Nov. 19, 2009 - There was a big shake up at the top of the rankings thanks to Don Bosco Prep’s stunning 44-60 victory over then No. 1 CBA in the Non-Public A state championships race last Saturday at Holmdel Park .
Don Bosco’s victory, its fourth straight Non Public A title, vaulted it from No. 4 to No. 1 this week, ending a five week run by CBA in the top spot.
Haddonfield remains at No. 2 after running away with its fourth straight Group 3 title, with CBA slips to No. 3. West Windsor Plainsboro North, which grabbed its third straight Group 3 trophy, stays at No. 4.
Westfield and Ridge swapped spots as Westfield moved to No. 5 and Ridghe dropped a notch to No. 6 following Westfield’s triumph in the Group 4 race over Ridge. Westfield, which lost to Ridge by two the previous week at the NJ, Section 2, Group 4 meet, has now won a Group 4 Championship in five straight decacdes.
The rankings are expected to get jumbled up yet again when all the teams mentioned above square off at Saturday’s 38th Meet of Champions at Holmdel Park. Race time is 10:45 a.m. rank/team/previous ranking
1-Don Bosco Prep (4) 2-Haddonfield (2) 3-Christian Brothers (1) 4-West Windsor-Plainsboro North (4) 5-Westfield (6) 6-Ridge (5) 7-Toms River North (11) 8-Ridgewood (14) 9-Southern (10) 10-East Brunswick (8) 11-Mendham (19) 12-Millburn (7) 13-West Windsor-Plainsboro South (15) 14-Bridgewater-Raritan (13) 15-Old Bridge (16) 16-Randolph (12) 17-Shawnee (9) 18-Princeton (21) 19-Cherokee (17) 20-Red Bank Catholic (NR) 21-Cherry Hill East (NR) 22-Ocean City (23) 23-Hillsborough (18) 24-Delaware Valley (NR) 25-North Hunterdon (NR)
NJ GIRLS XC TOP 25 FOR DYESTAT NOV. 20
This is the penultimate DyeStat New Jersey girls cross-country Top 25, and a massive overhaul has taken place following the NJSIAA Group Championships on Saturday at Holmdel Park.
After five weeks at the top spot, Hillsborough slips a single notch to No. 2 after losing to Randolph, 66-73, in the state Group 4 race. These two teams are expected to stage another great battle when New Jersey harrier action concludes with the 38th Meet of Champions, on Saturday at Holmdel. The girls race takes place at 10 a.m.
NJ #3 Holy Angels of Demarest made a strong move upwards after winning a highly-competitive Non-Public A race. NJ #9 Red Bank Catholic moved up one notch for placing second, and #10 Pingry of Martinsville continued its dream season by placing third in that race and moving into the top 10 in the poll for the first time in recent history. NJ #4 Voorhees of Glen Gardner captured its third straight Group 3 title, and it will be joined at the M of C by #18 Hopewell Valley and #24 Seneca. NJ #4 Hunterdon Central, NJ #4 South Brunswick and NJ #5 Ridge placed third, fourth and fifth, respectively, in the Group 4 race. Hunterdon Central qualified automatically for the M of C while South Brunswick and Ridge snagged the two wild card berths.
NJ #6 Lenape of Medford moved up nine spots in the poll but will be on the outside looking in for the M of C. Lenape will still be represented at the state meet by senior Caitlin Orr (seventh, 19:25) and freshman Natalia Ocasio (ninth, 19:29), both automatic qualifiers.
The poll’s second 10 begins with NJ #11 Delsea, winner of its first Group 2 title after beating four-time defending champion and #12 Haddonfield quite decisively, 81-112.
The poll continues with a pair of Group 4 schools, #13 Bridgewater-Raritan, up six spots, and #14 Toms River North. These school failed to scrape through the brutal Group 4 race, but Bridgewater did manage to snag the first of 10 individual wild cards for the M of C when senior Cara Talty placed 11th overall in 19:34.
The next two teams, NJ #15 Pope John of Sparta and #16 Immaculate Heart of Washington Township, spent most of their seasons in the top 10 but failed to advance to the M of C after placing fourth and fifth, respectively, in the difficult Non-Public A race. Immaculate Heart will be represented at the big dance by junior Erin Thompson (seventh, 19:3), while Pope John will be represented senior Marissa Galante, who snatched the fourth individual wild card by placing 11th in 19:59.
NJ #17 Mountain Lakes, on a roll after its North Jersey, Section 1, Group 1 victory, claimed its first state Group 1 title since 2005. The only other Group 1 school in the poll is #25 Robbinsville, the defending Group 1 champion which finished second this time around.
NJ #19 Roxbury, #20 Southern Regional of Manahawkin, #21 Williamstown, #22 Livingston and #23 Howell finished ninth through 13th in the Group 4 event. Roxbury junior Mary Migton (third, 18:59) and Southern senior Corrie Gethard (eighth, 19:25) are the automatic qualifiers from among this group, and Livingston sophomore Eloissa Cusi (23rd, 20:02) earned a wild card berth.
