AMERICAN DIVISION XC CHAMPS--GIRLS GO 7-0; BOYS 5-2 TAKE 3RD

American Division XC Champs--Girls 7-0; Boys 5-2 Take 3rd

Monday, December 27, 2010

Indoor Track & Field Openers

The 2010-2011 version of the boys and girls Indoor Track & Field Teams opened their season with a 58-medal haul in the first two meets.
At the Lid Lifter Invitational on Thursday, 12/16, both squads got a chance to shake out the rust and test their early-season training. Junior Scott Rennalls was the best boy performer, taking 2nd in his specialty, the 1000m run, in 2:48.47. He also anchored the 5th place 4 x 400 with Anthony Talanca (10), Mike Gonzalez (10), Byron Reed (12) in 3:48.55. Sr. Matt Herb placed 3rd in the h.j. at 5'9", sr. John Johnson 4th in the 55 hurdles in 8.16 (with a HUGE p.r. of 8.13 in the semis), and the 4 x 200 teama 6th in 1:41.73 (Johnson, jr. Cory Colligan, Gonzalez, and jr. Dan Baules).
The top girl medalist was Alyssa Hoffman, 5th in the shot at 30'8.5". The relays put in nice opening marks: 3rd in the 4 x 400 by Marissa Karl (10), Sam Tavalare (11), Danielle Halikias (11), and Ingrid Nimoh (12). The 4 x 200 was 4th in 1:55. 37 (Armani Blair, 11; Camille Inglese, 12; Lina Koch, 11; Nimoh).
The Holiday Relays, two days later, were highlighted by varsity and junior varsity performances. The girls placed in six relays. The girls 4 x 200 improved on their time by grabbing a 2nd in 1:54.83 with the same foursome of Koch, Inglese, Blair, and Nimoh. The sprint med was 5th in 4:40.03 with Blair & Nimoh on the 200 legs, Tavalare on the 400, and jr. Steph Smith on the 800. The 4 x 800 was 6th in 10:29.91 with a team of Bridget Phillips (12), Tavalare, Halikias, and Karl. Three j.v. relays showcased some new talent, led by the 4 x 200 team of Katurah Orji (9), Courtney Hart (10), Kelli Sagi (10), and Suzie Nimoh (9), who were FIRST in 1:58. 22. The 4 x 800 was 3rd in 11:11.44: Alex Schneeberg, 11; Ashley Torres, 10; Mariah Christian, 9; Lindsay Schafer, 9. The 4 x 400 was 4th in 4:46.4: Hart, Shayla Holloway (10), Gentrix Shanga (11), Nimoh.
For the boys the top performance was a runnerup sprint med relay in 3:52.97 by Baules, Colligan, Johnson, and Rennalls. Matt Herb hit a P.R. of 6'2" in the h.j. (also better than his outdoor p.r.) and with sr. newcomer Kifton Vanemon took 3rd at 11'2". The J.V.'ers, like the girls, had a chance to strut their stuff. The 4 x 200 of Mike Eppel (10), Darius Snyder (11), Alex Reyes (12), and Alex Dimick (10) was 3rd in 1:45.8. The A and B shot put teams were 5th and 6th: Phil Demeo (10) & Matt Kraemer (9) and Luke Bippus (11) & Jay Shah (10).
The next meet on the schedule is 12/29, the Racine Drew Invitational. The Morris County Relay Championships follows on Monday, 1/3.

Sunday, November 14, 2010

Boys & Girls MOXC Excellent Adventure 2010


Veteran and rookie runners combined to provide some exciting and interesting results to close out the fall 2010 season. Asst. coach Behre summed it up well, "There was some exciting stuff in the last couple races."

First, at the Morris County Meet the rivalry between the girls and the boys as to who could place higher began to heat up. The girls fared slightly better than the boys, taking 8th place to 9th. Jr. leader Steph Smith, hobbled with injury, ran a brave race (54th) but could not equal her best. Marissa Karl, stepped up to run a p.r. and fastest MO time on the Greystone course at 20:42, and led the Marauderettes at 34th. Atalia Bermudez (557), Danielle Halikias (58), Alex Schneeberg (62), and Sam Tavalare (63) all ran their bests at the new course.

Jr. Scott Rennalls led the boys in (22nd), running a p.r. Zach Miller (35), Mike Artiglere (51), Steve Wagner (63), and Anthony Talance (72) rounded out the scoring.

The girls J.V. brought home medals for their 3rd place finish. Freshmen Lindsay Schafer (9), Mariah Christian (12), Erin Schafer (29), Sara Christian (30), and soph Jackie Pignataro (25) were the scorers.

The frosh boys also took 3rd place. Eddie Garcia and Chris DuChemin finished 7 and 12 respectively. Steve Kubicki (25), Sean Gallagher (27, and Jake Tanenbaum (32) cemented the bronze effort.

One week later at Garrett Mtn. the XC'ers were at the North 1, Group 3 State Sectionals, trying to grab a top 5 finish to qualify for the Group 3 state championships at Holmdel Park. Again, the girls, coming on strong at the end of the season, did a little better than their male counterparts. And again, Marissa Karl led the girls with her 20th place. Without Steph Smith, forced out with injury right before the race, the girls ran a smart race, moving up from behind throughout. Danielle Halikias made the biggest moves and grabbed 33rd, followed by Atalia Bermudez (40), Alex Schneeberg (42) and Sam Tavalare (59). Two freshmen girls were tapped to go in to replace regulars and performed well--Lindsay Schafer (67) and Mariah Christian (77). The girls finished 7th, just out 2 spots. All the girls who competed and much of the team return next year.

The boys faced many tough teams and had to run well to beat their predicted finish of 10th. They managed one better, coming in 9th. Zach Miller ran a superb race to place 16th with a big p.r. of 17: 21. Steve Wagner (37), Scott Rennalls (40), Mike Artiglere (51), and Antonio Ruggiero (54) were the first five. Anthony Talanca and Anthony Chuplis also ran.

