From the Backstretch by Reuben Frank

Long Island University’s Kaysie Luna from Sterling was the top freshman in the Northeast Conference Championships Saturday.

In her 5th college race, Luna ran 23:32.6 and placed 11th over 6,000 meters at B&D Acres, which is located in Warriors Mark Township, Huntingdon County, Pa., although it has a mailing address of Tyrone, Pa., which is in neighboring Blair County.

She finished nine seconds ahead of Isabella Galusha of Stonehill College in North Easton, Mass., for top freshman honors in the conference.

Luna was top finisher for LIU, which placed 6th in team scoring. Central Connecticut won the team title.

The Timber Creek boys are headed to states after a remarkable performance at the South Jersey Group 3 meet.

What made it remarkable is that Timber Creek didn’t have a single runner in the top 16 in the race but packed its five scorers in just 18.40 seconds, all in the top 30. It was the smallest gap of any team in any of the South Jersey sectional races.

Fantastic pack running earned Timber Creek 3rd place with 116 points, behind only Ocean City’s 25 and Highland’s 84. The top five schools in each race advance to states Saturday at Holmdel County Park.

Senior Matthew Chambers led Timber Creek in 17th place in 17:04.80, senior Blair Duckrey-Furbert was 19th in 17:07.06, junior Michael Zechman 21st in 17:08.00, senior Ryan Pancoast 29th in 17:22.70 and junior Leandro Santiago 30th in 17:23.20.

This will be Timber Creek’s first trip to states since 2019, when they placed 5th in South Jersey Group 3. They placed 4th in South Jersey Group 3 in 2020 but the state meet wasn’t held that year because of COVID.

Other South Jersey schools with a 1-through-5 gap under a minute Saturday: Gloucester County Tech [36.77 seconds], Ocean City [54.61], Cherokee [57.47] and Highland [58.96]. In the parochial race, Paul VI had an 18.41-second gap.

Reaching states has to be especially sweet for Duckrey, Poancoast and Chambers, who were all in the lineup two years ago when Timber Creek placed 6th in the 2023 Group 3 race and missed advancing to states by one point.

Freshman Juliana Sieminski of Delsea, junior Allyson Wernik of Washington Township and senior Gianna Burgio of Williamstown helped Rowan win its second consecutive NJAC championship and 8th overall Saturday in Galloway Township.

Sieminski placed 12th in 23:27.3 over 6,000 meters at Stockton University, Wernik ran 23:32.0 for 14th and Burgio 24:46.6 for 25th as Rowan edged TCNJ 41-46. Stockton was 3rd with 67 points.

Senior Gabriella Pagano from Pope John XXIII was the overall winner in 21:56.4. She’s Rowan’s first conference XC champ since Dianne Ferraro of South Plainfield in 2019.

TCNJ’s 5th runner was senior Savannah Hodgens from Mainland Regional, who placed 15th overall in 23:35.9

Top freshman in the race was TCNJ’s Teagan Walker, who ran 7th in 23:20.4. Her father, Mike, was a two-time Burlington County Open 1,600 champ for Rancocas Valley and is now a track and XC coach at TCNJ.

Stockton, 3rd with 67 points, was led by four-time NCAA Division 3 800 All-America Kayla Kass of Bayonne in 6th in 23:11.7 and Shawnee’s Madelyn Valasek in 9th in 23:22.2.

Other South Jersey runners in the top 30: Rowan senior Gianna Burgio [25th in 24:46.6], Stockton freshman Madison Pratt from Absegami [6th in 24:48.8], Stockton junior Sarah Rutledge [29th in 25:01.4]

The TCNJ men went 1-3-5-6-7-(8-10) to win the team title 22-47 over Rowan. Senior Anthony Guarino from Delran placed 14th for TCNJ in 26:20.1.

Senior Matthew Conway from Haddon Township and junior Colin Patterson from Haddon Heights finished 2nd and 4th, Conway in 25:04.7 and Patterson in 25:15.5.

Glassboro’s Elijah Whitaker ran 25:56.6 for 11th place and was the 2nd freshman in the race, one place behind TCNJ’s Josh Santiago from Old Bridge. He was Rowan’s 3rd finisher.

