Though not all of them wanted to rest last week, it was exactly what Ward Melville’s top boys cross country runners needed to do.

Led by senior Anthony Anatol, the Patriots scored 32 points to win the Class A team championship at the Suffolk state qualifier meet at Sunken Meadow State Park in Kings Park on Thursday. It was Ward Melville’s second consecutive Suffolk team championship.

The victory came after coach Ryan DeLuca sat the team’s top seven runners during the Suffolk Division Championships last week. With fresh legs, the Patriots won in multiple ways, as Anatol also took home the individual title. He finished the 5-kilometer race in 16 minutes, 11.1 seconds.

Anatol and the Patriots qualified for the public school state championships, scheduled for Nov. 15 at Queensbury High Scho

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