Sunday, October 24, 2010

XC APPROACHES CHAMPIONSHIP SEASON

With the regular season having come to a close, the Marauder harriers begin the championship portion of the season with the Morris County Championships Saturday, October 30. Close on its heels is the North 1, Group 3 State Sectional Championships Saturday, November 6. The top 5 teams and top 10 individuals advance from the sectional meet to the Group 3 State Championships at Holmdel Park on November 13.
In late September action, the squads traveled to Garrett Mtn. Park to race over the state sectional course. The boys and girls both came in 6th in their respective Varsity Group 3 races. Senior Zach Miller led the boys with a 10th place finish in 17:49. Soph Marissa Karl and junior Steph Smith were 22-23 to lead the girls. Junior Dan Nemeth led the j.v. boys team to 5th place with his 9th place finish. The frosh girls took home third place team medals with their 3rd place showing. Their boy counterparts were 4th. Of note, the team went home with 21 individual medals.
The teams traveled to the Brett Taylor Invitational on Oct. 9. The team brought home three first place trophies, a school record. The girls repeated as team champion in their race with Steph Smith breaking the tape first and running her best 5k of the season. Her six teammates picked up individual and team medals, all finishing in the top 20 (Karl, Kraemer, Tavalare, Schneeberg, Torres, Halikias). The JV boys won the B race. Dan Nemeth (4th) led Gennaro Ruggiero (6) and Brandon Kahan (7) and the rest of the team. The frosh girls took their 2nd 1st of the season in an invitational (Roxbury on 9/11). Atalia Bermudez was race champ and led Lindsay Schafer (4), Mariah Christian (5), and Nicole Mallett (10) in while the girls also took 15-16 (S. Miller, S. Christian). The frosh boys were a close 2nd in their race with Eddie Garcia coming in 3rd and Chris DuChemin 7th. The boys also had 13-15-16-21 (Gallagher, Kubicki, Tanenbaum, Ulbrich). The boys varsity were 5th in a competitive race. Zach Miller and Scott Rennalls were 16-17 and Mike Artiglere and Antonio Ruggiero grabbed medals in 34-35. Senior Steve Wagner was absent for the SAT's.
The boys ended the regular season at 8-7 overall. In the last meet, they just lost to Morristown, but shellacked Jefferson, High Point, and Par Hills. The girls split their last outing, losing to Morristown and High Point, but beating Par Hills and Jefferson. The girls record was 5-9. While the boys reached career win # 200 for Coach Sulley in the first meet, the girls moved to 198 wins by the end of the season and can reach that milestone at the beginning of 2011.

Sunday, September 12, 2010

MOXC Opens at Roxbury

MOXC fielded full teams in every class race for the first time in its history this past Saturday, 9/11, at Horseshoe Lake Park. Since this meet uses a 4-person scoring system as opposed to the normal lowest 5 runner total, the Marauders scored in each of the 6 races.
The best team showing came in the freshmen girls' race, where the young, untested squad were beaten out by one point. Atalia Bermudez led the way, taking 5th, and Lindsay Schafer a 9th. A pack of 14-15-16-17 showed a promise of big things in later meets in the season.
Their boy classmates took 3rd in their race right before the girls. Eddie Garcia debuted by taking 5th place also. The boys had 5 in the top 28 to all grab medals.
Both the soph and jr/sr girls teams took 4th. Ashley Torres and Marissa Karl teamed up to grab 7th and 8th. Jackie Pignataro also got a medal in 22nd. The jr/sr girls placed 5 in the top 26 with Steph Smith leading the way in 12th. Alex Schneeberg (21), Sam Tavalare (22:18), Ellen Kraemer (23), and Danielle Halikias (26) showed great pack running like the frosh girls.
The jr/sr boys were in the largest field of the day and took 6th overall, running a 17:49 average. Zach Miller (24th--17:28), Steve Wagner (29th--17:44), and Scott Rennalls (30th--17:45) finished close to each other throughout the race. Mike Artiglere finished the scoring in 44th.
The soph boys were 8th with Nick Miele taking a medal in 29th.
Next up is the first NJAC meet at Greystone Park on Tuesday, 9/14. M.O. faces Morris Hills, Sparta, Mendham, and Roxbury.

Tuesday, June 22, 2010

Summer Action

Some MO tracksters continue to zoom! Aeron Gilson traveled to Maryland to compete in the Mid Atlantic Prep Classic. Gilson won his new specialty, the 400H, in 57 sec.
In action in Mahwah on Saturday, 6/19, Ashley Tomasula vaulted to a new personal best and school record of 11' 5.75".
Anthony Talanca qualified as the fastest 400 runner in the intermediate division in 53.75 and then placed 3rd in the finals in 54.27. He came back to take 5th in the 800 in 2:14.

End of Season Recognition

First Team All County:
***Aeron Gilson, Jacinta Ford
First Team All Conference National Division
*First Team
---Aeron Gilson, Dan Maya, John Johnson, Dan Baules, Scott Rennalls, Allissa Hoffman, Jacinta Ford, Gianna Pastena, Ashley Tomasula
*Second Team
---Chris Schneider, Cory Colligan, Armani Blair, Ingrid Nimoh, Brittney Gulick, Sam Tavalare, Marissa Karl
Star Ledger All Morris:
* First Team
---Aeron Gilson, 400H; Armani Blair, 200 (photo left); Jacinta Ford, Triple Jump
*Second Team
---Dan Maya, 100
*Third Team
---John Johnson, 100; Chris Schneider, 3200; Gianna Pastena, High Jump
Daily Record All Area:
*First Team
---Armani Blair, 200; Jacinta Ford, Triple Jump
*Second Team
---Dan Maya, 100
*Honorable Mention
---Aeron Gilson, John Johnson, Paul Kramaritsch, Kevin Lepore, Scott Rennalls, Chris Schneider, Chris Victoria, Jon Weiss, Allissa Hoffman, Gianna Pastena, Val Zielinski
Top Performance in All Area: Jacinta Ford, TJ, 35'11.75"
Highest Ranking State Performance: Aeron Gilson, 400H, 54.05 #10

