Back to Main MenuWeather HomeToday Forecast5 Day ForecastSchool Event ClosuresBack to Main MenuCrime Safety HomePolice BlotterReported CrimesCity of SyracuseNorth Suburbs Oswego CountyEast Suburbs Madison CountyWest Suburbs Cayuga CountyCNY TrafficBack to Main MenuPhotos HomePhoto EssaysBuy Photo ReprintsYour PhotosBack to Main MenuVideos HomeNews VideosSports VideosHigh School Sports VideosEntertainment VideosLiving VideosFayetteville Manlius sophomore Courtney Chapman (left) leads the no.1 nationally ranked HOrnets to the Nike Team Nationals meet Saturday in Portland, Oregon. (Steve Slocum / AP, 2007)As they prepare to hop onto an airplane headed West today, the two time reigning girls national cross country champions from Fayetteville Manlius are hoping to achieve an unbelievable goal. They are on their way to Oregon, seeking to win the Nike Team Nationals cross country meet for the third consecutive year. “That is unbelievable what the F M girls are trying to do,” veteran coach Rick Nastasi said. “I never heard of a high school team winning three straight national championships, in any sport.”Last Saturday, both the Hornets boys and girls earned the right to compete for national crowns at Portland.F M’s girls easily won the New York state qualifier with an impressive low score of 25 points. The boys, paced by race winner Alex Hatz, finished a close second, with 70 points, to Shenendehowa (62), also qualifying for a trip to Portland. (The top two teams at the New York regional qualifier automatically advance to Portland).”This is the goal we’ve been working toward for the last six months,” F M coach Bill Aris said as he finished up preparing to shepherd two exceptional cross country teams Westward. “Even though both teams have lost a runner to injury, I think the kids are ready to produce an all out effort on Saturday.”The F M girls will again lack the services of talented freshman Katie Sischo, who suffered a lingering foot injury during the Section III meet at Jamesville Beach Park, ending her season. She was among F M’s top seven all season.The steadily improving F M boys last week lost junior Paul Merriman, who dropped out of the Air Jordan 8s race at Bowdoin Park with a leg cramp, later diagnosed as a mild stress fracture. Merriman, too, is done for the season.Pacing the No. 1 nationally ranked F M girls team is sophomore Courtney Chapman, who led the Hornets to their second Nike Team Nationals crown a year ago. Last week, third place Chapman (18:29.8) was trailed across the finish line by junior Mackenzie Carter (4th, 18:40.8), junior Molly Malone (5th, 18:41.7), senior Meghan Anklin (6th ,18:42.2) and junior Hannah Luber (7th, 18:42.2). That’s an amazing 13 second compression (the time difference between the first and fifth finisher).Another strong Hornet runner senior Kathryn Buchan was ill and also bothered by pain in the hip. She, too, will not run this week. Seniors Alexandra Chapman and senior Amanda Eisenson will complete F M’s seven runner squad at Nike KD 7 the starting line.Chief challenger to F M should be Saugus, Calif., the race runner up last year, and No. 2 nationally ranked this week.Since schools cannot use their own school name in national events, F M will race as the Manlius XC Club, while Saugus, Calif., is running as the Newhall XC Club.The Hornets boys, paced by 4:12 miler Hatz, are aiming for a top 10 finish. Chasing Hatz (15:52.7) to the finish last week Air Jordan 10s were teammates: junior Brendan Farrell (16:23.5), sophomore Air Jordan 23s Mark McGurrin (16:52.8), sophomore Andrew Roache (16:53.9), senior John Cico (17:06.4) and junior Joe Hartnett (17:59.8).Sophomore Andrew Veilleux has been added to the Air Jordan Women Size Hornets seven runner lineup, replacing Merriman.Also from New York state, the Shenendehowa boys, plus girls teams from Saratoga Springs, Burnt Hills and Queensbury will compete at Portland. Burnt Hills and Queensbury were selected as at large entrants.Reigning state Class B cross country champion Chris Stogsdill of Marcellus has decided to attend Iona College next fall to continue his distance running career. Stogsdill will compete for a powerful Iona team that last month finished second with 147 points at the NCAA championship meet at Indiana State University. The winner was Oregon (93).
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