Sachem North’s Tibbetts, SWR’s Lee win 1,000-meter races at Elite Invitational

While many runners at the Long Island Elite Invitational on Saturday decided to run in races they won’t be competing in at the state championship next Saturday, Sachem North’s Christopher Tibbetts took one last chance to get himself prepared.

Tibbetts won the 1,000-meter race in 2:33.84 at St. Anthony’s with a dominant performance that pulled him away from the competition from the start. He’ll be running the event March 5 at Cornell University in Ithaca, and while his success may make him look like a seasoned veteran, it’s his first season competing at the distance.

“I went out a little bit harder, sat on that second lap and then gunned that last lap because I have to get that mentality going for states,” Tibbetts said. “It’s not going to be easy at all.”

Tibbetts said he thought about running the 600 instead, but didn’t want to pass up the opportunity to work on his time. His first-place finish was never in much doubt. He pushed to get in front immediately, built his lead as he went and never gave up ground.

“It got me mentally prepared for states and it got me realizing this is real now,” Tibbetts said.

In the girls’ 1,000, Shoreham-Wading River’s Katherine Lee was in the opposite situation. She was seeded last in the heat, got stuck behind the pack and surged late to win a race she’s not running at the state championship.

Lee said she realized she had energy left with a lap remaining and could take the race with an aggressive move. As Lee’s lead grew coming around the final turn, she looked over her shoulder just to be sure she wasn’t in trouble. She won in 2:58.97. Eastport-South Manor’s Taylor McClay took second in 3:01.33.

Lee is running the 3,000 and 600 at Cornell, but said she decided to run the 1,000 to try something new.

“It helps me with my confidence because sometimes when I haven’t run a race in a while I get really nervous like I was today,” Lee said.

Lee didn’t have the option to run a 3,000 because it wasn’t offered at the invitational, but she said she’s ready to compete next weekend and doesn’t mind the layoff because her training has made her ready for any challenge.

“I guess I’ve been training hard this whole time, so it pays off for whatever race,” Lee said.