State Championships Wrap Up

The boys and girls competed on Friday/Saturday, May 27 & 28, in the Group 3 State Meet at South Plainfield. The girls came away with two medalists in the meet: senior Jacinta Ford, who placed 6th in the triple jump at 35' and soph Ashley Tomasula (pictured below), also 6th in the pole vault at 10"6". Ford also placed 10th in the long jump (15'11.75"). Other highlights included soph Armani Blair, 12th--200(26.22) and 14th--100(13.03); Allissa Hoffman, 14th--jav (107'9"); and Casey Garcia, 14th--3200 (11:51.62).
For the boys, junior Paul Kramaritsch place 8th in the pole vault in a p.r. 12'6"; senior Chris Schneider, 10th in the 3200 in 9:47.88; and junior Dan Maya, 13th--100 (11.34). The 4 x 400 did not finish as leadoff man Dan Maya suffered a severe foot cramp and had to stop 100m into the race.
The relay team's misfortune was assuaged the next Thursday at the Meet of Champs in which the 4 x 100 had qualified. The team of John Johnson, Dan Maya, Jamal Davis, and Aeron Gilson (in his last race in a MO uniform) completed the circuit in 43.19 to take 8th place medals and break their own school record yet again this season. Tomasula finished 20th in the vault at 10' in her first trip to the MOC and Ford placed 25th in the t.j. at 34'6.75".

Monday, May 24, 2010

Girls and Boys Bring Home Medals and Advance in States

This past weekend showcased M.O.'s best on the track and in the field at the North 1, Group 3 State Sectional Championships. The Marauders traveled north to scenic Mahwah H.S. to compete in the opening round of the N.J. State Championships.
Senior Gianna Pastena repeated her '09 high jump win and her indoor win from this year when she cleared 5'. Sophomore Ashley Tomasula demolished her own p.r. and school record by clearing 11' in the pole vault, putting her in a good position in Group 3 next week. The dynamic duo of senior Jacinta Ford and sophomore Armani Blair were both double medalists. Jumps queen Jacinta was 4th in the triple jump at 35' 4" and 6th in the long jump at 16' 7 1/4". Sprinter princess Armani ran strong races in the 100 and 200 where she placed 6th (12.79) and 3rd (26.24). Soph Allissa Hoffman speared a p.r. 109'10" to take 6th in the javelin and senior Val Zielinski also grabbed a qualifying spot, taking 6th in the 1600 in 5:22.60. In the 3200 jr. Casey Garcia took 5th to once again advance to Gr. 3, this time in 12:04.64. The girls team scored 34 pts. to place a very respectable 5th overall in the competition.
The boys were sobered by the absence of senior star Aeron Gilson, sidelined with a hamstring strain, a sure winner in the 400H and many other events. Junior Dan Maya, continuing to emerge as a potent new sprinter this year for the Marauders, advanced to the finals of the 100 and 200. First, he broke up the Teaneck sprint crew by placing 3rd in the 100 in a p.r. 11.18 and then took 5th in the 200 (3rd--Trials, 22.90) at 23.21. Chris Schneider came back from a rough 1600 the day before, where he failed to place, to earn a 3rd in the 3200 in 9:54. Paul Kramaritsch brought in the lone field points when he once again cleared 12' in the vault to tie for 6th. The 4 x 400 capped it off with a solid 5th place carry in 3:31. Maya led off, followed by John Johnson, Dan Baules, and Scott Rennalls.
Both boys and girls compete at South Plainfield this Friday and Saturday, hoping to make it to the Meet of Champs.

Tracksters Win A.D.'s Award


Seniors Jon Weiss and Gianna Pastena were the recipients of the Morris County Athletic Directors' Scholar Athlete Award. Each school is allowed to nominate a male and female student-athlete to receive the prestigious award. Weiss has been a member of the cross country, indoor and outdoor track teams and has been captain of each this past year. He has won numerous team awards and been an all conference performer.He is ranked 6th in the senior class and will attend St. John's University. Gianna has been a member of the soccer and indoor and outdoor track teams since her freshman year. She was a captain for all three this year. She is a conference and state sectional champ in the high jump and is # 2 in her class. She is headed to TCNJ. We are very proud that both winners of this year's award came from the track and field programs at MOHS.

Sunday, May 16, 2010

Boys and Girls Both 6th at County Championships; Jacinta Ford Wins Triple Jump Crown


Sr. Jacinta Ford became a Morris County Champ by winning the triple jump at the Morris County Track and Field Championships, 5/11-12, at Boonton H.S. Her winning leap was 35' 6", just short of her school record 35" 11 1/2" the week before. She also took 3rd in the long jump at 16' 9". Soph Armani Blair continued to shine in the sprints with a 3rd in the 200 (26.27) and 4th in the 100 (12.9). She ran a leg on the 4 x 400, which placed 6th in 4:11, with Sam Tavalare, Marissa Karl, and Ingrid Nimoh. Sr. Gianna Pastena took 3rd in the high jump at 5' and jr. Alissa Hoffman threw the jav 107' 2" for 4th. Aeron Gilson wins his semi in the 200.
Aeron Gilson opened the meet for the boys, nearly stealing the 400H from Steve Vitale of Randolph. His 54.75 was another outstanding race in his 4th try at the event. He placed 1st in his heat in the 200 in 22.62, leading all qualifiers and then jumped 20' 9" in the long jump to qualify for the finals. A knotted hamstring turned into a strain and Gilson had to withdraw from competition for the remainder of the meet.
Juniors Dan Maya and John Johnson stepped in to fill the gap by going 2-3 in the 100 and 3-5 in the 200. They clocked automatic-timed p.r.'s of 11.27/22.80 and 11.43/23.07. Johnson then subbed in for Gilson on the relay and clocked 52.4.
In the distances, sr. Chris Schneider broke through with another p.r. in the 3200, running 9 sec. faster than last week to run 9:41.70. This followed his 9th place p.r. of 4:26.97 in the 1600, just ahead of teammated Jon Weiss, who ran a p.r. 4:28.01.
In the field, Chris Victoria just missed the disc finals, placing 9th with 130'. Paul Kramaritsch tied for 6th in the pole vault.

