The Huntington boys’ cross country team continued to strengthen this past fall, with several young runners starting to consistently find their stride.
The top six runners for the Blue Devils were sophomores Aidan Heller, Andrew McKenzie, Carlos Martinez and Isaiah James and juniors Jason Verville and John Segreti.
Coached by Bob Nill, the 18-member team was captained by Graham Young, Daniel Thompson and Cornelius O’Rourke. Nill announced at the end of the season that he was stepping down. The daily ride to Huntington from the Suffolk’s North Fork proved to be too much for him.
The Blue Devils placed fourth in the league standings with a 3-3 record. Huntington also found success in several invitational meets.
At the Suffolk Frosh/Soph Championships, all nine Huntington runners that competed recorded personal best times.
At the divisional meet, Huntington took second place behind medal winning performances by Heller, Verville and Segreti. “A total of 14 boys ran for Huntington and 10 of them had season best times,” Nill said.
The team was quite pleased with the final two meets and the marked improvement shown by the Blue Devils. “It was a great way to finish the season,” Nill said.
Looking ahead to next year, O’Rourke, Thompson, Young and Eddie Maleszewski will all be graduating in June. But 14 other runners will be returning, including freshmen Jonathan Larice and Harris Levinson; sophomores Matthew Fallon Jr., Seamus Hannon, Harrison McKenna, Heller, James, Martinez and McKenzie; and juniors Robert Caputi, Christopher Carmen, Rory Dara, Segreti and Verville.
With all top six runners returning to the fold for next fall’s season, the Blue Devils have very high hopes for success.