South Side runs to county title

Entering the 2017 cross-country season, South Side coach Chris Webster and his team had every reason to believe the sky was the limit. The Lady Cyclones were returning their two top performers, and an outstanding group of freshmen were now on campus. 

Year in, year out, South Side has finished among the elite programs in Nassau, but, despite winning conference titles and sending runners to the state meet, county supremacy has eluded the Cyclones since 2002. 

The wait for a county title came to an end on Oct. 28 as South Side, led by sophomore Carly Woelfel’s first-place finish, captured the Nassau County Class 2 championship by narrowly defeating Manhasset at Bethpage State Park. Sophomore Katie Mohr and freshman Olivia Duca finished third and fourth, respectively, as the Lady Cyclones won by four points.

Webster, who has been coaching cross country at South Side for 18 years, wasn’t surprised when the team came out on top. “We’ve been a strong program, have won a bunch of conference championships, but hadn’t been able to win the county,” Webster said. “It was certainly a goal. They’re a very driven group, and worked so hard to get to this point. I always tell them that a team that trains together, wins together. When we aren’t practicing, they go running on their own as a group.”

While Woelfel was dominant, besting the second-place finisher by a whopping 27.12 seconds, the victory was a complete team effort. Mohr nearly finished in second with a time of 19:55.69, and Duca, who made a tactical decision to pass the fourth and fifth place finishers, both runners from Manhasset, at just the right moment, crossed the line in 20:05.95. 

Freshman Avery Brull (11th place) and senior captain Amanda Maughan (22nd) were the next to finish. Class 2 comprised 102 runners. Senior captain Maggie Reich and junior Sera Allen each finished strong to add the team’s point total. 

Woelfel, who put a little icing on the cake by blowing away the field with a career best time of 18:52.55 in the state qualifier this past Saturday at Bethpage, will be making her second appearance in the state meet when she leads the team up to Ontario Center (Rochester) on Saturday. 

“Carly is the whole package,” Webster said. “She’s goal-oriented and sets realistic individual goals, but it’s never just about her. She’s humble, modest, and always puts the team first. In the state qualifier, she wanted to break the 19-minute mark, and she did it by a wide margin.” 

Webster, who also had senior Michael Luvin qualify from the South Side boys’ team, is enthused about upcoming weekend. “It’s the first time a complete team has gone to the state meet,” Webster said. “Winning the county title is a huge accomplishment for the program. Going upstate is putting a cherry on top. There are a lot of very competitive cross-country teams up there. We’re excited to be part of it.”