Dennis Fortuna shattered the DREAM Park course record Saturday morning and led Triton to its first sectional cross country title in school history! 

What a historic day for the Mustangs! 

Fortuna won the South Jersey Group 3 race in 15:09, breaking the 5,000-meter course record of 15:12, set by Cherokee’s Ethan Wechsler at the 2019 Olympic Conference Championships. This is the fourth year the course has been used. Fortuna’s previous 5,000 best for any course was 16:02, but that was at Holmdel County Park at Shore Coaches, one of the most challenging courses in the state.  

Fortuna won by 150 meters over Delsea senior Andrew Littlehales, who placed second in 15:38 and became Triton’s first sectional winner in 56 years, since George Dilenno ran 12:27 over 2 1/2 miles to win the 1966 South Jersey Group 3 title at Pennsauken, beating Sterling’s Mike Kelly by about 100 meters. Dilenno actually ran for Triton Blue, which merged with Triton Red in 1967 to form the current Triton High School.

Fortuna remains unbeaten this fall in major meets, having previously won titles at the Shore Coaches, Manhattan Invite and Camden County. 

Triton placed its five scorers in the top 25 to defeat Ocean City 62-78 and averaged 16:33 per runner, 5th-fastest in course history. Highland [85], Mainland Regional [104] and Moorestown [150] also qualified for next weekend’s state meet at Holmdel County Park.

Also for Triton, senior Forrest Miller ran 16:24 for 6th, junior Antonio Nieves was 12th in 16:44, sophomore Ethan Wence placed 20th in 17:09 and Nicholas Martino was 25th in 17:19. Sixth and 7th runners senior Caleb Messenger and sophomore Cameron Priestly ran 17:26 and 17:57 for 29th and 37th.

Ocean City senior Owen Ritti placed third in 16:08, followed by Mainland senior Linden Wineland [4th in 16:18] and Timber Creek senior Cole Myolan [5th in 16:19]. Highland junior Cole Knoedler took 7th in 16:27, Mainland junior Elliot Post ran 16:29 for 8th, Ocean City junior Nick Scarangelli was 9th in 16:31 and Highland junior Gavin Gallo rounded out the top 10 in 16:34. In all 14 runners broke 17 minutes at DREAM Park in Logan Township and another 17 broke 17:30.

Audubon senior Scott Hubbard ran 16:23 and edged Colonial Conference rival Ethan Bergmann of Haddon Township to win the South Jersey Group 1 XC title and lead Audubon to its second straight team title.

Hubbard finished about eight meters ahead of Bergmann, who ran 16:26 – officially 16:23.98 for Hubbard and 16:26.02 for Bergmann – in a two-man race. Those two gapped the rest of the field by about 125 meters.

Hubbard became Audubon’s first sectional winner in 40 years, since Bob Douglas edged Glassboro’s Brian Kirkpatrick by four seconds to win the 1981 South Jersey Group 1 title at Pennsauken.

Audubon placed all five scorers in the top 12 and outscored Haddon Township 35-56. Audubon had a 62-second gap from first to fifth and averaged 17:06 at DREAM Park in Logan Township. Maple Shade placed third with 83 points. Also qualifying for states were Woodstown and Glassboro.

Seniors Clifford Gilmore and Tyler Wells placed 6th and 7th for the Green Wave in 17:12 and 17:13, junior Joseph Gaspari was 9th in 17:15 and sophomore Aiden Williams placed 12th in 17:25. Senior Aaryn Myers [19th in 18:05] and freshman Leo Davis [31st in 18:54] also ran for Audubon.

The sectional team title was the third for Audubon, which won Group 1 in 1978 and again last year.

The rest of the top 10 included Wildwood sophomore Jorge Cruz Valle [3rd in 16:50], Haddon Township senior Max Tomashek [4th in 17:01], Buena senior Kayden Platania [5th in 17:02], Maple Shade senior Murphy Hastings [8th in 17:13] and Maple Shade senior Ryan Olesky [10th in 17:21].

