22 Photos
Burt Herman of East Quogue cools down in the shower provided by the Westhampton Beach Fire Department. RON ESPOSITO
Jeffrey Ares of Westhampton Beach and New York City was this year's overall champion. RON ESPOSITO
Katie Gleason of Westhampton and New York City was this year's female champion. RON ESPOSITO
Luke Williamson of Westhampton Beach finishes second overall. RON ESPOSITO
Elizabeth Elcik of White Plains was the second female to cross the finish line on Saturday. RON ESPOSITO
Sergey Avramenko finished third overall. RON ESPOSITO
Megan Coll of Westhampton finished third among women. DREW BUDD
The postrace shower provided by the Westhampton Beach Fire Department has many uses, insta shots being one of them. RON ESPOSITO
Cooling off in the shower provided by the Westhampton Beach Fire Department. RON ESPOSITO
The race was once again held just in front of Westhampton Beach Village Marina on the corner of Stevens Lane and Library Avenue. RON ESPOSITO
Cali Shepherd, left, Elizabeth Elcik, Kylie Shelon,
Samantha, left, and Laurette Schaumloffel. RON ESPOSITO
Chandler Dewgard, left, Megan Coll and Bob Berger. RON ESPOSITO
Allyson, left, and Zoe Lash. RON ESPOSITO
Alice Geismart of Westhampton. RON ESPOSITO
Enjoying the shower provided by the Westhampton Beach Fire Department. RON ESPOSITO
The kids cool down. RON ESPOSITO
Cooling down. RON ESPOSITO
Gaby Wendel runs in the Joe Koziarz Memorial 5K. RON ESPOSITO
Joe Sferrazza of Manorville carries the flag. RON ESPOSITO
Heather and Greg Nicholas. RON ESPOSITO
The Westhampton Beach football team finished its offseason program by running in the Joe Koziarz Memorial 5K on Saturday morning. RON ESPOSITO
There seems to be a theme occurring with Jeffrey Ares and the Joe Koziarz Memorial 5K in Westhampton Beach.
After winning the race in 2022, Ares finished second last year to Sergey Avramenko, but he returned this year and not only beat Avramenko, but the entire 339-runner field to win the 32nd annual race on Saturday morning.
Ares, 40, who splits his time between Westhampton Beach and New York City, crossed the finish line in 16:56.55, a mile pace of 5:27. Training for the upcoming Chicago Marathon in October, Ares said he did his long run a few days prior to Saturday’s race, which was a warmup for him more than anything else.
Ares said he appreciated the fact that the race was not held during a heatwave, as it’s been known to be over the years, and that the humidity wasn’t too bad either, making for some good running conditions.
“They wanted me to win, so I went out there and tried to run hard for a little bit and was able to hold on for a little while,” he said. “Great race. Love the course.”
Luke Williamson, 17, of Westhampton Beach finished second overall in 17:25.02. Avramenko, who won many of the East End’s road races last summer, is slowly making his way back to full strength after an injury, placed third in 17:34.76. Jay Barry, 46, of Westhampton Beach and Manhasset, and a former champion of the race, finished fourth in 18:20.01 and Forrest Clark, 38, of Flagstaff, Arizona, finished fifth in 18:26.35.
Katie Gleason, 26, of Westhampton and New York City was this year’s women’s champion. After finishing fourth in 20:17.90 last year, Gleason greatly improved her time this year, crossing the finish line in 19:43.93.
A rower during her years at Yale, Gleason, who is originally from Boston, said she’s become more of a runner post college. After some friends got into town late the night before, Gleason said she wasn’t going to show up for the race, but woke up after not much sleep and decided to do it anyway.
“I usually try and go out there and stay with the men as long as possible in a small race like that,” she said. “I’m honestly looking at where I am in comparison to other people than my own time, but I think it was a good time.”
Elizabeth Elcik, 23, of White Plains placed second among women in 20:06.09. Megan Coll, 20, of Westhampton Beach finished third in 21:23.88, Elena Bocchetti, 20, of Wilmington, Delaware, finished fourth in 21:26.07, and Heather Wright, 50, of Westhampton rounded out the top five women in 21:30.37.
All results can be found at elitefeats.com.
The race is named after Joe Koziarz, who, along with some help from friends, organized the first race over 30 years ago. An avid runner, Koziarz created the race because he thought it would be beneficial to local businesses, but he also wanted to show off the elegant scenery of the area. In 1995, just a few years after the first race, Koziarz died of a heart attack at age 52, and some time after, the race was named in his memory.
Proceeds from the Joe Koziarz Memorial 5K will continue to benefit local organizations such as the Southampton Town Police Athletic League, the Koziarz Hurricane Scholarship Fund, the Peconic Bay Medical Center Emergency Room and other local charities.
