William Floyd High School senior Zariel Macchia keeps making headlines and her achievements are becoming legendary for the school and Long Island.
Macchia has added to her long list of honors with one of the biggest she can get. She has been named the 2024-25 Gatorade New York Girls Cross Country Player of the Year.
The win now makes her a three-time Gatorade New York Player of the Year winner. Macchia won last year as well so that now makes back-to-back honors for the cross country star. She has won in consecutive years for cross country and has the title once for track & field.
With the honor, she became the first three-time “Gatorade Player of the Year” winner from Long Island.
During her highly successful cross-country season, she won the Suffolk County Class A Title, the NYSPHSAA Class A State Title, the NY State Federation Title, and the U20 USATF Cross Country Championships while also securing a top-three finish in the Foot Locker National Championships. Her efforts earned her Third Team All-America (19th place at the Nike Cross Nationals Final), All-State, All-Long Island, All-County, and All-League honors.
Gatorade Player of the Year is the top honor in high school sports, celebrating the nation's best high school athletes for their success on the field, in the classroom, and in the community. The award distinguishes Macchia as New York's best high school girls’ cross-country athlete, and she joins an impressive group of alumni that spans CEOs, coaches, and star athletes