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Amityville's Matt Graham wins Catholic middle school cross-country championship
The 14-year-old eighth-grader from Amityville entered nine races this fall and won them all, including the league championship on Monday, Nov. 12. Before the Sunken Meadow race, the St. Martin's runners made a point of walking the course so that if Matt took the lead in the actual race, he'd know which way to go, according to Leslie Sidor, who coached the team with Jane Schmitt. As it happened, Graham took over the lead nearly halfway into the .9-mile race and finished in 4 minutes, 43.34 seconds - ahead of 117 other boys from 12 schools. Graham's victory also helped St. Martin's secure third place in the boys team competition. Also scoring for St. Martin's were Stephen Sidor (11th place), Michael Mehary (26th), Dylan Rosser (33rd), and Nicholas Anding (35th). Coaches Sidor and Schmitt, both of Amityville, launched the cross-country team only this year. The school is building an athletic program that also includes soccer and basketball. The cross-country program had five boys and seven girls. St. Martin's girls' team placed ninth of 12 schools at Sunken Meadow. Its top five scorers were Kate Schmitt (52nd place), Katrina Pastore (55th), Meagan Joseph (76th), Jovhan Egalite (78th) and Sara Chadwick (81st). Sidor said the program's first-year success was remarkable because it wasn't able to hold practices. She said students are heavily involved in other activities, including soccer or after-school classes to study for Catholic high school entrance exams. Graham himself plays youth league football and fall amateur baseball. All of the girls on the team are sixth-graders, which should provide a solid foundation for next fall. However, next year will pose a challenge for the St. Martin's boys squad because all of this year's members are eighth-graders except for Stephen Sidor, the coach's son, a seventh-grader. Leslie Sidor said she hopes the team's success this year will attract new runners next fall. Two hundred eleven runners participated in the Nov. 12 championships, the most ever for the meet. Sloane Russ of Holy Family School in Commack won the girls race in 5:00.12. Trinity Regional School of East Northport won the girls team championship. The boys team title was won by St. Mary's of East Islip.
Shown in the photo, Matt Graham of St. Martin of Tours School, Amityville, won the Catholic Middle School Athletic Association Cross-Country Championship on Monday, Nov. 12, at Sunken Meadow State Park. He covered the .9-mile course in 4 minutes, 43.34 seconds. Joseph Brozek of St. Patrick's, Huntington, finished 3.5 seconds later for second place.
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