The Haddonfield boys, led by their bottomless distance team, piled up 36 points on Day 1 of the state Group 2 championships in Mansfield Township.
Senior Peter Simpson won the 3,200 in 9:25.15, leading a 1-2-4 Haddonfield finish for 22 points. Senior Benjamin Andrus took 2nd in 9:30.46, and senior Ryan Gibson was 4th ihn 9:33.63.
Senior Brandon Stoner added six points in the 800 with a PR 1:53.71 for 3rd place.
It wasn’t all the distance crew. Junior Ryder Bozine ran 54.40 for a close 2nd in the 400-meter hurdles. Bozine finished just 3-100ths of a second out of first.
Going into Day 2 at Northern Burlington, Haddonfield holds a 36-21 ½ lead over 2nd-place Willingboro, with Shabazz [18], Voorhees [17 ½] and Demarest [16] not far back.
Haddonfield is seeking its sixth state championship but first since 2015.
From the Backstretch by Reuben Frank 