Ryan earns state indoor championship in mile

Whether in the chill of autumn, the warmth of summer or the climate-controlled conditions of winter indoor meets, Fayetteville-Manlius senior Nick Ryan has earned state championships in all three seasons.

That latest prize prize was attained at Cornell University’s Barton Hall during Saturday’s New York State Public High School Athletic Association indoor track and field meet, where the 1,600-meter run belonged to the Syracuse University-bound Ryan.

In the last of the three mile heats, Ryan went to the start right away, and from there the field engaged in a hopeless chase.

Speeding up and adding to his margin, Ryan did not let up until he had crossed the line in four minutes, 14.02 seconds, more than three seconds ahead of Lake Shore’s T.J. Horneberger (4:17.24). Steve Rosettie (Corning) was third in 4:18.14.

Later in the meet, Ryan joined Connor Farrell, Bryce Millar and Colin Fitzgibbons as F-M rolled to sixth place in the 4×800 relay in a time of 8:03.68. Northport prevailed in 7:56.52.

On his own, Millar reached the awards podium in the 3,200-meter run, rising to fifth place in 9:25.05 as Sibby Hanson (Arlington) won in 9:13.43. Charlie Beeler was 17th in the 600-meter run in 1:24.07, while Jamesville-DeWitt’s Zach Liebmann cleared 13 feet in the pole vault to tie for 16th place.

Going to the girls side, F-M’s Alana Pearl was the no. 2 seed going to the 1,500-meter run behind West Genesee star Laura Leff, both expecting to battle for the state title.

However, neither would get there as Pearl, in a time of 4:41.64, gained seventh place, with Leff (4:41.18) in fifth, both of them trailing Sabrina Southerland (Benjamin Cardozo), who won in 4:34.26, just as she had beaten Leff at the Millrose Games in New York City two weeks earlier.

In the 4×800 relay, Pearl, teaming with Jillian Fanning, Michelle Duffy and Katie Brislin, earned sixth place in 9:34.23, with Bronxville (9:20.84) getting the title.

Another high finish came from J-D’s Sierra Vasiliou, in the long jump. Vasiliou went past 16 feet in all six of her attempts, never fouling, and her best effort of 16’11” put her in seventh place as Anointing Onuhoa (Valley Stream North) won with a leap of 18’3 ¼”.

Just missing a top-10 finish in the 1,000-meter run, Brislin, in 2:58.84, settled for 11th place, just ahead of Mary Barger, who was 14th in 3:00.69. Olivia Ryan made her way to 23rd place in the 600-meter run in a clocking of 1:41.69. J-D’s Rachel Fairbanks beat Ryan in the 600, getting 18th place in 1:40.39, as Taylor-Rae Danforth could not clear a height in the pole vault.