Also in the top 30: Junior Jacob Dinerman of Rutgers Camden and Haddon Township [12th in 26:06.6], Rowan senior Sean Hice of Washington Township [13th in 26:19.4], Rowan junior Aidan Brad from Williamstown [20th in 26:33.5], Rowan senior Anthony Faust from Bishop Eustace [21st in 26:35.5] and Rowan freshman Dylan Saber from Williamstown [22nd in 26:46.1].

Also: Stockton freshman Muhammad Khan from Atlantic City [23rd in 26:48.2], Rowan sophomore Reid Gervasi from Haddonfield [25th in 26:57.8], TCNJ freshman Simon Bernhardt from Shawnee [27th in 27:01.6], TCNJ senior Nate Kidwell from Washington Township [28th in 27:10.8] and TCNJ sophomore Silas Matteson from Cherokee [29th in 27:20.5].

Holy Cross senior Julia Flanagan continued her string of sub-18 races with a near course-record win in the Kiessling Invite Saturday morning in Logan Township.

Flanagan ran 17:47.60 at DREAM Park, less than a second off the course record of 17:46.86 set at the Olympic Conference meet last month by Cherry Hill East sophomore Addison Weiss. She in turn broke Flanagan’s record of 17:53.44 from the South Jersey Open.

She’s the first Holy Cross girl to win the Kiessling race in 27 years, since Kathleen Porter ran 18:55.4 at Egg Harbor and won by more than a minute over teammate Deanna Kloss as the Lancers edged Bishop Eustace by one point for the team title.

Paul VI packed seven finishers in the top 10 to win its 3rd straight team title. More on them below.

Flanagan has also run sub-18 this year at the Battle of Ocean Park in Lakewood, Six Flags Wild Safari in Jackson, Burlington County Open at Crystal Lake Park in Medford, the BCSL Liberty Division meet at Palmyra Cove.

She’ll compete in the state Parochial B race on Saturday at Holmdel County Park bidding to become only Holy Cross’s second XC state champion. Kari Vigerstol won in 1993 and 1994. Vigerstol won the Meet of Champions 1,600 outdoors in 1993, edging Shawnee’s Liz Moore.

For PVI, junior Grace Gutowski and senior Giovanni Mantuano placed 2nd and 3rd, both well under 19 minutes. Gutowski was 2nd in 18:22.42 and Mantuano 3rd in 18:34.25.

Paul VI runners then placed 6th through 10th, with senior Macy Huber 6th in 19:08.01, sophomore Morgan Kuzma 7th in 19:20.74, freshman Isabella Suarez 8th in 19:47.49, sophomore Peyton Blake 9th in 19:55.69 and junior Kara Salamone 10th in 20:52.66.

Also running sub-22 were Camden Catholic sophomore Erin Callahan [11th in 21:11.69, Camden Catholic junior Maddy O’Neil [13th in 21:24.96], Paul VI freshman Riley Sheppard [14th in 21:34.19], Bishop Eustace freshman Charlotte Clinthorne [15th in 21:35.68] and Paul VI sophomore Francesca Cianfrani [16th in 21:53.57].

Paul VI finished with a 21-62 margin of victory over the Wilberforce School of Princeton, with Camden Catholic 3rd at 75.

Wilberforce senior Laura Sallade placed 4th in 18:39.21. Her father Chris ran for Shawnee and was the state Group 4 champ at 1,600 meters in 1990.

Elizabethtown junior Will Inglis from Moorestown placed 7th Saturday in the Landmark Conference Championships in Clark.

Inglis ran an all-course lifetime-best 25:08.7 over 8,000 meters at Oak Ridge Park. His previous 8K best was 25:42.9 when he placed 9th at last year’s conference meet at Union Canal Tunnel Park in South Lebanon, Pa.

Inglis, a conference champ outdoors in the 1,500 and indoors in the mile, was E-town’s 2nd finisher. The Blue Jays placed 3rd with 90 points, behind Moravian [30] and Catholic of Washington, D.C. [79].

