Monday, December 2, 2024
The West Hempstead boys’ cross country team made major strides this season, capping off a 13-1 campaign by finishing third in the Nassau County Class III Championships on Nov. 2 at Bethpage State Park.
It's a huge step forward,” Rams coach Nick DiBenedetto said. “In the past two or three years, I might have had one or two standout athletes who went all-county and went to the state championship, but this is the first time that we're consistently fielding a full team, so it's a big step forward. The depth is there, and it wasn't there before.”
Out of the field of 97 runners from across Nassau County, West Hempstead had two finish in the top 10, and none finish lower than 30th. Senior Justin Delavandel led the Rams with a time of 17:46.50 to earn eighth place.
“Justin is really the most consistent of our athletes,” said DiBenedetto. “He was our top finisher at almost every meet. I anticipate he's going to have success at the state qualifier and hopefully at state championships as well. There's more proverbial meat on the bone there, and I think that's the case for most of them.”
Fellow seniors Jeremy Haynes and Lukas Santana finished the race 18th and 30th, respectively. However, the true standout for West Hempstead was Joseph Santos-Acosta. With a time of 17:46.60, Santos-Acosta finished just behind Delavandel in ninth place and was the only freshman to place within the top 25.
“He has the potential to be county champion by the time he's a senior,” said DiBenedetto. “If he keeps working at the rate he's going, he'll definitely be in the top five of the county. Among other freshmen, he's really very, very good. That might be kind of his goal for himself, once he's a senior. To be that senior who wins the county meet and blows everybody out of the water.”
With the success of Santos-Acosta and the team as a whole this season, DiBenedetto expects that more students will soon want to join the now blossoming program.
“The program is already very successful, but now it’s going to a place where it’s a standout program,” DiBendetto said. “It’s turning it into something that is super rewarding. You have all these athletes that are fresh, that don't know anything about the sport, and you let them find that success.”
That’s how Christian Dominguez became part of the team. Without any cross-country experience prior to this year, he joined the team as a sophomore and finished in 29th place at the county championships.
The Rams are even starting to compete in the girls’ ranks. Junior Karen Orozco-Castro placed 13th as West Hempstead’s lone runner in the girls’ championship race.
“It’s a passion project,” said DiBenedetto. “To have a program here that's becoming successful, I couldn't be more proud of them and what has developed here.”
