Sunday, Sept. 10, 2017: Sophomore off to fast start with F-M harriers

   Leading off today: Fayetteville-Manlius, never hurting for talented distance runners, has added another good one via a summer transfer.

   Sophomore Jeff Howles made his Hornets cross country debut Saturday with a victory in the boys Division I race at the Vernon-Verona-Sherrill Invitational.

   Howles, 13th in the Section 2 meet for Saratoga last fall as a freshman, won in 15:59.3 to outdistance F-M teammate Ben Otis (16:10.6). Fayetteville-Manlius locked down nine of the top 14 spots and cruised to victory with 18 points.

   Howles' top marks through the end of his freshman year included 4:32.53 in the 1,600 meters and a 15:59.30 on a 5K cross country course. He was eighth among all freshmen and sophomores in the 2016 NYSPHSAA Class A cross country championships.

   Astonishing start: The running community's collective jaw hit the floor when word of Katelyn Tuohy's performance Friday got out.

   The North Rockland sophomore won the three-mile Red Raider Run at Bear Mountain State Park with a time of 16:24.99 -- half a mile ahead of runner-up Jenna Pressman (19:37.00) of Lakeland/Panas.

   Bill Meylan of TullyRunners.com noted that there may be some issues with methodology due to the general quality of the field, but he nevertheless tagged the performance with a 158 speed rating. That's higher than any rating he's assigned to a New York girls in any fall race since Bronxville sophomore Mary Cain registered a 159 in the 2011 season -- and Tuohy did it in what amounted to a glorified speed trial.

   As Milesplit.com notes, she also broke the course record of 16:27.20 by Aisling Cuffe in 2010 -- the year the Cornwall sensation won the Foot Locker Nationals in San Diego.

   Mileto remembered: Josh Mileto's No. 5 jersey was retired Saturday before Sachem East's 34-13 loss to Lindenhurst.

   Mileto, 16, died Aug. 10 after a log he and four teammates carried in a team-building exercise slipped and struck him on the head. His parents and other family members attended the ceremony but did not speak.

ADVERTISEMENT

   "Josh was a defensive back and receiver for the Arrows described by teammates as someone who always had a smile on his face and a kind word for everyone," public address announcer Mike Feldstein said during the ceremony. "Josh loved his teammates as his extended family and loved being around and playing the game of football. Football teaches us a great deal about life, and one of the game's greatest lessons is by coming together, we can overcome hardships."

   Sitting out: Two-time defending Section 9 champion Jane Bockman will miss the girls tennis season in order to train and compete in United States Tennis Association junior tournaments this fall.    The Goshen sophomore is not alone in making that choice. Valley Central junior Kortney McHalle, who reached the round of 16 at the state tournament last season, also will focus on the USTA schedule.

RoadToSyracuse.com football site

   Suiting up: Schuylerville senior Orion Anderson is playing football for the first time since eighth grade. If his name sounds familiar, Anderson has won two NYSPHSAA state championships, the latest last season at 120 pounds.

   Anderson played linebacker and recovered a pair of fumbles, including one for a touchdown, in Schuylerville's 47-14 win over Schalmont in Week 1. The team improved to 2-0 with a 44-26 win over Hudson.

   "I knew I could be a help to this team and I always loved playing," he told The Daily Gazette last week.

   Anderson expects to wrestle at 132 this season and has already committed to compete for Binghamton University in 2018.

   Long list of suitors: It's not that they're not coveted by college coaches, but few of the best high school basketball players ever accumulate more than 20 scholarship offers during their high school career. It's largely because many top prospects already have certain schools in mind at the beginning of the process.

   Whether it's based on academics, geography, coaches, program tradition or other considerations, they tend to trim the list to 10 of 15 potential schools fairly quickly. At that point, schools that have not already offered usually see no value in doing so. Among other things, declining to offer the mega-elites is reassuring to the three- and four-star prospects that the coaching staff is legitimately pursuing and might land. A good point guard will be reluctant to commit if he thinks his preferred school is still in the hunt for a great one who will end up playing 35 minutes a night.

   In that context, what's going on with Lawrence Woodmere Academy junior Aidan Igiehon is kind of off the charts.

   Coming off his second-team all-state selection in Class B last winter and an excellent summer, Igiehon recently told nychoops.net that he has "about 37 or 38 offers." The list of colleges includes Arizona, Georgetown, Oregon, Syracuse, Villanova, USC, Virginia, Wake Forest and Xavier.

   Igiehon, who's reportedly drown to 6-foot-10, is in demand because he's both mobile and showing an improved outside shooting touch.

   Earlier today: Today's first blog recapped Saturday's football highlights, including an impressive win by Iona Prep against Rhode Island's seven-time defending champion.

   Coming Monday: Rankings season on the New York State Sportswriters Association website commences with the release of the first set of boys soccer ratings around mid-morning.