Andrew Senf leads Ward Melville to third straight Suffolk Class A boys cross country title
Andrew Senf of Ward Melville takes first place for Class A with a time of 16:27.30 during the Suffolk cross country state qualifier meet on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026 in Kings Park. Credit: Dawn McCormick
What was once a 51-year drought has become a three-peat for the Ward Melville boys cross country team.
The Patriots scored 43 placement points, narrowly edging out Northport by four, to win their third consecutive Suffolk Class A team championship at Sunken Meadow State Park in Kings Park on Thursday. The win qualified Ward Melville for the public-school state championship meet at Queensbury High School in Queensbury on Nov. 14.
Having the best runner in the county helped the Patriots get the edge, as senior Andrew Senf won the individual Class A title by finishing the 5 kilometers in 16 minutes, 27.3 seconds. He fended off Bay Shore freshman Max Simeon by just 1.2 seconds. Senf’s time ranked first in the boys’ merged results.
Every little placement mattered for the dynastic Ward Melville team, which had lost twice to Northport this season, including last Tuesday at the Suffolk division championships.
“A couple of guys were nervous coming in, because this was the first situation in a while where we realized that this could be the end of our season,” Senf said. “There were lots of nerves involved, but those just set the stage for everyone to step up. Everything we did today was for each other. It’s super special.”
Miller Place senior Nicholas DiCaprio won Class B in 17:06.6, while Eastport-South Manor won the team title with 33 points. Shoreham-Wading River senior Spencer Lee won Class C in 17:11.3 and Bayport-Blue Point scored 34 points to claim the team championship. Port Jefferson senior Sean Grossman took Class D in 17:28, leading his team to 39 points and a victory.
Laezza, Cole win girls titles
ESM senior Maddie Laezza won Class B in 18:48.5 and topped the merge for the second straight year.
“It feels amazing to go back-to-back,” Laezza said. “My biggest focus is states and seeing what I can do there, so I wasn’t trying to hammer it down here today. I just wanted to get the job done. I’m really happy I get to keep being our Class B champion.”
Comsewogue senior Lexie Cole won Class A in 19:12.3, and Northport scored 32 points to win its sixth consecutive team title. Sayville scored 33 points for a Class B team championship. SWR scored 24 to win Class C behind an individual victory from senior Ellie Connell in 20:56.8. Pierson eighth-grader Evelyn Rizzo won Class D in 19:57.6, and Port Jefferson won the team title with 15 points.
Mike Anderson is a high school sports reporter who has covered 12 sports so far at Newsday. He was the sports editor of Stony Brook University's campus newspaper for two years.