In the women’s race, Susquehanna junior Sophia Bostwick from Washington Township placed 13th in 23:17.91 over 6,000 meters. She was the first finisher for 5th-place Susquehanna.

The versatile Bostwick was runner-up in the Landmark Conference pole vault last winter.

Junior Jason Smith led a top-five sweep and Paul VI raced to the team title Saturday at the Kiessling Invitational at DREAM Park, the unofficial South Jersey parochial championships.

Paul VI outscored 2nd-place Camden Catholic, 15-55. It was the first perfect 15-point performance in this meet since 1987, when Paul VI beat Camden Catholic, 15-52, at Newton Lake Park in Haddon Township.

Paul VI packed its five scorers in 18.41 seconds and averaged 16:46.01 per runner. PVI has now won six straight titles in the meet formerly known as Knights of Columbus.

Smith won in 16:36.18, finishing just over a second ahead of Chris Monaghan in 2nd. Chase Cooley was 10 sconds back with 16:47.90 in 3rd, Max Long took 4th in 16;53.74 and Andrew Keane ran 16:54.59 for 5th. All five Paul VI scorers are juniors

That group was backed up by junior Caden Briggs [7th in 17:07.25] and sophomore Nick Ablaza [11th in 17:19.69].

For Camden Catholic, Declan Walsh was 6th in 16:59.73. Braden McGee was 8th in 17:08.60, Jim Rotaeche 10th in 17:19.19, Sean Burns 12th in 17:20.20 and Kevin Dever 26th in 18:52.72.

With three freshmen, a sophomore and a junior, the Northern Burlington girls advanced to the state Group 3 meet by the slimmest of margins.

The top five teams advance from sectionals to states, and Northern placed 5th at the Central Jersey Group meet at Thompson Park in Jamesburg Saturday with 160 points, two fewer than Brick Memorial.

The state Group 3 meet will be held Saturday at Holmdel County Park. This will be Northern’s first trip to states in 31 years, since 1994, when Colleen Sunderland, Meredith Bray and Debbie Winzinger led NBC to 5th in South Jersey Group 3 to qualify for states.

Sunderland, who went on to run for Rutgers, placed 2nd at both sectionals and states, and Northern placed 14th in Group 3 as a team.

Sophomore Kamiyah Vergo placed 20th for Northern in 21:04.56, with freshmen Abigail Leonhardt [28th in 21:46.94], Adelina Floyd [31st in 21:50.76] and Kelly Coughlin [46th in 23:06.11] followed by junior Abigail Matalie [49th in 23:30.16].

Northern only had five finishers, so in the event of a tie, Brick Memorial would have won.

The key for Northern was Vergo finishing four spots ahead of Brick’s 1st runner and Coughlin finishing six spots ahead of Brick’s third runner.

Sophomore Joe Saicic became Glassboro’s 4th consecutive individual champion and led the Bulldogs to their 2nd straight South Jersey Group 1 title Saturday at DREAM Park in Logan Township.

Glassboro placed all five scorers in the top 10, with the Bulldogs taking each odd-numbered spot – 1st, 3rd, 5th, 7th and 9th.

Glassboro topped 2nd-place Haddon Township 25-58. The 25 points are the fewest in Group 1 since Haddon Township scored 21 in 2011 and 3rd-fewest ever. The Group 1 record is 20 set in 2006 by Pennsville. Glassboro’s 25 points are also tied for 13th-lowest South Jersey sectional score all-time in any group.

Saicic ran 15:51.84, 3rd-fastest ever by a Group 1 runner at DREAM Park, and all three are from Glassboro. Elijah Whitaker ran 15:33.27 when he won the 2023 South Jersey Group 1 race and Ty Blackman ran 15:42.62 when he won last year’s race. Whitaker also won the 2022 title. Saicic is the first sophomore to win SJ-1 since Sebastien Reed of Pitman in 2017.

Haddon Township senior James Clauson finished 2nd in 16:05.00, nearly a minute and a half faster than he ran last year at sectionals on the same course.