Haddon Township junior Meghan Lex PR’d for the second meet in a row, became the first Haddon Township girl to win a sectional XC title in six years and leading the Hawks to their 11th sectional championship.

Lex ran 19:43 over 5,000 meters at DREAM Park in Logan Township, lowering her all-course 5,000 PR of 19:58, which she ran two weeks ago at the Colonial Conference meet at Pennypacker Park. 

She’s Haddon Township’s first sectional winner since 2016, when Annika Merkh ran 19:32 at Delsea to win the South Jersey Group 1 title. 

The Hawks placed all five scorers in the top 16 and outscored second-place Wildwood, 31-55, with Schalick (76), Audubon (81) and Cape May County Tech (113) also advancing to states.

Lex out-raced Wildwood freshman Macie McCracken for the individual title. McCracken finished 85 meters back in 20:05, and Schalick senior Mia LaMarra also ran sub-21, taking third in 20:51.

For Haddon Township, sophomore Genevieve Gentlesk [4th in 21:04], seniors Ellie Sennhenn and Kaelin Marshall [10th and 11th, 22:06 and 22:10] and senior Georgia Knorr [16th 23:31] also scored, and sophomore sixth runner Simona Thoder wasn’t far back in 21st place.

Haddon Township also won Group 1 in 2000, 2008, 2011, 2014, 2016, 2020 and Group 2 in 1976, 1983, 1984 and 2004, so this is the first time the Hawks have won consecutive South Jersey titles since 1983 and 1984, when they were led by Missy Roller, Suzanne Haug and Barb Countey.

Wildwood’s 2nd-place finish is remarkable considering the Warriors haven’t fielded a full five-girl team at sectionals since 2006. Their best previous finish was third place in 1981 and 1982.

Freshman Leah Pawlus and senior Ava Troiano joined McCracken in the top 15, Pawlus placing 9th in 22:02 and Troiano 13th in 22:46.

Also South Jersey runners in the top 10 were Pennsville senior Taylor Burchfield [5th in 21:11], Schalick freshman Taylor Behrens [6th in 21:30] and Palmyra sophomore Cadence Anderson [7th in 21:50].

Sectional championship day has arrived, with races starting at 10 a.m. Saturday and continuing through 1:30 p.m.

Most South Jersey schools will race at DREAM Park in Logan Township, near Glassboro in Gloucester County, with  a handful racing in Central Jersey at Thompson Park in Monroe Township.

Bordentown, Burlington Township, Delran, Florence, Northern Burlington and Rancocas Valley race at Thompson Park, and every other S.J. school will be at DREAM Park.

To download the meet program, with the schedule of races, group classifications, school rosters, all-time winners and more, click here: 2021 NJSIAA Cross Country Sectional Championship Program

Senior Kishan Patel and junior Jose Bravo took the top two spots and Millville went on to win the Cumberland County XC team title, 31-48, over Cumberland Regional.

Patel ran 18:54 and Bravo 19:29 over 5,000 meters at Cumberland Regional. It was Millville’s first team title since the 2017 team topped Cumberland Regional 27-43 at New Jersey Motorsports Park in Millville.

The 1-2 finish is the first for Millville at the Cumberland County Championships in 40 years. In 1981, Millville took  the first three spots behind Tony Harden (15:55),  John Morrow (16:18) and Lewis Hagen (16:28) at Vineland High School.

Millville’s other scorers were freshman Arjun Patel [9th in 20:11], senior Anthony Kukal [10th in 20:13] and senior Andrew Zerra [12th in 20:25].

Others in the top 10 included Cumberland Regional senior Anthony Bullocks [3rd 19:34], Vineland junior Sebastian Mercado [4th 19:39], Vineland senior Zain Chaudry [5th 19:45], Cumberland junior Sean Henry [6th 19:55], Bridgeton sophomore Bryan Hernandez [7th 20:01] and Cumberland sophomore Eric Miguel [8th 20:06].

