Randolph's Roan Kelly is the 2024 OBSERVER/Post-Journal Boys Track & Field Athlete of the Year.

Randolph senior Roan Kelly had a tough decision to make at the New York State Public High School Athletic Association Track & Field Championships this spring.

The 2023 Federation and Division 2 champion in the 1,600 meters had the option to not run the 1,600-meter relay team and focus on defending his title, or he could help his teammates become state champions too.

In the sport generally focused on individual performances, Kelly decided to be the team player and it paid off as he helped send home three more Cardinals with a state title.

“Second seed we weren’t expected to win,” Kelly said after the Randolph relay team won the state title. “We didn’t even know if we were going to run our fast team, but an hour before the race pretty much said screw it, we’re not coming all the way out here to not run our fast team. We came out and everyone said before ‘we’re going to win, we’re going to win, we’re going to win’ and we got the job done so it was great.”

Running with the fast team, the quartet of Dempsey McDonald, Diego Stradi, Kelly and Talon Rowland posted a blazing time of 3:19.75 — which was only run faster by Newburgh Free Academy in the Division 1 race — claiming the Division 2 state championship.

“I said yesterday, 4X4 was on the fence,” Kelly added after winning with the relay team. “I didn’t know if I was going to do it, but I decided I was going to get my guys. I’ve got to go out there for my guys, I can’t leave them hanging.”

McDonald and Stradi put the Cardinals in third position, then once Kelly received the baton it was game over.

He posted a split of 48.49 to thrust Randolph into the lead. Running nearly 2 seconds faster than any of the opposing third splits, the handoff to Rowland was for the state title as he matched Kelly with a blistering pace of 48.26, and no team could catch him en route to the championship.

Burning that kind of energy the night before his title defense in the individual 1,600 meters proved costly, but for the NCAA Division I-bound athlete headed to Virginia Tech next year, it was more important to win the team title.

Kelly still reached the podium in Division 2 with a time of 4:21.74 in the 1,600 meters, but just reaching fifth was nowhere near his expectations as he holds himself to the highest of standards. But the Randolph senior still went home with a state championship.

“Obviously not what I wanted,” Kelly said after his final 1,600 race in high school. “I have no excuse, I just didn’t come out and perform the way I should. I mean it sucks, but I’m happy I did the 4X4 yesterday, that was a great time, still a state champ. In the long run, when I’m 25, I’ll be looking back and happy that I did the 4X4 to lose the mile.”

That ended Kelly’s high school career in Randolph as a three-time state champion — two in track and one in basketball — because in the end he opted to sit out the final race of the 1,600 relay to give his teammates the chance of running at the state meet. Instead of the Division 2 championship squad running it back, the team of Maverick Adams, Domanik Clark, Gavin Stearns and Rowland finished the season for the Cardinals.

“I don’t think so, I’m a little banged up now,” Kelly said about giving his teammates a chance to run at states. “I’m letting the alternates run it, because they came down here too and they deserve it. They worked their butts off the entire season and a couple of our guys are kind of roughed up from the 4X4, so why not let them go out there and they’ll get a medal and they deserve it.”

Leading up to the state championships at Cicero-North Syracuse High School, Kelly found himself atop a lot of podiums as he won the Section VI Class D title in the 800 at 2:05.32; finished first in the 1,600 at the Dunkirk Invitational, the Golden Falcon Invitational, the Section VI Class D Championships and the Section VI state cualifier; claimed the 3,200 title in Section VI Class D; and was a part of a 3,200 relay team that won the Frostbite Relays.

For all of these reasons, Kelly is the 2024 Post-Journal/OBSERVER Male Track & Field Athlete of the Year.