Also in the top 10 for the Bulldogs were senior Jaeden Wesley [3rd in 16:07.92], sophomore Zacchaeus Harrigan [5th in 16:29.05], sophomore Aaron Johnson [7th in 16:43.89] and sophomore Gavin Rakitis [9th in 16:58.96]. Senior 6th man Jason Martin also finished in the top 20, taking 17th in 17:34.41.

Glassboro’s five scorers averaged 16:26.34, the fastest single-race time ever by a Group 1 school at DREAM Park and 4th-fastest among all the races Saturdauy, behind Cherokee [16:00.45], Ocean City [16:01.68] and Cherry Hill East [16:12.52].

The team title was Glassboro’s 3rd overall. The Bulldogs won 70-88 over Maple Shade in 1981.

In addition to Whitaker, Blackman and Saicic, Glassboro individual winners at sectionals are Tom Horne in 1993 and 1994 and Pat Ryan in 1995.

The top 15 individuals and top five schools automatically advance to states next Saturday at Holmdel County Park.

The rest of the top 15 looks like this: Haddon Township senior Shaun Maloney [4th in 16:13.17], Woodstown senior Jacob Marino [6th in 16:39.81], Audubon senior Logan Camm [8th in 16:47.05], Schalick senior Chase Riley [10th in 17;00.49], Pitman junior Rhys Blackman [11th in 17:01.56], Woodstown junior David Farrell [12th in 17:05.47], Woodstown sophomore Torsten Duva [13th in 17:11.85], Haddon Township senior Aidan Curran [14th in 17:18.88] and Schalick junior Collin Bittle [15th in 17:18.94].

After Glassboro and Haddon Township, the remaining auto team qualifiers are Woodstown [75], Schalick [117] and Audubon [127].

Lowest All-Time Group 1 Scores
20 … Pennsville, 2006
21 … Haddon Twp., 2011
25 … Glassboro, 2025
26 … Burlington Twp., 1966
27 … Haddon Twp., 1988
27 … Burlington Twp., 1967
28 … Haddon Twp., 2010
28 … Haddon Twp., 2012
28 … Haddon Twp., 2014
29 … Williamstown, 1971
29 … Burlington Twp., 1968

Lowest South Jersey Boys Scores
16 … Haddonfield, 2008 [Group 2]
17 … Haddon Twp., 1971 [Group 2]
20 … Pennsville, 2006 [Group 1]
20 … Haddonfield, 2018 [Group 2]
21 … Haddon Twp., 2011 [Group 1]
21 … Haddonfield, 2009 [Group 2]
22 … Haddonfield, 2023 [Group 2]
23 … Haddonfield, 2013 [Group 2]
23 … Haddonfield, 2019 [Group 2]
23 … Haddonfield, 2017 [Group 2]
23 … Highland, 1989 [Group 3]
23 … Ocean City, 2018 [Group 3]
25 … Mainland Reg., 2003 [Group 4]
25 … Ocean City, 2019 [Group 3]
25 … Glassboro, 2025 [Group 1]

Senior Riley Fayer, in her first season of cross country, became Audubon’s first-ever sectional champion and led the Green Wave to their 2nd straight team title and 3rd overall in Logan Township

Fayer ran 18:18.40 and won the South Jersey Group 1 race in 18:18.49, the fastest time ever by a Group 1 runner at DREAM Park. The previous fastest was 18:33.39 by Schalick’s Jordan Hadfield at the 2023 South Jersey Group 1 meet.

Fayer won by about 350 meters over sophomore Abby Marino of Woodstown, who placed 2nd in 19:44.80.

Audubon outscored 2nd-place Haddon Township, 43-61,

The Audubon girls also won sectional titles in 1981 and 2024. In 1981, Audubon won on a 6th-runner tiebreaker with Manchester Township after both finished with 56 points. And last year they won 53-66 over Haddon Township.

Only one of Audubon’s seven runners from last year’s championship team raced Saturday – junior Sophia Rizzo. Three of the four underclassman in Audubon’s top seven at sectionals last year are either not on the team or didn’t run Saturday.

