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First and foremost

T-V's Adam Furman wins the prestigious Manhattan College Invitational

Richard A. Ross
Posted 10/12/21

RIVERDALE - “I’ll take Manhattan, the Bronx and Staten Island too.”

That well-renowned song written by Richard Rogers and Lorenz Hart, could well become the signature song for …

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First and foremost

T-V's Adam Furman wins the prestigious Manhattan College Invitational

Posted

RIVERDALE - “I’ll take Manhattan, the Bronx and Staten Island too.”

That well-renowned song written by Richard Rogers and Lorenz Hart, could well become the signature song for Tri-Valley junior Adam Furman who just won his Manhattan College Invitational Race, held at Van Cortlandt Park, with a stunning time of 12:47.20 over the 2.5-mile course. Furman took Manhattan, and many other localities represented, with his school-record setting performance. According to his dad, and Coach, Chip Furman, Adam is the first T-V athlete to ever record a first-place finish in the race; one that draws runners from near and far. His reward was not only the amazing feat which further advances his profile on the state and national running scene, but he also got to be interviewed by Flotrac and received a beautiful watch, something his dad Chip also won back in his senior year at T-V. Only as the elder Furman noted, “I got mine for my second-place finish. He beat my time of 13:15.”

Furman and the other four Bears finished second in team scoring to Columbus from Section 2. There were 130 runners in the C race, which, by the way, did not designate Class. In fact, there were quite a few Class A runners in this grouping. A coach could elect to either be in a letter race, or the Eastern States Championship which is a much more competitive field. Race organizers determine which schools go in each letter race. Coach Furman was not completely sure how that was done, but each featured a mix of runners from large and small schools.

“I wanted to give our team a chance. I felt like we wouldn’t match up well in that Eastern States Championship array,” said Coach Furman.

Monticello was in the ‘B’ race. Senior Evan Waterton finished fourth with a time of 13:07. Notably, Furman’s time was nearly 20 seconds faster. Furman had been seeded third in the race, but his incredible determination and athleticism carried the day. The rest of the team continued to show their mettle as well with: Van Furman in 12th (14:00.50), followed by 28. Caleb Edwards 14:32.50, 32. Vincent Mingo 14:42.50, and 76. Thomas Houghtaling 16:00.

The girls did well too. Sophomore Amelia Mickelson took third in the ‘B” race with a time of 17:45.80 over the 2.5-mile course. In the Freshman race, Brynn Poley garnered 12th over 2000 meters in 8:23.90. Teammate Chrissy Wachter was 43rd in 10:48.20. Sullivan West inadvertently registered for the Eastern States. Reece Maopolski finished 103rd in 14:45.80, followed by 125. Landon Volpe 16:08.60, and 131. Karl Swanson 16:53.30. For all the county runners, it was an exhilarating experience to run in such a prestigious race.

Furman sails at Sullivan West following McQuaid Invitational victory

On the Sullivan West senior day cross-country hosting of league rivals Tri-Valley and Fallsburg, there was a change in the course that the harriers would run due to soggy trails in the woods. Leading all runners was none other than Number-One-State-Ranked Adam Furman at the vanguard of a Bears’ team that is on the fast track to seriously contending for a state title.

Sullivan West seniors, Reece Maopolski, Karl Swanson and Gabe Wasner posed for pictures with their parents after the finish of the race. The trio sported smiles wrought not only at their commendable performances, but also having just had the opportunity to run against the Bears, a group that sets a speedy pace that by its nature brings greater effort by their competitors.

For Furman, the meteoric rise to prominence continues. Previously, at the McQuaid Invitational in Rochester, NY, he finished first in the small school boys race out of a field of 357 runners with a blistering PR of 15:27.60.

Furman is further adding to his resume as a favorite to win the state title. This past weekend, his coach and father, Chip Furman, was inducted into the Section IX Track and Field Hall of Fame, and Adam is clearly following in his father’s footsteps, establishing himself in the annals of the storied T-V running history. The rest of the T-V team kept up their winning ways outpointing SW and Fallsburg.

It should be noted that at the McQuaid Invitational, although they were missing a key runner, they still managed to take second, only three points out of capturing the meet title. Sullivan West’s Reece Maopolski finished third in this local race, maintaining his role as team leader.

It was a beautiful day and yet another tune-up for the big races on the near horizon. It is running against the best competition that hones champions. To his credit, Coach Furman is following the trend set by his former coaches at Tri-Valley, Joe and Missy Iatauro, who used to take their teams far and wide to compete, even to the Mount Sac race in California. Furman would have even considered that were it not for the uncertainty of the Covid-19 pandemic.

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