Patroon Conference standout signs with Siena

Castleton, NY — They’ll be a familiar face on Siena College Women’s Cross-country/Track and Field teams come next Fall when Maple Hill High School senior Monica Strain joins the Saints.

Strain, an A+ student both inside and out of the classroom, signed her national letter of intent to continue her running career with the College Tuesday.

“Lot’s of excitement and joy, I’m really happy to commit with Siena,” said Strain who finished fourth in Class D at this weekend’s NYSPHSAA State Championships. “When I started with varsity my eighth-grade year, I was in the No. 5 spot on the team, but after working hard that [next] summer, I’ve held the No.1 [top spot ever since].”

“Monica’s not afraid of working hard, she’s afraid of not working hard,” said Maple Hill cross-country coach Jim Farrell.

“Every year she’s improved. She works harder than everyone else day in and day out,” Farrell went on to say. “I don’t think there’s enough memory on your phone [for me to express how hard she’s worked].”

Strain isn’t the first to commit with the Saints. In 2013 (Monica’s eighth-grade season) Kelly Pasco also signed her letter of intent and is currently in her senior year at Siena.

Congratulations Kelly! pic.twitter.com/hhOH7xcFFV

— Maple Hill Wildcats (@MH_Athletics) May 8, 2013

Although Strain won’t run with Pasko, she will continue to represent Maple Hill at the collegiate level, while also getting a quality education.

“It’s a small school, they’ve got a great small class ratio and good science programs,” said Strain, who plans on studying biochemistry and neuroscience Though Siena was her first choice, she was also looking at Stonehill College, SUNY Geneseo, and Binghamton.

For Farrell, Tuesday’s signing is the icing on the cake of yet another successful season on both sides of the gender coin.”I measure a successful season by the kid’s success, and I don’t think you can be more successful than signing a letter of intent to run at a Division 1 school.”

Given the talent level on both teams for cross-country, plus Track and Field( indoor and outdoor), expect to see a few more signings come out of this cow (& buffalo) town school in the coming months and seasons.

-Dylan Rossiter(@ByDylanRossiter)