Manhasset's Brendan Conniff holds off North Shore's Sam Sturge at state qualifier

Brendan Conniff knew it.

The Manhasset senior was locked in a hip-to-hip thriller with North Shore’s Sam Sturge at Saturday’s Nassau State Qualifier at Bethpage State Park. The duo was running step-to-step as they approached the final straightaway.

This was a close one – and Conniff wasn’t quite sure he would make the finish line first.

"Going down that first straightaway, I actually thought to myself that (Sturge) had a bit of an edge on me," Conniff said. "But then, as we were coming around that final corner, I was watching him and I saw him slow down and stutter a little bit – for about two seconds. That gave me the motivation, and the time, to get right on his shoulders and eventually break away."

Conniff won in 16 minutes, 45.24 seconds on Bethpage’s 5-kilometer course. Sturge was second in 16:46.90. Both runners qualified for the public school state championships, scheduled for Saturday at Chenango Valley State Park in upstate Chenango Forks.

Conniff said Sturge ‘came out of nowhere’ on the course, moving into the front pack right before it moved onto the polo fields and then took a brief lead.

"The way he came out of nowhere was definitely a little bit frightening," Conniff said. "But, I told myself that he was just one other guy. I knew that I was faster than him and I knew that as long as I stayed right behind him, step for step, I could eventually get him in the end."

Manhasset won the Class B team championship with 62 points – qualifying as a team to compete at the public school state championships. Roslyn was second with 64 points.

Class A also featured a close finish. Port Washington’s Colin Funk won in 16:03.86. He was trailed by Mepham’s Amokrane Aouchiche on the final straightaway. Aouchiche was second in 16:10.19.

"I sat in the back of the (top) pack and when it opened up, I just took it," Funk said. "…I just tried to keep running as even as I could and then, eventually, when I hit the first turn on the polo field, I kind of felt like I had it. I heard that he was still 20 yards behind me, so I just tried to finish like I’ve been trying to finish all season in practice and meets."

Calhoun won the Class A championship with 58 points, edging Port Washington’s 61. Calhoun’s Logan Schaeffler (16:21.93) and John Schwab (16:25.60) took fourth and fifth, respectively.

Wheatley won Class C with 37 points. Scott Schmuck won in 17:33.26.