Putting it all together

Among the many alumni and friends in attendance at Saturday’s emotional season- and senior-ending IC4A/ECAC cross country meet at Van Cortlandt Park, the surprise guest of the day was Marist Running (class of 1997) alum Tim Russo.

We have not seen Russo in years, but he remains a big part of our program in a second-generation manner. Like many of our former athletes, Timmy is now a coach – at Harborfields on Long Island. Our women’s lead runner, Michelle Gaye, is a Harborfields alum and one of Russo’s former charges. Timmy was at Vanny to watch Michelle and to see his old Running Red Fox team in action.

It was great to see him, recall old times and share coaching stories. We talked about the bittersweet ending to his team’s fall XC season. They had a wonderful season overall, but fell short on one team goal, due to the excellent performance of a rival school.

But then Timmy said something that made this old coach smile, laugh and grimace at the same time, something to the effect of: “You know Pete, we just weren’t able to get everyone, 1 through 5, to put it together on the same day.”

Oh yeah, bro? NO KIDDING! Welcome to the wonderful and wacky world of XC coaching (in fairness, Russo has been at it for a while). His lament is all too common; it is what drives us batty and keeps us coming back for more, year after year after blessed year.

Putting it all together. It’s that elusive goal. In my time coaching the men’s XC team through several decades, I can only think of a handful of meets where this happened.

Most recently, it was at the 2010 NCAA Regional in Connecticut, thanks to one of the most clutch single-person performances I’ve ever witnessed by our fifth man Nick Webster. Granted, 1 through 4 nailed it as well, but Web’s race was what closed the deal.

The other one that comes immediately to mind is the 2000 IC4A Championships. Marist Running Alum and Bronx neighbor Greg Salamone, a regular Vanny visitor, was a huge part of that championship effort. But again, the clutch, fifth-man day of Pat Driscoll is what I remember most as sealing the deal for us and bringing home our team title.

I’m sure there were a few other times as well. But the point is this: It happens very, very infrequently.

In our best meet this year for the men, the MAAC Championships, we put together the fastest five-man combined time in the nearly 50 years of Marist XC at Van Cortlandt Park. A school record. Never happened before. You would think that was a perfect day, where it all came together, 1 through 5. You would be wrong. That’s how difficult and how rare it truly is.

So yeah. I told Timmy it does not happen much at all. If it happens once in a season, consider yourself blessed. I pointed to my facial hair (mostly gray) and my actual hair (mostly … none) as proof to what trying to get a team to “put it all together on the same day” can do to you. It’s a labor of love, one that Russo has done and will continue to do, and one that we will keep plugging away at for as long as we can.