With the top runners resting for sectionals, Cherokee had a chance to run its second group Tuesday at the Haddonfield Invitational, and seven Chiefs ran under 17:30 over 5,000 meters at Pennypacker Park in Haddonfield.

Sophomore Matteo Evola and senior Aiden Dickinson ran 1-2 for Cherokee, Evola winning in 16:53 and Dickinson second in 16:57. Junior Ian Romea of Haddonfield also broke 17 minutes, taking third in 16:59.

Cherokee also had sophomore Andrew Free [4th in 17:05], junior Joseph Hough [5th 17:08], sophomore Luke Reistle [9th 17:19], senior Lucas Hatch [10th 17:21] and senior Jameson Crozier [11th 17:25] under 17:30. Three others broke 18 minutes – junior Daniel Hassall [17:39] and freshmen Zachary Ciabattoni [17:39] and Liam Tindall [17:46].

Cherokee has had five runners break 16:30, nine break 17, and 15 break 17:30 in various races on various courses this fall. Nine of their 12-fastest return next year.

There was no team scoring kept, but Cherokee went 1-2-5-6-9-(10-11-15-16-18-23-24).

Cherry Hill East juniors Grant Yoon and Christopher Korneyev placed 4th and 7th in 17:02 and 17:11 and Haddonfield freshman Bennett Wright 8th in 17:12.

Also under 17:30 were Cherry Hill East junior Daniel Farling [17:25] and Haddon Heights freshman Reggie Hernandez [17:26].

Haddonfield’s Isabella Miller, a Haverford senior, placed second in the Centennial Conference Cross Country Championships Saturday in a battle of Izzy’s.

Dickinson senior Isabel Cardi won the individual title, running 21:48 over 6,000 meters at the Center for Maryland Agriculture and Farm Park in Cockeysville, Md. She finished about 40 meters ahead of Miller, who ran 21:57 and edged Ashley Heidenrich of Johns Hopkins by 15 meters for second. Heidenrich ran 22:00.

Johns Hopkins, ranked No. 1 in the country in NCAA Division 1, won the team title with 26 points, Dickinson – ranked 10th – was second at 64 and Haverford placed third with 97.

Miller returns to South Jersey a week from Saturday when Haverford races in the NCAA Division 3 Metro Regionals at DREAM Park in Logan Township on Nov. 13. Miller ran 21:33 over 6,000 meters at DREAM Park last month to win the Rowan Border Battle. 

Haverford is ranked No. 1 in the Metro Region by the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association.

Johns Hopkins and Dickinson are ranked No. 1 and 2 in the Mid-Atlantic Region.

 

Ocean City’s Cape-Atlantic Conference title was particularly impressive because of the depth the Red Raiders showed.

Ocean City not only placed its five scorers in the top 15, its sixth and seventh runners both ran in the top 20 in a field of 117 runners Thursday at Stockton University’s 5,000-meter course in Galloway Township.

Those two runners may not have “scored” in terms of Ocean City’s five-runner total, but when you have two runners that are this far up in the field, they are bumping down the scores of every other team. That’s why XC is the ultimate team sport.

First of all, Mainland senior Linden Wineland, coming off the Atlantic County title, was the overall winner, crossing the line in 15:39 on the fast, flat Stockton layout. That’s an all-course PR for Wineland.

Ocean City had two runners under 16 minutes – senior Owen Ritti was second in 15:44 and junior Nick Scarangelli ran 15:57 for fourth. It was the first time under 16 minutes on any course for Ritti and Scarangelli.

The Raiders’ other scorers were junior Chris Sardy [10^th in 16:32], senior Nigel Collins [12^th in 16:50] and sophomore Matt Hoffman [15^th in 17;00].

Junior Colin Abbott and senior Reece Wagner ran 17:13 and 17:18 to place 18^th and 19^th and give Ocean City seven runners in the top 19.

The bigger the meet, the more this sort of depth will help. Ocean City outscored Mainland 43-57 to win its third straight Cape-Atlantic team title and 7^th in the last 10 years. There was no meet last year. Ocean City’s top five averaged 16:24.