Sunday, May 9, 2010

Marauders Mop Up at Inaugural NJAC Championships

The boys and girls track & field teams fared equally well at the first and last NJAC Large School Championships held at Morris Hills H.S. 5/4-5. Both squads took 4th place honors in the 15-school gathering, which combined the American and National Divisions. Such was the quality of the meet there were 30 National Elite marks in the meet as recorded by milesplit, the national webpage for h.s. track performance lists.
Sr. Jacinta Ford won the triple jump at 35'11.25" and picked up a silver in the long at 17' .25". The girls were strong in other field events, with Gianna Pastena taking 2nd in the high jump in 4'10" and Ashley Tomasula equalling her p.r./school record at 10'. Allissa Hoffman took 2nd in the jav at 102' 11" and Britney Gulick a 6th in the disc at 95'. On the track soph Armani Blair starred as she picked up two 4th place medals in the 100 & 200 (12.93, 26.59). The 4 x 400 team of Ingrid Nimoh, Val Zielinski, Sam Tavalare, and Marissa Karl capped off the 49 pt. total by placing 6th with a season best.
Senior Aeron Gilson led the boys with 4 medals. His two silvers in the hurdle races were debuts in these events for him in championship competitions. His 54.05 moved him to 2nd on the MO all-time list and ranked him in the top 5 nationally; his 15.02 (14.8h) pushed the county champ from Randolph to his second max effort of the meet. Without pause, Gilson moved to the long jump pit, where he set a p.r. in taking 3rd in 21' 6 1/4". He anchored the relay team of Dan Maya (50.7 p.r.), Scott Rennalls (51.8 p.r.) and Dan Baules (54) to a season best (s.b.) 3:26.61 with his 49 split. Maya picked up a 2nd in the 200 at 22.97 and a 3rd in the 100 in 11.36 for his best-ever meet. His sprint partner John Johnson followed him in 4th in the 100 (11.51) and 5th in the HH (15.86). Soph Scott Rennalls ran a best of 1:59.22 for 6th in the 800, his first time cracking under two from the line. After p.r.'ing in 4:30 the day before, sr. Chris Schneider finally broke the 10 barrier by running a gutsy 9:50.41 in the 3200 to get 4th.
The Morris County Championships are Tue and Wed, 5/11-12 at Boonton.

Monday, May 3, 2010

Girls Show Depth in 8th Place Showing at County Relays

The girls' track & field squad showed their overall depth at the County Relays by placing in the top 6 in 10 of the 16 events. The team took 8th place overall in the meet with 31 points.
Senior Jacinta Ford was on 4 scoring teams, 2 of which took bronze medals. Jr. Camille Inglese likewise took 2 bronze medals, was on a 5th place team and had a long jump over 16', while soph teammate Armani Blair also grabbed 2 3rds and was on a 5th-place team. Laura Goodfriend and Val Zielinski were also on 3 teams each that scored for the Ladies. Ingrid Nimoh and Gianna Pastena were on 2 scoring teams.
The 4 x 100 not only took a 3rd but also broke the school record. The team of Blair, Inglese, Sam Tavalare, and Ford ran 50.45 to break the old 50.9 time.
Two other bronze medal efforts were turned in by the defending champ Sprint Med team of Inglese, Blair, Nimoh, and Zielinski with a season best 4:19.6; and the high jump team of Pastena, Goodfriend, and Ford.
Other teams and their members:
Discus--Britney Gulick, Ford, Brianna Zazzaro 4th 245' 1"
3 x 400H--Nimoh, Goodfriend, Marissa Karl 5th 3:39.3
4 x 200--Corinne Schroeder, Tavalare, Inglese Blair 5th 1:47.66
4 x 800--Zielinski, Goodfriend, Bridget Phillips, Katrina Laemmerhirt 5th 10:17.07
T.J.--Ford, Pastena, Gabriela Skervin 5th 93' 2 1/4"
4 x 1600--Zielinski, Stephanie Smith, Casey Garcia, Phillips 6th 22:49.6
Dist. Med--Smith, Tavalare, Goodfriend, Garcia 7th 13:21.7

4 x 100 Take County Title; Boys 8th Overall

The sprint quartet of seniors Kevin Lepore & Aeron Gilson and juniors John Johnson & Dan Maya smashed the competition in the 4 x 100 in the opening day of the Morris County Relays held 4/30-5/1. Their time of 43.36 was just .09 off their previous week's time at the Randolph Relays but easily beat the 2nd place team (44.22). Their times place them in the top ten in the state. Their goal is to qualify for the elite race in the Meet of Champs. This is a repeat for the 4 x 100 team who won last year. Gilson returned to anchor this year's team and add yet another gold to his collection.
One of the most exciting races of the meet turned out to be the sprint medley. Outstanding legs were turned in by all members of the team as John Johnson (22.8), Dan Maya (22.3), Aeron Gilson (48.8) and Scott Rennalls (1:58.8) ran 3:33.07 to take silver. The squad had a 5 sec. lead at the handoff between the 400 and 800 and made Morristown's Hamar Farag run 1:52.5 to beat the Marauders. The 3:33 time narrowly missed the school record (3:32.91) by a legendary Steve Slattery-anchored team in 1997.
Gilson and Johnson also teamed with Byron Reed and Chris Duran in the shuttle hurdles to grab bronze medals. Their 1:03.49 is a season best and just off the 1:02.3 school record.
The 4 x 100 team came back late in the meet Saturday to just miss a bronze medal by running a season-best 1:33.25. Gilson was sharp again in that relay, splitting 21.7.
The distance med and long jump teams placed 8th, just outside the scoring. Jon Weiss had a p.r. 3:16 leadoff 1200 and soph Dan Baules a big 53.6. Kevin Lepore cracked the 19' barrier in the long jump for the first time. In the triple jump, Jamal Davis had a near-3' improvement in his triple jump, hop-skip-jumping to 41' 4 1/4".

