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DyeStat New Jersey
Cross Country 2000
Group Championship Preview
Michael Grabell, publisher of the Ultimate New Jersey High School Cross Country and Track Webpage
Groups Preview
Group 4
BOYS
In an incredibly stacked race, 10 ranked teams face off for 3 automatic qualifying spots and the likely one wild card. #1 Cherokee and #3 Old Bridge are shoe-ins for two of those spots as #4 Eastern, #5 Hunterdon Central, #6 Southern and #7 Toms River North battle for the next two spots. In the team race also watch #12 Memorial, #15 Morristown, #17 Highland, #22 Bridgewater-Raritan and South Brunswick.
The individual race will be a classic. With 8 of the top 10 individuals in the state, this race may be an MOC preview. The big three - #1 Ty Jensen (Marlboro), #2 Mike Myers (Eastern) and #3 Marc Pelerin (Cherokee) - will tangle. Poised to outseat those three are #5 Adam Ambrus (Shawnee), #6 Chad Lyons (Overbrook), #8 Dan Harding (Old Bridge) and #9 Brian Donovan (East Brunswick). Also keep your eyes on, #10 William Canon (Memorial), Vinnie Zarrillo (Southern), Dan Deichert (Eastern), Joe Lesniak (Toms River North), Gray Reinhard (Morristown), Adam Clark (Southern), Bob Lacovara (Highland) and Cherokee runners Matt Mueller, Josh Joseph and Keith Krieger.
GIRLS
Also a stacked race, #2 Hunterdon Central, #3 Shawnee, #5 Toms River East and #8 Westfield all will reach for the gold. Looking to qualify are #9 Morristown, #12 Union, #13 Ridgewood, #14 Columbia and #15 Toms River North. A few teams may surprise the competition - Hillsborough, Jackson Memorial, Cherokee and Passaic. #2 Shannon Hawrylo (Hunterdon Central) will likely win. #6 Courtney Epps (Columbia), #10 Clair Nowakowski (Ridgewood), Linda Sanders (Old Bridge), South champ Courtney Fiorovanti (Toms River North) and Kristen Meyer, who is still recovering from an injury, will challenge. Also watch Raven Lea (Columbia), Katie Floersheimer (Morristown), Liz Kaba (Jackson Memorial), Kathleen Galan (Highland), Heather McGarvie (Shawnee), Dana Palumbo (Shawnee), Jen Blank (Toms River East) and Lexi Gray (Toms River East).
Group 3
BOYS
The Group 3 race will be another Cranford-Scotch Plains duel for the fourth consecutive week. #11 Scotch Plains beat #9 Cranford in Watchung-National, but Cranford edged Scotch Plains in the Sectional race. Next week they face off again in the Union County Championships. The last spot should be a close race between #14 Mainland, #16 Mount Olive, #18 Middletown South and #19 Toms River South. Also watch #21 Demarest, #24 Hightstown, River Dell and Red Bank. #4
Brian Boyett (Par Hills) should have no trouble winning the individual race. But watch #7 Bobby Cannon (Toms River South), Pat Slattery (Mt. Olive), James Holden (Bridgeton) and John Richardson (Ocean City), who could make it a closer race than expected. Also in the hunt are Israel Rodriguez (Red Bank), Matt McDonough (North Hunterdon), Matt Van Antwerp (Jefferson), Joshua Robinson (River Dell), Robert Wallden (Scotch Plains), Hightstown runners Jeremy Klapper and Chris Repka, Edwin Puello (Ocean Twp.) and Ed Baynes (Toms River South).
GIRLS
This will be a close race with #10 North Hunterdon, #11 Woodrow Wilson and #16 Middletown South all sporting strong teams. Hoping to break in are #17 Ocean City, #18 Indian Hills, #23 Toms River South, Old Tappan and North Jersey, Sec. 2 champ Parsippany.
Individually, #5 Parsippany's Kim Pereira will take on #7 Jesse Mizzone (Passaic Valley), Sarah Spilman (West Morris), North Hunterdon runners Megan Ruane and Shari Gorga, Nicole Lombardy (Middletown South) and Delsea's Brittany McCann. Also watch Jen Myers (Ramapo), Briana Bayersdorfer (River Dell), Sarah Founds (Mendham), Woodrow Wilson runners Tanesha Pittman and Tanesha Shelton and Lyndsay Nunan (Ocean City).
Group 2
BOYS
In the team race, #20 Haddonfield is the only ranked squad. But close behind are Hanover Park, Moorestown, Holmdel and Rumson. Also watch West Deptford, Hopewell Valley, Walkill Valley, Mahwah, Montville and Pt. Pleasant Boro, who could play a role.