Freshman Emma Camm and 1st-year junior Isabella Legatie placed 3rd and 5th, Camm in 20:09.69 and Legatie 5th in 20:41.78.

Also in Audubon’s scoring group were sophomores Ashley Cheney [16th in 22:32.66] and Tallulah Witherington [23rd in 23:16.22]. Cheney competed in XC last year but was not on Audubon’s varsity. Witherington is another 1st-year XC runner. Rizzo was 33rd in 24:00.51, and Audubon only had six finishers.

The top 15 individuals and top five teams advance to the state championships Saturday at Holmdel County Park.

Also among the top 15 individuals were Maple Shade junior Juliana Catalani [4th in 20:26.77], Haddon Township junior Tanner Lajoie [6th in 20:57.91], Woodstown junior Anabel Schaal [7th in 21:05.00], Glassboro sophomore Abigail Johns [8th in 21:33.72], Pitman sophomore Peyton Coyle [9th in 21:36.28], Cape May Tech senior Kirstyn McHale [10th in 21:43.17], Schalick junior Helen Lillia [11th in 21:48.21], Haddon Township senior Blake Kemery [12th in 21:56.00], Pennsville sophomore Sawyer Slad [13th in 22:08.65], Maple Shade freshman Johana Perez [14th in 22:14.66] and Haddon Township sophomore Isabella Dodd [15th in 22:21.87].

Qualifying as full teams in addition to Audubon and Haddon Township are Maple Shade [86], Woodstown [88] and Schalick [108].

Sophomore Jack Tindall won his 2nd straight title, and the Cherokee boys won their 7th straight South Jersey Group 4 championship and 15th overall Saturday in Logan Township.

Tindall made it four straight Cherokee individual winners and 11 in the last 21 years, running 15:29.73 over 5,000 meters at DREAM Park and winning by 80 meters over senior Alvin Lin of Cherry Hill East, who was 2nd in 15:44.96.

Cherokee topped Cherry Hill East 42-59 with those two programs taking six of the top eight spots in the race.

Cherokee junior Benjamin Realley placed 3rd in 15:48.14, junior Sean Sooy was 6th in 16:02.25, junior Maximo Harada ran 14th in 16:14.94 and junior Leo Vyvyan was 18th in 16:27.20. They were backed up by 6th runner junior Gavin Danielewicz in 19th in 16:33.38. Seventh runner senior Dominic Pileri also ran sub-17, taking 31st in 16:55.71.

Cherry Hill East junior Cian Sherlock ran 15:52.57 and placed 4th, and senior Milo Poerner made it three in the top 10 in 8th in 16:02.95. Junior Aneesh Rajagopal and freshman Conan Poerner were East’s 4th and 5th runners, Rajagopal 20th in 16:34.37 and Poerner 25th in 16:47.74. Freshman Braedan Sherlock [28th in 16:50.21] and senior Adam Billet [33rd in 17:04.97] also raced for Cherry Hill East.

Cherokee also won South Jersey Group 4 in 1988, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2007, 2011, 2016, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024.

Tindall is Cherokee’s third repeat winner. Alex Yersak won three South Jersey Group 4 titles in a row from 2005 through 2007 and Nick Kuenkel won in 2022 and 2023.

Other Cherokee winners: Marc Pelerin in 2001, Shawn Wilson in 2012, Jack Shea in 2016, Justin Kelley in 2017 and Ethan Wechsler in 2018.

Cherokee swept the individual and team titles the last four years as well as 2007 and 2016.

The top 15 individuals and top five teams advance to the state Group 4 meet, scheduled for Saturday at Holmdel County Park.

Also in the top 15 are Williamstown Dominic Burgio [5th in ], Eastern Timothy Shack [7th in ], Egg Harbor Matthew Reed [11th in ], Washington Township Trevor Szilier [12th in 16:12.25], Williamstown Logan Pavelik [13th in 16:13.38] and Kingsway Michael Beaver [15th in 16:17.05].

Joining Cherokee and Cherry Hill East are team qualifiers are Egg Harbor [116], Southern Regional [127] and Kingsway [178].