VSN runs to county title

Coach Tim Boyens said Valley Stream North had big expectations for 2014 after returning all of its key contributors from a team that finished second in last year’s Nassau boys’ cross-country Class III championships.

On Oct. 25, the Spartans delivered with a county title. Senior Peter Wilk placed third and junior Jake Catalano finished ninth to lead North in the 20-school field at Bethpage State Park. Wilk crossed the line in 17-minutes, 14.70 seconds and also went on to represent the team at the state meet.

“The boys really ran well and accomplished what they set out to do,” Boyens said. “The county meet was close because North Shore also had a good day. We came back a week later and just missed qualifying as a team for the state meet.”

After placing fourth in Class B in the State Qualifier race at Bethpage on Nov. 1 with a time five seconds quicker than the previous week, Wilk braved tough conditions at the state championships on Nov. 8 in upstate Canton, not too far from Canada. The temperature was a brisk 30 degrees, and the course was muddy, but he still managed to finish 60 th. “Peter has always been a hard worker and has all the attributes of a top runner,” Boyens said. “He’s a tall, lanky kid who’s really competitive and ready on race days. He won a bunch of races during the regular season.”