Led by junior Alyssa Siriano, senior Megan Niglio, junior Madeline Meder and juniuor Sofia Recinto, who piled up 50 points in the 800, 1,600 and 3,200, the Cherokee girls won their first sectional title in 12 years this weekend at Pennsauken.
Siriano won the 1,600 in 5:05.62 and 3,200 in 11:01.63 and took 2nd in the 800 in 2:14.75, Niglio ran 3rd in both the 1,600 [5:07.97] and 3,200 [11:11.98], Meder was 5th in the 1,600 [5:15.07] and 3,200 [11:23.69] (and ran 2:17.85 in the 800), and Recinto placed 3rd in the 800 [2:14.97].
Cherokee added eight points with a 2nd-place in the 3,200-meter relay with freshman Erin Healy, Recinto, senior Grace Wojciechowski and junior Maya Kumar running 9:39.57.
So that’s 58 of 68 points from the Cherokee distance team.
Junior ddison Lore contributed eight points with a 2nd-place finish in the javelin with a 116-6 throw, and Addison Wright was 5th in the pole vault at 10-0. So all 68 of Cherokee’s points came from distance runners or someone named Addison.
Cherokee came out on top of a wild race that saw six schools finish within 20 points of each other. Pennsauken, led by the amazing Sianni Wynn, was 2nd with 61 points, a number that might not go down very much at states, defending champion Washington Township was 3rd with 58, Rancocas Valley scored 57, Eastern 52 and Williamstown 49.
The team title is Cherokee’s second. The Chiefs won South Jersey Group 4 also in 2013. A different school has won SJ-4 in each of the last four years – Rancocas Valley in 2022, Eastern in 2023, Washington Township last year and Cherokee this year. In all, seven schools have won SJ-4 the last nine times it’s been contested.
Wynn ran 11.61 to win the 100, the 200 in 23.86 ahead of Natalie Dumas’s 24.02, 53.20 for 2nd behind Natalie Dumas in the 400
We wrote on Saturday about Dumas tying Sydney McLaughlin’s state record in the 400 [] and running a U.S. No. 2 58.37 in the intermediates. In addition to her 2nd in the 200 she also won the 800 in 2:14.30, edging the Cherokee tandem of Suriano and Recinto.
The hurdles race produced four of the eight-fastest times in New Jersey this year, with Atlantic County Tech sophomore Brianna Growalt coming out ahead with a PR 14.22, edging Pennsauken junior Olivia Dupree in 14.24.Rancocas Valley senior Cecilia King [14.32] and Washington Township senior Dakota Jones [14.41] all under 14.50. Growalt also won the long jump with a 17-11 ½.
That 800 had a ridiculous eight girls under 2:18, with Vineland seniors Ashlynn Newton [2:15.50] and Georgina Chalow [2:15.61] in 4th and 5th, Eastern senior Samantha Osei-Kyei 6th [2:16.85], Cherry Hill East freshman Maya Morgan 7th [2:17.77] and Meder 8th [2:17.85].
Pennsauken ran hot in the 400-meter relay, with junior Sanaya Dupree, junior Olivia Dupree, sophomore Abigayle John and Wynn winning in 47.03, leading Rancocas Valley [47.87] and Kingsway [47.99] under 48. Pennsauken’s time is No. 6 in South Jersey history, Rancocas Valley is No. 10 in Burlington County history and Kingsway is No. 3 in Gloucester County history.
Kingsway got a 55.27 anchor leg from freshman Noemi Haller and won the 4-by-4 in 3:56.85. Junior Savannah Aulich, sophomore Norah Brown and senior Camryn Stanard also ran.
Washington Township senior Ella Karp had a nice throws double, winning the discus at 133-6 and the shot at 42-0 ½. Last year’s Meet of Champions winner Addison Inge won the high jump at 5-6, Rancocas Valley junior La’el Yates cleared 10-6 to win the pole vault and Williamstown senior Milla Pihlava jumped 36-4 on her 1st attempt to win the triple jump.
From the Backstretch by Reuben Frank 