Also in the top 10 were Lower Cape May senior Zeb Hinker [3^rd in 15:54], Mainland junior Elliot Post [5^th16:10], Egg Harbor junior Ryan Taylor [6^th in 16:13], Cedar Creek senior Dalton Culleny [7^th 16:14], Lower Cape May junior Jack Cura [8^th 16:18] and Buena senior Kayden Platania [9^th 16:29].

That’s runners from six different high schools in the top 10!

Full results are here.

 

 

 

 

 

2019

2018

2^nd in 2017

2016

2015

2^nd in 2014

2013

2^nd in 2012

2011

2010

Sofia Day on Thursday ran the fastest time by a South Jersey girl on any 5,000-meter course this year with her winning 17:38 at Stockton University in Galloway Township and led Mainland to the the Cape-Atlantic Conference XC championship.

Day, a Mainland freshman, ran the 2nd-fastest time in course history and fastest ever by a South Jersey runner. Cate DeSousa of Red Bank Catholic, a state champion at 800 and 1,600 meters, set the course record of 17:29 last month at the Osprey Invitational. The previous course best by a South Jersey girl at Stockton was Day’s 18:15 in the same race.

Day’s time is fastest by a South Jersey freshman on any course since Briana Gess of Haddonfield ran 16:57 at Pennypacker Park in Haddonfield at the 2013 Colonial Conference All-Star Meet.

Day is the first freshman to win the Cape Atlantic Conference title since Ocean City’s Brittany Sedberry ran 19:04 at Stockton in 2002 to edge Grace Nuzzi of St. Joe’s-Hammonton by four seconds. She’s Mainland first CAL winner since Alyssa Aldridge won the 2017 meet at Motorsports Park in Millville.

Millville had three of the first six placers and won its first CAL title, 33-60, over Ocean City, with Cedar Creek third with 97 points.

Sophomore Gillian Lovett ran 18:47 for second and sophomore Claudia Booth 19:48 for third. Senior Lily Malone took 11th in 20:21 and sophomore Chloe Malone was 13th in 20:33, with freshman 6th runner Ava McDole 15th in 20:35. Mainland’s five scorers averaged 19:25.

Also in the top 10 were Egg Harbor sophomore Michaela Schema [3rd in 18:53], Atlantic City junior Madeline Dischert [4th 19:23], Ocean City junior Grace McAfee [5th 19:43], Ocean City freshman Chloe Care [7th 19:54], Cedar Creek sophomore Lexi Sears [8th 20:10], Wildwood Catholic senior Samantha Andress [9th 20:14] and Ocean City sophomore Frankie Ritzel [10th 20:19].

Woodstown graduate Xavier Seals, a freshman at Georgian Court, edged sophomore Owen Bradley of Jefferson College and Cedar Creek in a 1-2 finish Sunday morning at the CACC Championships.

Seals ran 27:26 over the challenging 8,000-meter course at Belmont Plateau in Fairmount Park in Philadelphia, finishing just ahead of Bradley, who ran 27:28. The Central Athletic Collegiate Conference Championships weren’t held last year.

For Wilmington (Del.), freshman Dan Wyshinski of Pennsville ran 28:10 for 6th place and senior Michael Dowd from Williamstown was 9th in 28:35, making it four South Jersey runners in the top 10.

Jefferson won the team title 42-63 over Georgian Court. Also racing for Jefferson was sophomore Leonard Bustos of Oakcrest, who placed 13th in 28:44, and sophomore Blake Corbett of Mainland Regional, who was 14th in 28:49. Freshman Mike Keough, also a Cedar Creek graduate, was Jefferson’s 6th runner in 21st overall in 29:32.

Wilmington placed third with 80 points with three of its five scorers from South Jersey. In addition to Wyshinski and Dowd, freshman Jared Cushlanis from Absegami took 46th in 32:39.

Bloomfield College’s top two runners Sunday are from South Jersey – Leonard Lane from Burlington Township was 38th in 31:23 and Vincent Brown from Rancocas Valley was 48th in 32:51.