Rockland boys outdoor track all-stars: Nyack's Schutzbank is again top star

Matt Schutzbank spent the last few days surfing and golfing in California — a nice transition from his last ever race at the state high school track and field championships.

It was a memorable race, like so many others during his years on the Nyack High School track team.

Schutzbank, who'll run next year for Division I Yale, is now a four-time Journal News/lohud Rockland boys track athlete of the year. He is the 2024 Rockland Boys Outdoor Track and Field Athlete of the Year, his second outdoor honor after twice being honored for indoor track.

He topped all public and private school finishers at the state championships in the 1,600 last month and also medaled in fifth place in the 800.

But to think him satisfied with his spring is to not know Schutzbank.

Yes, he started out well, clocking a personal-best 4:12.57 in the mile to medal at the Penn Relays.

But personal bests eluded him from that point on even as he recorded multiple wins. When he finished fifth at the state championships in the 800, having had the top time during the season, his disappointment increased.

But so did Schutzbank's resolve.

On the second and final day of the state championships, which were held outside Syracuse, Schutzbank toed the starting line of the boys 1,600-meter race. Family had come to see him run. So did high school buddies, who drove the four or so hours north and stayed in a motel to support him.

Schutzbank had a year earlier won the state Division 1 (large, public schools) 1,600 title and was second in the state Federation (all sizes of public and private schools) championship. So he knew what he had to do.

"I had to perform for them," he said.

He ran 4:12.97, just off his all-time personal best, giving him both the D-1 and Federation wins. Fellow Section 1 runner Connor Hitt of Ketcham, the runner-up in the 1,600, then celebrated on the track with Schutzbank.

"It was good closure," said Schutzbank, who was the 2024 state indoor 1,000-meter champion. "It was really satisfying. There was a lot of relief when I won. It was the biggest moment, kind of an accumulation of everything I had worked for."

Track for Schutzbank has been about huge wins — and about huge memories away from competition.

He points to his sophomore year when he and then-teammates Freddie Hurson, Lucas Berg and Bobby Royston qualified for the Penn Relays in both the 4x400 and 4x800 relays.

They didn't race well or win anything, but left Philadelphia super happy after an expedition to find the perfect cheese steak. "It's a core-memory that brings a smile," Schutzbank said.

He'll also recall fondly his work with Nyack coach Adam Klein.

"He helped me achieve my dreams," Schutzbank said. "Whatever I achieved on the track, he did, too. He's made me into the runner I am."

He'll have different coaches at Yale. And he'll likely try cross-country there this fall after spending his recent fall seasons playing soccer for Nyack.

He's been inspired by watching the recent U.S. Olympic Trials, but isn't ready to say he wants to run post-college.

"I love the grind but it's also taxing," he said. "It seems it would be interesting to move on with life (after college running), but I don't know how I'll feel. Maybe Yale will be super awesome and I'll be super good and want to make a run at it."

Schutzbank is anxious to see how he develops at Yale, where he plans to major in political science.

"I'm excited to find out how good I can be," he said.

Coach of the Year

Larry Beckerle of Nanuet and Orlando Rivera of North Rockland: With 15 teams scoring, Beckerle led Nanuet to the Section 1 Class B boys team championship, a big win in a solid field. His Golden Knights also finished fourth, just 3 1/2 points out of second, for the Rockland County boys team championship. That latter title was won by Rivera's Red Raiders, who had an incredible year, more than doubling the number of points for the second-place finisher for the county title. With 11 teams scoring, North Rockland, which is strong on the track, in throws and in jumps, also easily won the Section 1 Class AA crown.

The remaining Rockland all-stars

100

First team — Javon Lawrence, Jr., North Rockland

Second team — Kevin Dessalines, Sr., Spring Valley

Honorable mention — Caleb Alexandre, Sr., Tappan Zee

110 hurdles

First team — Darwin Almonte, Jr., North Rockland

Second team — Isaiah Theagene, Sr., North Rockland

Honorable mention — Yunior Sanchez, Jr., North Rockland

200

First team — Javon Lawrence, Jr., North Rockland

Second team — Dimitry Magloire, Jr., Nyack

Honorable mention — Marckenson Jeanty, Jr., Spring Valley

400

First team — Jarell Gibbs, Jr., Nanuet

Second team — Micheal Cromwell, Fr., Suffern

Honorable mention — Dan Burkholder, Sr., Clarkstown South; Naji Mosley, Jr., North Rockland