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Sprinters Smash 4 x 100 Record

The MO boys 4 x 100 traveled to the Penn Relays last Friday for their second shot at the short relay this spring. The team of Kevin Lepore, John Johnson, Dan Maya, and Aeron Gilson improved their time to 44.09. With better stick passing the next day, the team took the gold at the Randolph Relays in 43.27 to crush the school record of 43.60, set last year at the Morris Hills Relays. Gilson also anchored that team, but he was teamed with three new teammates this year. That time moves them into the elite sprint teams in the state.
The 4 x 800 team also struck gold, taking that event in 8:20, two seconds faster than their previous run the week before. Scott Rennalls, Jon Weiss, Chris Orihuela, and Chris Schneider, who had earlier in the day medaled in the distance med in 10:47, came back to pull away from Seton Hall after the first leg.

Sunday, April 25, 2010

BOYS NJAC NATIONAL CHAMPS

The boys team completed an undefeated season last Wednesday, 4/21, by beating Mendham and Morris Hills at Mendham. The greatest effort of the meet was junior Dan Maya, who won the 100, 200, 400 (p.r. of 52.3), and anchored the 4 x 400 in a 52 split to 3:33.5. Classmate John Johnson backed him up with a 2nd in the dashes and a 2nd in the 110H. Aeron Gilson won the opening 400H but then crashed to the track in the 110H. Though limping and wrapped up, Gilson went over to the long jump and leaped 20'10" to give the Marauders a 1-2 (Jamal Davis was leading till Gilson's jump). MO won every track event against M.H. except the 110H. Morris Hills had been undefeated coming in and looking to extend their 9-year win streak. Other wins were recorded by Scott Rennalls in the 800 and Chris Schneider in the 3200 in a p.r. 10:01. The biggest upset of the meet was Howard Thiele, who won the jav with a toss of 146' after just picking it up not long ago.
The boys won the inaugural NJAC National Division regular season title, their first conference title since the 1990's.

Steve Slattery Takes Penn Relays Steeplechase


Former M.O. great Steve Slattery added another award to his illustrious professional career when he won the 2010 Penn Relays Olympic Development steeplechase on Thursday, April 22. Slattery ran 8:41 to take the event and is poised to go into another season in Europe in the summer. After graduating from M.O., Steve ran at the Universityof Colorado on scholarship where he was a many-time All American. In addition, he has run in the World Championships several times, is a U.S. National Champ, and competed in three Olympic Trials.

Tuesday, April 20, 2010

Girls/Boys Bring Home Medals from Morris Hills Relays

The girls posted a solid showing at the Morris Hills Relays this past Saturday, 4/17. The top team for the Ladies was the high jump who took 3rd in their event. Seniors Jacinta Ford and Gianna Pastena (4'10" each) teamed with soph Laura Goodfriend (4'3") to take the bronze. A 4th was turned in by the shot put trio (Britney Gulick, Jacinta Ford, Allissa Hoffman). 5ths were turned in by the 4 x 1600 (Casey Garcia, Bridget Phillips, Stephanie Smith, Val Zielinski), and the sprint medley (Ingrid Nimoh, Armani Blair, Camille Inglese, Val Zielinski).
The boys scored a modest 9 points but were minus many stars. The best performance of the day was from the 4 x 100 team of John Johnson, Jamal Davis, Kevin Lepore, and Cory Colligan, who ran the one-lapper in 44.93 and grabbed silver medals from out of the second heat. The boys 4 x 800 (Scott Rennalls, Chris Schneider, Chris Coyle, and Chris Orihuela) ran a respectable 8:24 to take 6th.

MO Frosh/Soph Have Big Day at Championship Relays

The boys and girls freshmen/sophomore squads had successful efforts at the Morris County Freshmen/Sophomore Relays last Friday, 4/16, at Randolph.
The boys placed third overall with 60 points. Results can be seen at mctrack.org.
The boys pole vault team won that event. Ed Feeney, Kevin Woltz, and Matt Messina each clea
Fr. 4 x 200: 1:43.79 Bakelmun, Justin; Maksimow, Justin; Eppel, Michael; Talanca, Anthony. This same team ran the 4 x 100 and took 2nd.
So. 4 x 100: 48.17 Rios, Juan; McMahon, Justin; Gonzalez, Michael; Colligan, Cory.
Javelin: Fr. D.J. Sexton, So. Chris Boyle, Fr. Robbie Amoroso.
Long Jump: So. Cory Colligan; Fr. Justin Maksimow; So. Juan Rios.
The GIRLS were 6th with 31.5 points.
The girls continued to turn out good high jumpers as M.O.'s team took the gold medal. Sophs Alison Shroeder and Laura Goodfriend along with fr. Rachel Smith won.
The girls placed 4th-6th in 11 other events out of 13. This amazing balance of sprinters, throwers, jumpers, and distance runners shows the strength of the younger team against the county.
red 8' to tally 24'. The long jump, javelin, Fr 4 x 100, So 4 x 100, and Fr 4 x 200 all took silver medals.

