaign, the meet rekindled old rivalries on both the individual and team levels.

In the 1500-meter race walk, Eldred’s Kaley Donnelly (9.37.30) edged out Sullivan West’s Olivia Seidl (9:43.29). Shortly thereafter, Sullivan West’s Sara Alsdorf (9.77) maintained her edge in the girls 55-meter hurldles. Teammate Morgan Hawkins (10.49) took second, with Tri-Valley’s Casey Offringa (10.54) taking third. In the boys 55-hurdles, Eldred’s Joey Counts (9.81) held sway over teammate Charlie Kreitlow (9.84) and Tri-Valley’s Jake Gray (9.91).

In the boys 55-meter dash, Liberty’s Malcolm Strother (7.16) prevailed over Sullivan West’s Will Schlott (7.36) and Eldred’s Matt Campanella (7.40).

Sullivan West’s Colin Seidl (10:32.65) prevailed in the 3200 over Tri-Valley’s Tom Riordan (11:07.39) and fellow Bulldog Dallas Ripley (11:19.67).

In the girls 3000, Sullivan West’s Rianne Erlwein (11:17.15) triumphed over teammate Chelsie Schadt (11:21.91) and Tri-Valley’s Rachel Sanborn (11:49.86).

In the girls 1000, Tri-Valley’s Courtney Roosa (3:16.31) outlasted Schadt (3:20.45) and Erlwein (3:21.63).

A partial list of other results includes the following:

Girls 55: Christina Watts (E) 8.00; Alsdorf (SW) 8.35; Kendra Barker (SW) 8.81.

Girls high jump: Agnes Pompeii (TV) 4-06; Joy Leon (TV) 4-03; Kristin Offringa (TV) 4-03.

Girls long jump: Grace Babula (E) 13-05; Taylir Lorino (L) 13-03.5; Leon (TV) 11-09.75.

Boys shot put: Garrett Grey (TV) 43-01; Tanzeel Khan (TV) 41-03; John Whittaker (SW) 38-02.

Boys 1000: Seidl (SW) 2:47.60; Nick Denman (TV) 2:53.82; Ripley (SW) 3:16.47.

Boys high jump: Strother (L) 5-08.

Visit riverreportersports.com for complete results and an album of photos.