400 hurdles

First team — Anthony Couch, Sr., Suffern

Second team — Kurt Deitrich, Jr., Nanuet

Honorable mention — Isaiah Theagene, Sr., North Rockland

800

Second team — Dan Burkholder, Sr., Clarkstown South

Honorable mention — JD Lloyd-McKenna, So., Pearl River

1,600

Second team — JD Lloyd-McKenna, So., Pearl River

Honorable mention — Claudel Chery, So., North Rockland

3,200

First team — Claudel Chery, So., North Rockland

Second team — Shane Ethakkan, Jr., Nanuet

Honorable mention — Sam Gunther, Jr., Nyack

3,000 steeplechase

First team — Jack Bowman, Jr., Suffern

Second team — Austin Curry, Sr., North Rockland; Tyler Walsh, Jr., Pearl River

Honorable mention — Owen Burke, Jr., Pearl River

High jump

First team — Ryan Cardichon, Sr., Nyack

Second team — Herve Sanchez, Sr., North Rockland

Honorable mention — Collin Pringle, Jr., Suffern; Xavier Reyes, Sr., Albertus Magnus

Long jump

First team — Xavier Reyes, Sr., Albertus Magnus

Second team — Kevin Dessalines, Sr., Spring Valley

Honorable mention — Ryan Cardichon, Sr., Nyack; Aneudy Sanchez, Jr., North Rockland

Triple jump

First team — Theo Lodge, Sr., Albertus Magnus

Second team — Shamell Roberts, Sr., North Rockland

Honorable mention — Mo Kowasaki, Sr., Tappan Zee

Pole vault

First team — Todd Korman, Jr., Suffern

Second team — Vegas Petersen, Sr., Clarkstown South

Honorable mention — Justin Digga, Jr., Suffern; Aidan Gleeson, Jr., Pearl River; Jessup Whitehurst, Jr., Suffern

Shot put

First team — Shane O'Neil, Sr., Nanuet

Second team — Christian Morales, Sr., Suffern

Honorable mention — Connor Sullivan, So., Clarkstown South

Discus

First team — Shane O'Neil, Sr., Nanuet

Second team — Jack Smith, Jr., North Rockland

Honorable mention — Liam Reilly, Jr., Pearl River

Pentathlon

First team — Collin Pringle, Jr., Suffern

Second team — Aneudy Sanchez, Jr., North Rockland

Honorable mention — Becket Fagan, So., Clarkstown South

At large

First team — Sam Alves, Jr., Tappan Zee

First team — Jaquan Johnson, Jr., North Rockland

First team — Ryan Tuohy, So., North Rockland

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4x100 relay

First team — North Rockland (Jaquan, Johnson, Jr., Ryan Jaslow, Jr., Darwin Almonte, Jr., Javon Lawrence, Jr., Steven Davis, Jr.)

Second team — Tappan Zee (Caleb Alexandre, Sr., Sam Alves, Jr., Mo Kawasaki, Sr., Adrian Kupi, Jr.)

Honorable mention — Nyack (Zavier Jules, Sr., Ryan Carichon, Sr., Dimitry Magloire, Jr., Sean Clemont, Jr.)

4x400 relay

First team — Suffern (Billy Weber, So., Micheal Cromwell, So., Todd Korman, Jr., Anthony Couch, Sr.)

Second team — Nanuet (Joe Shin, So., Bryan Santana, Jr., Blake Flowers, Jr., Jarell Gibbs, Jr.)

Honorable mention — Nyack (Kameron Kukielczak, Sr., Dimitry Magloire, Jr., Xavier Etienne, So., Asa Signorile, Fr.)

4x800 relay

First team — Pearl River (Max Prunty, Sr., Tyler Walsh, Jr., John Hannagan, Sr., JD Lloyd-McKenna, So., Owen Burke, Jr.)

Second team — Nanuet (Jarell Gibbs, Jr., Sebastian Figueroa, Sr., Derick Mendoza, Sr., Shane Ethakkan, Jr.); North Rockland (Ryan Tuohy, So., Devon Piccone, Jr., Trevor Piccone, So., Claudel Chery, So.)

Nancy Haggerty covers cross-country, track & field, field hockey, skiing, ice hockey, basketball, girls lacrosse and other sporting events for The Journal News/lohud. Follow her on Twitter at @HaggertyNancy.