October 1, 2009 – Haddonfield, #7 in the US and #1 in the NE , solidified its top spot in New Jersey with an impressive victory at the third Bowdoin Park Classic last Saturday in Wappingers Falls, NY.
Haddonfield’s 54-57-67 win over Germantown Pa and Christian Brothers was ignited by senior Jon Vitez’s sizzling winning time of 15:41.5, No. 3 in course history. Haddonfield had a five-man average of 16:30.
Haddonfield and NJ #2 Christian Brothers will hold out most of its regulars at Saturday’s 35th Shore Coaches Invitational at Holmdel Park before they clash in the Eastern States Championship race at the Manhattan Invitational on Oct. 10 at Van Cortlandt Park in the Bronx.
As usual, most of the top teams in the state will hit the trails at Holmdel Park for the Shore Coaches meet, including nine of the Top 25 in the A Division race. So there should be a big shake up in these rankings when the contenders are seperated from the pretenders during the six race varsity card that's on tap.
1-Haddonfield (1) 2-Christian Brothers (2) 3-West Windsor-Plainsboro North (3) 4-Don Bosco Prep (4) 5-Old Bridge (6) 6-Toms River North (5) 7-West Windsor-Plainsboro South (7) 8-Ridge (9) 9-Westfield (14) 10-Shawnee (NR) 11-Millburn (10) 12-Southern (8) 13-Ridgewood (NR) 14-Bridgewater-Raritan (13) 15-Red Bank Catholic (14) 16-Ocean City (NR) 17-East Brunswick (NR) 18-Hunterdon Central (25) 19-Randolph (24) 20-Red Bank (NR) 21-Morristown (21) 22-Mendham (NR) 23-Paul VI (12) 24-Howell (NR) 25-Lawrenceville (NR)
GIRLS
OCT. 1 - The top slot in the New Jersey Girls High School Cross-Country Top 25 is on the verge of becoming a revolving door, and there is no end in sight to the parade of teams who believe they can lay claim to that perch.
Red Bank Catholic, considered for the top ranking, slipped after placing third in the New Balance Jersey Shore Cougar Invitational with 82 points, behind Pearl River NY (38 points) and Toms River North (80 points).
Ridge, one point away from earning its first NJSIAA Meet of Champions title last fall, slides into the pole position and could very well remain there for the long haul. Preseason No. 1 Randolph tumbled to No. 7 after Pope John of Sparta earned a 25-30 victory over Randolph in a North Jersey Athletic Conference dual meet on Wednesday at Freedom Park in Randolph.
All of this mess will become a lot clearer once the dust settles following the Shore Coaches Invitational, on Saturday at Holmdel Park. Six varsity races, 186 teams. Let the serious games begin.