Boys Defeat of Par Hills Move Them to 5-0

The MO boys hosted Par Hills on Tuesday, 4/13, and won a blowout 94-46. The Marauders swept the 100, 400, 800, and triple jump and went 1-2 in the long jump, pole vault, and 200.
Double wins were recorded by senior Aeron Gilson and junior Dan Maya in the long jump/400 and 100/200 respectively. Both also joined Scott Rennalls and Chris Orihuela for a win in the
4 x 400. Other 1sts were recorded by Byron Reed (400H--61.5), Paul Kramaritsch (P.V.--12'),
Jon Weiss (800--2:04.7), and Jamal Davis (t.j.--35'10").
The girls topped Par Hills down at Par Hills on the same day to go 4-1.

Sunday, April 11, 2010

BOYS POST TWO MORE WINS

The boys team had its second meet of the season on Wednesday, 4/7, and beat both Montville and Morristown. The win against Morristown is the first ever in Mt. Olive's history.
Coach Sulley recalled, "Even the year we won the counties--1983--we lost to them in a dual meet. We had a great team that year that got third in Group 3. Paul Quitzau was state champ in both hurdle races and got third in the Golden West meet. We had a 210' jav thrower, a 9:31 3200 guy, a 1:58 800 man and another good hurdler who also jumped 6'6". It's pretty sweet finally beating them. First in my 29 years as boys coach."
That being said, the opening two NJAC meets in which M.O. has beaten four teams is a great start.
Senior captain Aeron Gilson won the 110H again (15.2) and the long jump, posting his season best 20'4". In his first effort at the 400H, he ran an amazing 55.8; only a handful of M.O. athletes have run faster, usually in championship meets later in the season.
Junior newcomer John Johnson continued hot in the sprints, winning the 100 (11.2) and 200 (23.5), and leading teammate Dan Maya across the line both times (11.2, 23.6) for a tough 1-2 finish against both opponents. Other overall firsts were scored by soph Scott Rennalls in the 400 (52.8), sr. Chris Orihuela in the 800 (2:05), sr. Chris Schneider in the 3200 (10:25), sr. Mike Shobitan in the high jump (5'2"), and jr. Paul Kramaritsch in the pole vault (12', P.R.). Against Montville, Jon Weiss (1600--4:40), jr. Jamal Davis (triple jump--37'8", P.R.), and the 4 x 400 of Rennalls, Maya, Orihuela, and sr. Chris Coyle took firsts.
In all, the boys swept a total of 5 times (1-2-3) and had 7 1-2 finishes.
The girls, at home, split a pair, beating Montville and being edged by Morristown. (Results to follow).
NEXT MEET--TUESDAY, 4/13, PAR HILLS. BOYS--HOME; GIRLS--AWAY.

Monday, April 5, 2010

Boys Take Two in Home Opener

The April Fools Day opener found the M.O. Boys Team rollicking its way to a double win over Delbarton 94-45 and West Morris 96-44 on Thursday, April 1.

Aeron Gilson recorded four firsts against both opponents, winning the 100, 200, 110 hurdles, and long jump (10.8, 22.2. 15.1, 19'11 1/2").

Chris Orihuela won the 800 (2:04) and anchored the 4 x 4 to victory in 3:41. He was joined by Scott Rennalls, Dan Maya, and Dan Baules.

Other firsts were recorded by Jon Weiss in the 1600 (4:46), Paul Kramaritsch in the pole vault (11'9"), Chris Schneider in the 3200 (10:35), Chris Victoria in the disc (111'10"), Scott Rennalls in the 400 (52.1), and Matt Herb in the triple jump (36'8").

The girls team also had a big day, winning against West Morris.

The girls and boys both go against Montville and Morristown on Wednesday, 4/7. The girls are at home.

Friday, March 26, 2010

More Awards for Indoor

The Star Ledger recognized the accomplishments of a number of MO tracksters for the indoor season. Aeron Gilson picked up yet another award being named 1st Team for the 300meters. Dan Maya was named 2nd Team 55m, while Matt Herb (H.J.) and Scott Rennalls (1000m) were named 3rd Team along with the 4 x 400 team (Rennalls, Maya, Chris Orihuela, Gilson).
On the distaff side, the girls had two members make the 3rd Team: Val Zielinski in the 1000m and Gianna Pastena in the high jump.

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Gilson, Rennalls Garner Awards

Senior Aeron Gilson and sophomore Scott Rennalls were both named to the Daily Record Boys Indoor Track & Field All Area First Team for the 2010 indoor season. Gilson was named 1st team in the 400 meter dash; Rennalls in the 1000 meter run. Gilson has been named numerous times since his freshmen year; this is Rennalls' first time.
Gilson won a number of titles and broken school records this season (see articles below) as well as has been named First Team All County, while Rennalls established himself as a formidable new face in the middle distance races and broke the school soph record for 800m.
Gilson recently competed in the Nike Indoor Nationals in Boston in the 400 and 200, where he competed against the best athletes from all over the U.S. See results on Dyestat.com.
Congratulations to our athletes! More good news should follow the Star Ledger publication of their all area teams.

Wednesday, February 24, 2010

College News

St. Francis U. senior Chris Behre successfully defended his NEC mile title for the Red Flash by winning in 4:20, after running a 4:19 in the qualifying rounds. He also took 5th in the 800 in 1:57 after qualifying in 1:55. At the same meet, former teammate Chris Taiwo took 4th in the 60m dash and 5th in the 200.
Kean U. frosh Kevin Persson took 3rd in the NJAC Championships in the 400 in 49.3. He also anchored the 2nd place 4 x 400 team who ran 3:23.
At the Kent State Tuneup, Tiffin U. soph Antoine Allen took 3rd in the l.j. (23'2 1/2") and 4th in the t.j. (44' 2 3/4").

Gilson Improves on 200 Record

Aeron Gilson established a clearcut hold on the school record in the 200 when he placed 8th in the Eastern States Championships on Tuesday, 2/23, at the New Balance Armory. His time of 22.53 bettered his 22.64 and also earned him US First Team Elite status on MilesplitUS. His time is 5th in NJ this season.
Armani Blair beat her own soph record in the 55 by running 7.69.

