Top Row: Aidan Ke, Ishil Kirkhan, Kenny Procacci, Olivia Spirakis, Sophia Muccini, Andrew Addison, Michelle Ashbahian, Helen Moloney, Lauryn Heskin, Emilee Becker, Jacqueline Kelly, Alex Addison, Connor Ronan, Rosie Harnett, Chris Skahill and Caroline Chun Bottom Row: Fiona So, Siena Muccini, Caralinn Becker, Courtney Skahill, Lorelei Krapf, Owen Moloney, Mac Krapf, Owen O’Donnell and Mahir Lalwani
Highly regarded Floral Park travel outfit Team Sports Center (TSC) had another outstanding indoor season. Thirteen TSC runners qualified for the National USATF Youth Indoor Championships in March, held at the Ocean Breeze Athletic Center in Staten Island.
Floral Park’s Lauryn Heskin won the national championship in the 13-14 Girls 1500 and 3000-meter races, breaking the national record in both, and the world record for the 3000m. She also holds the world record for the road 5k, and multiple titles.
Floral Park’s Owen O’Donnell medaled with a 5th place finish nationwide in the 11-12 Boys 3000-meter. He also ran the 1500-meter.
Alex Addison of Floral Park ran in both the 11-12 Boys 3000-meter and 1500-meter. Addison holds five Long Island records and was recently named Male Youth Athlete of the Year for Long Island.
Other TSC runners from Floral Park who ran in the Indoor National Championships were:
Ryan Heskin: 15-16 Boys 1500-meter
Connor Ronan: 11-12 Boys 3000-meter
Olivia Spirakis: 11-12 Girls Long Jump
Michelle Ashbahian, Rosie Harnett, Caroline Chun & Emilee Becker: 13-14 Girls 4×400-meter relay.
Prior to the indoor season, TSC had a successful cross country season. In November, TSC dominated the Long Island Cross Country Championships held by USATF (USA Track & Field) at Wantagh Park. Nineteen TSC runners qualified for Regionals. Also in November, several TSC runners medaled at the very competitive USATF Junior Olympics in Rhode Island.
In December, TSC sent 11 runners to the AAU Cross Country Track Championships in Decatur, AL. TSC walked away with two national champions (Lauryn Heskin and Siena Muccini) and two All-Americans (Alex Addison and Sophia Muccini). Other TSC runners in the Cross Country Nationals were Owen O’Donnell, Andrew Addison, Caralinn Becker, Caroline Chun and Connor Ronan—all of Floral Park—as well as Peter Agate of Franklin Square and Lucas Muccini of Little Neck.
With the cross country and indoor seasons in the record books, TSC is off to a great start in the outdoor season, winning medals and breaking records on a regular basis. TSC also had a strong showing at the Hance Races in Floral Park on May 21. TSC runners won the Female Overall, eight of the Top 10 Female 13 & under and seven of the Top 20 Male 13 and under. Emilee Becker won the second place trophy for Female 14-16, and Max Krapf took the third place trophy in the mile.
TSC is led by the same coaches who guided OLV’s CYO team to victory in the Cross Country Diocesan Championships in November. Gene Heskin, Vince Duncan and Jim Becker have developed a reputation for training champions. Many OLV runners looking to move to the next level also join TSC. And young runners from across Long Island travel to Floral Park to run with Team Sports Center every week.
TSC is a nonprofit organization and open to all student athletes from ages 6 to 18. Contact Gene Heskin at gpheskin@gmail.com or www.TSC-runners.com to join or to sponsor this award-winning amateur club.
