Three Haddonfield runners ran 15:34 or faster and Haddonfield won its state-record 18th consecutive sectional XC title in record fashion.
The sectional title is Haddonfield’s state-record 40th overall.
Senior Seth Clevenger ran 15:19 to win the South Jersey Group 2 race at DREAM Park in Logan Township, junior George Andrus ran 15:31 for 3rd and senior Tobias Janssen finished in 15:43 for 4th.
All seven of Haddonfield’s runners ran 16:45 or faster. The Bulldogs’ two other scorers were junior Robert DiMedio [10th in 16:16] and senior Andrew Sullivan [14th in 16:40]. They were backed up by juniors Donald Jellig [16th in 16:43] and Ian Romea [17th in 16:45].
Haddonfield finished with a 28-66 margin of victory over Cinnaminson, which placed second with six juniors and a sophomore and averaged 16:42.
Haddon Heights [79], Manchester Township [107] and Red Creek [158] also earned invites to next Saturday’s state championships at Holmdel.
Haddonfield’s five scorers averaged 15:52, destroying the course record of 16:00 set by Cherokee at the 2019 Olympic Conference Championships.
Clevenger’s 15:19 was 3rd-fastest of all the races Saturday and 4th-fastest in course history.
Before its current 18-year streak began in 2004, Haddonfield won SJ-1 in 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1989, 1990, 1997 and 1998, SJ-2 in 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1995, 1996, 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2002 and SJ-3 in 1967.
The only time since 1999 that Haddonfield did not win a sectional title was 2003, when Cinnaminson’s Jon Anderson, Dan Reidenbaker and Steve Grabowski finished 1-3-4 and the Pirates recorded a 29-46 victory at Delsea in SJ-2.
Other than that, Haddonfield has won either SJ-1 or SJ-2 24 of the last 25 years.
The rest of the top-10 was very fast.
Woodbury sophomore Peyton Shute ran 15:28 for 2nd to break up Haddonfield’s lead pack, West Deptford senior Jacob Cobb ran 15:46 for 5th, Colin Patterson of Haddon Heights was 6th in 15:55, Cinnaminson juniors Alex Boyko and Matt McCarron ran 16:13 and 16:16 for 7th and 8th and junior Jack Bolling of Haddon Heights was 9th in 16:16.
From the Backstretch by Reuben Frank 