Group 3 State Championships

Aeron Gilson earned a bronze medal at the Groups Sat., 2/20, running 51.13 in the 400. He dove at the tape after leading the entire way in the seeded section, but was edged by a thousandth in the closest of finishes. Ashley Tomasula placed 6th in the pole vault, equalling her best, at 9'6". Gianna Pastena grabbed a wild card spot in the h.j., clearing 5', to become the 3rd member of the indoor team to make it to the Meet of Champs on 2/27.
Other notable marks were recorded by Scott Rennalls, who placed 9th in the 800, taking his own soph indoor mark down to 2:02.34; Jacinta Ford and Laura Goodfriend both jumped 4'10" to tie for 10th, one spot behind their teammate Pastena.

Sunday, February 7, 2010

Big Apple Trip Bears Fruit

The boys & girls trip to the Armory in NYC proved worth it this past Monday, 2/8.
Aeron Gilson shone again in his performances. In the 400 he broke his own school record by running 50.4 (50.64 AT). Then in the 200, he tied Ryan Newberger's record at 22.4. To cap it off, he anchored the 4 x 400 in 49.6 when they ran 3:34.0.
The 4 x 800 team smashed last year's 8:35 record when Scott Rennall, Chris Orihuela, Chris Schneider, and Jon Weiss relayed to 8:22.1. The legs were 2:04, 2:05, 2:07, and 2:05 respectively.
Armani Blair broke soph records in the 55 (7.5T, 7.4S) and 200 (27.2). She also had a season-best in the 55H in 9.0.
Jacinta Ford placed 5th in the long jump in 16'4 1/2" and ran 7.5 and 7.3 in the trials and semis of the 55. Her 8.7 in the 55H was a p.r.
Numerous other season bests and p.r.'s were turned in throughout the night: boys 55-Dan Maya (6.5T & S), Jamal Davis (7.0), Jamore McBurroughs (7.1); boys 800-Chris Coyle (2:14.9); boys 200-John Johnson (23.4), Maya (23.8), Kevin Lepore (24.5); boys 1600-Bryan Kveglis (4:54.2); girls 55-Marissa Karl (8.1); girls 200-Kelly Sagi (29.1), Danielle Halikias (29.2); girls 1600-Erin Miller (5:45.9), Stephanie Smith (5:48.4), Ashley Torres (5:53.6).
Season bests were turned in by the 4 x 800 team in 10:16.9--notable were Val Zielinski's 2:28 leadoff and Laura Goodfriend's ensuing 2:31.7. The 4 x 400 ran 4:24.5 with a team of Sam Tavalare, Ingrid Nimoh, Goodfriend, and Zielinski.
Gianna Pastena made the opening height in the high jump at 5' for the third time this season to equal her season best.

Boys & Girls advance to Group 3 State Championships

M.O. qualified a total of 15 athletes to the Group 3 State Championships on Saturday, 2/13, at Toms River. Eight boys and seven girls will be making the trip. M.O. had three individual winners at the sectionals on 2/3.
For details about the boys, see the article below.
The girls demonstrated their improving maturity this year by coming in 4th with 38 pts., an incredible showing over last year's 15th place with a mere 2.75 pts.! Most amazing was senior Gianna Pastena, who failed to place last year in the high jump, winning that event this year at 4'10"! Senior teammate Val Zielinski, in her first undercover campaign, did a lioness's share for the team, placing 5th in both the 1600 and 800, both p.r.'s in 5:30.05 and 2:29.11, and anchoring the non-placing relay to a season best 4:25.62. Perhaps even better were Jacinta Ford's 3 medal total--all 5ths in the 55H, 55, and high jump. The high jump was a huge success for the Marauderettes as Laura Goodfriend also joined Pastena and Ford as qualifies by taking 4th. Ashley Tomasula was the girls' lone entrant in the pole vault, but that didn't stop her from grabbing 6 big points by taking 3rd, equalling her p.r., school-record height of 9'6". Armani Blair was also 3rd in the 55H in a p.r. 9.38. Finally, Casey Garcia, who just missed qualifying in the 1600 in 7th, came back to run her first 3200 of the season and placed 5th in 12:35.38.

Boys Win 2nd State Sectional Championship!!!!

Last year the Marauders surprised themselves by winning the North 1, Group 3 State Sectional title. This year the team went into the meet with a plan to win again. Senior Aeron Gilson led the way as he repeated as 400 champion in 50.91, dropped down to the 55 and took 2nd, and then led the relay to the runner up position. The 4 x 400 effort was the deciding factor since the team lost its scoring lead to Hackensack in the next-to-last event. Down by two, the relay squad ran true to form and upped the team total to 54 to Hackensack's 50. Gilson was named Daily Record male track athlete for the week for his superb efforts.
Other key efforts were turned in by junior Matt Herb who won the high jump at 5'10" despite a nagging injury; Scott Rennalls in the 800 in a new school soph record in 2:02.86, his second straight year in breaking a class record in that event; Jon Weiss the 1600 in another beautiful p.r. of 4:31.83; Dan Maya 6th in the 55 in 6.87; Byron Reed 6th in the 55H in 8.56; Chris Orihuela 6th in the 800 in 2:05.74; and Chris Schneider 6th in the 3200 in 10:25.13. Joining Gilson on the relay were Rennalls, Maya, and Orihuela.
Just outside the scoring, but turning in great efforts, were Chris Duran, 7th in the 55H; and Weiss and Zach Miller, 8th & 9th in the 3200.
In all, the Marauders placed in 8 out of the 10 events. Their score showed more depth and overall firepower this year compared to last year's 39.5 pts.

