ITHACA – How many indoor track and field state champions were groomed running the halls of their own school? At least one, for sure.

Norwich junior Matt Murray, saddled with a less-than-ideal starting position, completed a year-long journey that ended on the top of the podium Saturday afternoon in the New York State Indoor Track and Field Championships at Cornell University.

Murray won the 600-meter final beating all contenders and all comers with a personal-best time of 1:20.61. Murray topped runner-up Jonathan Greenwood of Freeport by .23 seconds – or about five feet, said Norwich coach Shaun Horan.

Murray’s ascension to the top began after last season when he was seventh overall in the state, and sixth among public schools. “Winning this title against the best of the best leaves all doubt out of it,” Horan said. “Sometimes you don’t get all of the credit if the kids from the (New York) city schools aren’t there. To beat the best out there is pretty nice.”

Horan said that Murray was single-minded in his focus after last year, and his workouts and work ethic were all designed to produce this past weekend’s result. “He just hammered the workouts and halls (of school) this winter with the focus on winning a state championship,” Horan said. “Working that whole year paid off (Saturday).”