Uniondale continues dominance at state meet

CICERO, N.Y. -- In a race where handoffs are critical, Uniondale's 4 x 100 relay executed the most important one of all -- the handoff from Friday's state championship to Saturday's Federation final -- to perfection.

The Knights followed up their state Division I victory on Friday by taking the Federation championship Saturday in a Nassau-record 41.85 seconds at the state and Federation track and field championship at Cicero-North Syracuse High School.

The team of Stephen Muir, Derrick Ingram, Will Stanback, and Tresean Goodwin broke the county record of 41.97, which Uniondale set in 1994.

"It means so much more since this is the last time this team will be running together," said Muir, one of three seniors on the squad. "It's just great."

The Knights competed against several teams that they had defeated on Friday, but one team in particular worried them a little bit: Mount Vernon, who came into the meet as the top seed at 42.05.

"We thought Mount Vernon was going to be gunning for us this time," Ingram said. "We just had this feeling."

So how did the Knights pull out the win?

"Better sticks, better handoffs," Ingram said.

Those handoffs were the key for the Knights. After Muir gave Uniondale a slim lead after the first leg, they never looked back, executing near-flawless handoffs to extend their lead and defeat Sheepshead Bay (42.46) by .61 seconds.

"We've been working on handoffs all week," Muir said. "It really was a team effort. You can't really pin it all on one guy."

Bay Shore's Kadesh Roberts repeated as state Division I and Federation 400 hurdles champion, winning in 52.37 and shattering a 31-year-old meet record held by Dean McFarlane of Patchogue-Medford.

Roberts held off Xavier's Edward Wagner (53.04) in the final 100 meters to earn the win. "He was pushing me down the final straightaway," Roberts said. "But it wasn't like last year, when I had guys breathing down my neck."

Plainedge's James Sommer won the 3,000 steeplechase state Division I title, finishing second overall in a personal-best 9:21.16. Brendan Smith of Syracuse CBA took first in 9:14.31 to win the state Division II and Federation title.

"It's unreal," Sommer said. "Coming into the season, that was the last thing I thought would happen."

Division's Ryan Billian took the state Division I 110 hurdles title in 14.42 seconds, nipping St. Anthony's Cameron Black (14.62) at the line to win.

"I felt good when I started," Billian said. "I only hit one hurdle, and that didn't even affect me too much."

Sayville's Chris Belcher won the state Division I crown in the 100 with a time of 11.03 seconds, edging out Sweet Home's Wayne Gordon by .04 seconds to earn the victory. Belcher also took second in the Federation 100 (10.96) and the Federation 200 (21.77).

"Gordon beat me in the winter, so I had to redeem myself," the junior said of his win in the 100.

Stony Brook's Taylor Colucci earned his second state Division II championship by winning the 200 in 22.70. The senior was the second leg of the team's state champion 4 x 100 on Friday.

"Right before the end of the curve, I could tell I was in a good position," Colucci said. "I was in the lead right after the curve, and then it was basically about just holding on."