Oceanside making considerable strides

Led by a strong group of senior runners and two other up-and-comers, the Oceanside girls’ cross-country team capped off a successful 2018 season with impressive showings at the big-stage events.
The Lady Sailors finished the regular season at 12-1, a four-win improvement from 2017, and was edged out of the top spot in the Nassau Conference 1A by Syosset by virtue of the fifth-spot finisher tiebreaker at the Class AA championship meet at Bethpage State Park on Oct. 28.
Despite finishing second, Oceanside boasted seven runners who performed consistently in the 5,000-meter events and helped the program emerge as one of the best in the county.
“The seniors were very good role models,” coach Claire Johnson said. “[They were] extremely dedicated and responsible and hard-working with great attitudes. They never missed a day of practice.”
The group was led by senior Andria Scaglione, who qualified for the last weekend’s state meet at Sunken Meadow Park and placed 36th on a challenging course with a time of 19 minutes, 52 seconds. It was the best finish of any Nassau County competitor.

“She did great,” Johnson said of Scaglione’s state meet performance. “Her goal was to push 20 minutes. She did tremendous.”
She won the county championships and broke her own school record with a time of 19:43 on Oct. 28 and did even better on her return to Bethpage with a time of 19:39 at the state qualifier meet.
Twin sister Nicola Scaglione, who like Andria earned All County recognition, finished eighth at the county championships with a time of 20:35 before a 10th-place showing at the state qualifier (20:47). She may not have the family bragging rights, but has always been a hard worker and pushes herself to the best of her abilities, according to Johnson.
Another pair of sisters who would also go on to earn All County status, senior captain Sera King and freshman Jada King, placed 15th and 18th, respectively, at the county championships. Sera also edged Jada by just under two seconds at states and finished 18th.
“Sera has a tremendous stride when she runs and gave everything she had in every race,” Johnson said. “Jada is an extremely talented freshman and I expect big things out of her.”
Rounding out Oceanside’s top five at the counties was sophomore Emma Romano, who placed 29th at 22:31. She was also an All Conference selection and one of the more energetic members of the team.
Senior Ashley Segarra capped her All Conference season with a 35th-place finish at the county meet with a time of 22:44 and freshman Jessica Cinamon (55th) is another runner to keep an eye on in the future, according to Johnson.