LONG ISLAND-A year ago, Cooperstown's Sam Stults attended the cross country state meet as a first alternate, watching the race rather than running. He decided that day he would be back the next season as a competitor.

And he did just that, finishing 18th on Saturday at Sunken Meadow Course on Long Island, the highest placement ever for a Cooperstown boys cross country runner at the state meet. Cooperstown cross country coach Jessie Ravage said the hilly course worked to Stults' advantage.

"It was a very challenging course, which is very good for Sam, that's the type of course he likes," Ravage said. "Sam worked very hard for this. He set his goal to be here a year ago, and made it come true. This is a great way to end the season."

Stults, who finished in a time of 17 minutes and 48 seconds, said his experience helped him perform well Saturday.

"I've been running for five years and I've pretty much seen it all," Stults said. "One of the things I feel works to my advantage is that I really don't get nervous before a meet. I didn't get nervous on Saturday either, I just went out and ran my race."

Stults said that though he had consistently finished in the top 10 of most races during the season, he knew the state meet was the best of the best so he did not set a goal before the race.

"I was very happy with top 20," the senior said. "I felt like I finished exactly where I should have."

Stults also ran as a member of the Section Three team, which finished second among 11 sections from Class D.