Saturday, January 30, 2010

Marauder Accolades

Senior sprint star Aeron Gilson has made a verbal commitment to Emporia State University of Kansas, a nationally ranked Division II powerhouse program. He is expected to make an immediate impact on the team. Signing day is Monday, Feb. 1.
Two of Gilson's teammates from last year's sensational record-setting relay squads, Kevin Persson and Peter Bonanno, recently ripped up the indoor boards with their performances for Kean University. Persson was named Kean Athlete of the Week! Check it out at the Kean University Athletic website.
Senior Chris Taiwo recently broke his own triple jump record at Monmouth University, going 47' 9.25". Antoine Allen, Tiffin University, recently placed 4th in both the t.j. and l.j. (22'2").
M.O. continues its tradition of sending student/athletes into the collegiate world to further both their educational and sports careers.

Thursday, January 21, 2010

Marauders Make Statement at County Meet

The recent performance at the Morris County Championships underscored the quality of this year's squads. The boys took a prestigious 3rd place overall in the team battle. Senior captain Aeron Gilson repeated as 300m champion, breaking the school record with a 36.40. The time is the 3rd fastest in NJ this season. He then anchored the relay home at the end of the meet, anchoring in 50.1. It was Gilson's 6th gold medal at County Championship Meets, counting indoor and outdoor, and 4th individual title. This will make Gilson First Team All County for the 4th time in his career in his last 4 seasons.
Soph Scott Rennalls, junior Dan Maya, and senior Chris Orihuela ran the first three legs before Gilson to record a team time of 3:32, a best this winter by 10 seconds!
Earlier, Maya almost pulled off an upset in the 55m, taking second and missing first by .01 in 6.73. Rennalls placed 3rd in the 1000m to continue his outstanding soph season, improving to 2:40. Another 3rd was racked up by jr. Matt Herb in the h.j. at 6'. Sr. captain Jon Weiss smashed his p.r. in running 4:34 and taking 4th in the 1600. Sr. vaulter Kevin Lepore snared a 6th place with a p.r. 10'6" in the pole vault.
On the girls' side, sr. Val Zielinski knocked 5 sec. off her best to run a gutsy 3:08 in the 1000 and place 5th. Classmates Gianna Pastena placed 4th in the high jump in 4'10" and Jacinta Ford 6th in the 55m dash. On both the boys and girls sides there were a number of top 10 finishes that were impressive as well as many personal and season bests.
At last Saturday's state Group 3 relays, the boys sprint medley team of Gilson, Dan Maya, John Johnson, and Rennalls brought home 4th place medals, running their fastest of the season in 3:44. Several outstanding performances were turned in, notably the sprint medley just mentioned, the boys shuttle hurdles (Byron Reed, Chris Duran, Matt Herb, and Johnson), the girls high jump (Gianna Pastena, Laura Goodfriend), and the boys 4 x 800 (Orihuela, Weiss, Chris Schneider, Weiss), who just missed the school record by a second.
The state sectionals are on Wed., 2/3 at Toms River. The boys will be defending their title from next year. Should be interesting.
One of the shining moments as several weeks ago was the sophomore girls' first place team finish at the County Frosh/Soph Championships. Armani Blair won both the 55 and 55 H, Laura Goodfriend the high jump, and Ashley Tomasula the pole vault. In the soph boys, Scott Rennalls won the gold in the 600m.

Tuesday, January 5, 2010

MO Tracksters Harvest Medals

The indoor track & field squads participated in two meets over the holiday break and started the new year with a successful showing at the County Relays on Monday, 1/4. The boys team placed 5th and the girls 9th at the relay championships, an improvement on last year's 7th and 11th. The highest placing team was the girls high jump duo of Gianna Pastena and Laura Goodfriend who took silver. Taking bronze in the same event on the boys' side were Matt Herb and John Johnson. Matt Herb has impressed in each outing throughout the season by consistently jumping 6 feet. At the county relays, his jump was the highest in the competition. Herb and Johnson teamed up with Byron Reed and Chris Duran to take 4th in the shuttle hurdles while Goodfriend led off the 6th-place 4 x 800 (Bridget Phillips, Casey Garcia, Stephanie Smith). The girls got two more 6th places in varsity competition in the sprint med (Sam Tavalare, Jacinta Ford, Armani Blair, Val Zielinski) and shot put (Ford, Alissa Hoffman). The boys got a 4th in the distance med with Scott Rennalls, Aeron Gilson, Chris Orihuela, and Jon Weiss and in the sprint med (Gilson, Dan Maya, Juan Rios, Rennalls), a 5th in the 4 x 800 (Zach Miller, Chris Schneider, Orihuela, Weiss). The 4 x 200 group of Rios, Johnson, Jake Podolnick, & Maya placed 6th in the 4 x 200.
The j.v. teams had an outstanding night to demonstrate the team depth. The lone gold for the night was grabbed by the boys in the 4 x 800 with Alex Joss, Steve Wagner, Chris Coyle, & Bryan Kveglis. Their time would have placed them 10th in the varsity. The boys' A & B 4 x 200 teams took 2nd and 4th (Jamal Davis, Jamore McBurroughs, Jake Boylan, Mike Gonzalez/Nick SanGiacomo, Pat Heitkamp, Justin Bakelmun, Chris Duran) while the girls 4 x 2 took 6th (LaNija Mendes, Anna Poggi, Sam Bakelmun, Danielle Halikias). The girls 4 x 8 team of Alex Schneeberg, Amanda Meisel, Marissa Bello, & Ashley Torres took bronze and so did the 4 x 4 of Kelly Sagi, Poggi, Erin Miller, & Steph Smith. Gonzalez, SanGiacomo, Duran, and Schneider grabbed more medals placing 3rd in the 4 x 4. Rounding it all out were Matt Deptula and Nick Parra in 6th place in the shot, both winning their first medals ever.
Next up:
Frosh/Soph Relays--Friday, 1/8
Conference Championships--Saturday, 1/9
Frosh/Soph Championships--Monday, 1/11