For individual honors, three runners from North Jersey, Sec. 1 and South Jersey compete with the North Jersey, Sec. 2 and Central Jersey champion. The four champions Cole Dailey (Rutherford), Joe Davidson (Hopewell Valley), Lou Albano (Pequannock) and Chris Platt (Haddonfield) are the top contenders. But Matt Collins (Ramsey) and Owen Bourgholtzer (Mahwah) have been close to Dailey all season as have James Johnson (West Deptford) and Joe Hanlon (Moorestown) to Platt.
GIRLS
Group 2 is as stacked up front as Group 4. #1 Moorestown will set a fast pace as will #6 Voorhees and #7 Hopewell Valley. Behind those big three teams are #20 Rumson, #21 Ramsey, #22 Montville, Newton and Haddonfield.
Group 2 also is stacked individually. #1 Erin Donohue (Haddonfield) is a step above all other runners in the state. But also in this race are #3 Julie Ullmeyer (Shore), #4 Melissa Conway (Ramsey), #8 Natalie Jones (Hopewell Valley) and #9 Christy Planer (Rumson). Behind the ranked runners are Moorestown's Kelsey Rinehart, Julia Kuder and Colleen Hughes, Voorhees' Sarah Best, Alexis Vergalla and Sarah Rhodes, Whitney McNees (Hopewell Valley), Kira McGroarty (Hopatcong), Megan Lerch (Kingsway) and Ashley Folchetti (Holmdel).
Group 1
BOYS
Our pick is Palisades Park with Colts Neck and Pennsville following for the last two qualifying spots. In the individual race, Joe Jacobs will meet Colts Neck's top two - Israel Payan and Jorge Ventura. Also in the race are Nick Harris (Palisades Park) and Pat Curran (Pennsville).
GIRLS
Wide-open. Colts Neck won Central Jersey and Haddon Township won South Jersey. Behind them in thos reaces were Metuchen, Bernards and Gloucester City. Also watch North Sec. 1 Champ Saddle Brook and North Sec. 2 Champ Mountain Lakes. Alyson Krayl (Point Pleasant Beach) is set for her title. Also challenging are Cailin Hadley (Gloucester City), North Sec. 1 Champ Erin Henry (Glen Rock), North Sec. 2 Champ Christine Dobrosky (Mountain Lakes), Central Jersey Champ Megan Kayser (Middlesex), Grace DeMarrais (Bernards) and Ashley Liberatore (Colts Neck).
Parochial A
BOYS
Three letters explain this race: CBA. They are unstoppable here. The real race is for second place between #8 Delbarton, #10 Don Bosco Prep and #13 Paul VI, who has yet to face a strong NJ team head-to-head. #25 Bergen Catholic is also in the race. If the wild card doesn't go to a Group 4 team, it will be won in this race.
CBA may get their five in the top 7 spots with Tom Falvey, Nat Glackin, Jeff Peterson, Trevor Rozier-Byrd and Eric Reulbach leading the way. Mike Ritchie (PVI), Peter Gerboth (DBP) and James Clifford (DBP) are the three non-CBA runners who may capture the individual race.
GIRLS
#4 Red Bank Catholic will win. For the last two spots watch #19 Monsignor Donovan, #24 Bishop Eustace, #25 Immaculata, Pingry, Paul VI, St. John Vianney, Immaculate Heart and St. Dominic Academy. The individual race will be close with the Red Bank Catholic duo of Julia Barker and Mary McCudden, Brandee Neiderhoffer (Holy Spirit), Laura Carpenter (St. John Vianney), Danielle Biondo (SDA), Immaculata sisters Erin and Liz Geiger and the Monsignor Donovan trio of Kate Hazlett, Rachel Watson and Carey Mayo.
Parochial B
BOYS
Mater Dei will win, but Montclair Kimberley may factor in. For the third spot its a toss-up - St. Augustine? Wildwood Catholic? St. Rose? Eastern Christian? The individual race is tight. Freshman Oskar Nordenbring (MKA) edged Mater Dei's Tom Santifort at Shore Coaches.
GIRLS
Morris Catholic was the top Parochial B team at Shore Coaches while St. Rose traveled out of state for most meets this year. For the third spot Montclair-Kimberley, Mater Dei, Oak Knoll and Villa Walsh are close. Individually, Hawthorne Christian's Lindsay Van Alstine is the only ranked runner. Caroline Bugg (Newark Academy) has been a top prep runner and Lia Bella (Morris Catholic) was second in her conference.
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