Girls 5th in Group 3 State Championships

The 2011 girls squads had one of the best Holmdel performances in program history at the Group 3 State Championships on Nov. 12. The girls placed 5th overall, just 7 pts. out of 3rd and 10 pts. out of 2nd.

Sarah Masukewicz and Marissa Karl (lower picture) had the 10th and 11th fastest MO girls times at the famous course, a history that stretches back to the late 1970's. Karl became # 10 with her 30t-place 20:28 while Masukewicz became # 11 with her 31st 20:29. Mariah Christian (21:02) and Steph Smith (21:03) finished in a tandem also in 44 and 45 (top picture above). Erin Miller's 66th in 21:39 finished MO's scoring. Alex Schneeberg was 86th and Lindsay Schafer 140th as #'s 6 & 7.

The ladies averaged 20:58. The 1989 team which won the MOC averaged 20:53, proving how much more competitive the ladies' racing has become! The 2011 squad brought back the winning ways of the girls teams of the past with an undefeated season (7-0), a conference title, and runnerup finshes in the Counties and Sectionals. Their finishin Group 3 is the best since 2004, when the team was 5th.

Morris County Championships: Girls--Silver; Boys 9th

The girls team, with only 2 days rest, stormed back after their Sectional qualifying race, to finish their highest at the Morris County Championships since 1996. Sarah Masukewicz placed 16th and Marissa Karl 18th to lead the Marauder cause. Sarah's time of 20:04.67 was a p.r.and a freshmen class record. Seniors Steph Smith and Erin Miller were next in, taking 26th and 28th. Mariah Christian was the 5th finisher for MO in 34th, while Danielle Halikias (39th; p.r. 21:19) and Alex Schneeberg (48th) brought all the red and gold in. The girls ran their second fastest ever at Greystone, averaging 20:33.

For the boys team this was their last race of the season and a preview of 2012. Sr. Scott Rennalls was unable to finish after being pushed off the course just past midway and suffering an injury. First-year soph Nick Yanakas had his best race of the season placing 35th in 17:50. Peermate Eddie Garcia followed right in at 17:59, taking 42nd. Steve Kubicki stayed close in 47th with his best race at 18:10.42. Nick Miele, Sean Gallagher, and Joey Ulbrich piled in at 74, 79, and 83. The total underclass team ran 18:26 and were 9th overall. Every team in front of the Marauder boys had an average of half their top 5 as seniors.

The J.V. Girls were 2nd. Erin Schafer was the top finisher in 5th. Sara Christian, 9th; Jamie Tavalare, 14th (in a p.r. 22:48); Katrina Laemmerhirt, 15th; and Jackie Pignataro, 22nd, completed the team.

The J.V. boys were 8th. Anthony Talanca was first in in 53rd.

Girls 2nd, Boys 6th at Sectionals

The girls team narrowly missed adding a sectional title to their conference title, when they took second at the North 1, Group 3 State Sectional Championships, on Saturday, 11/5. The Lady Harriers scored 96, just shy of Northern Highlands 92.
Fr. Sarah Masukewicz led the way, placing 8th and running her fastest-ever 5k in 19:39.39, a school record for the Thompson Park course in Jamesburg. Marissa Karl was right behind in 11th in her second sub-20 clocking of the season at 19:50. Mariah Christian and Stephanie Smith both ran close, taking 21st and 23rd, and recorded 5k p.r.'s in 20:28 and 20:32. Lindsay Schafer recorded her 2nd sub-21 time on the course in 20:55 and getting 33rd to finish the MO scoring. Alex Schneeberg ran a p.r. 5k time of 21:03, taking 37th. Erin Miller was 43rd in 21:20. The team time of 20:17.8 was a season-best and possibly the fastest ever on a 5k course for any M.O. girls team in its 35 year history.
The boys came agonizingly close to advancing to the Group 3 Championships with their 6th place finish. The boys beat out every local team to represent Morris County against its Bergen and Passaic opponents. The team also ran a season-best average time of 17:52. Sr. Scott Rennalls and soph Eddie Garcia ran a close tandem, placing 28 and 29, in 17:34 and 17:35, the latter a 20 sec. improvement for Garcia from his initial run at Thompson 3 weeks earlier. Jr. Nick Miele (36th) showed he likes this course, running 17:49 to go along with his 17:44 earlier race here. Nick Yanakas took 47th in 18:02. Joey Ulbrich (59th--18:21), Steve Kubicki (65th--18:34), and Sean Gallagher (76th--18:49) each recorded their bests ever atthe 5k xc distance. Gallagher's time was his first ever under 19 min.

NJAC Championships

After completing the regular season, the boys and girls settled their sights on the championship races, starting with the NJAC Championship Race, which combines the two large school divisions--the American and National. The 5-2 boys squad led things off by placing 7th overall in their race. The team averaged a new best team time for the season, clocking 18:00.5. Senior Scott Rennalls (above left) was 23rd overall in 17:20. Soph Eddie Garcia wasn't far behind in 29th with a big p.r. of 17:32. Soph Nick Yanakas cracked the 18 min. mark in 17:58. Jr. Nick Miele (50th--18:12) and soph Steve Kubicki (67th--18:57) rounded out the scoring.

The girls finished 5th in a tight battle for 3rd. Their tally of 135 pts. trailed Morristown by 2 and Pope John by 1. Their 20:27 was a new school record, breaking their own. Marissa Karl's 10th in 19:31 was a new school individual record and a breakthrough performance. Frosh SarahMasukewicz continued to gain strength with each race as she nabbed 24th in 20:22. Erin Miller, Mariah Christian, and Lindsay Schafer rolled in to complete the scoring (29th--20:39; 34th--20:48; and 38th--20:56) and recorded p.r.'s.

Joey Ulbrich led the j.v.'s, running a p.r. 18:42 in 35th. The squad was 10th.

The j.v. girls were impressive, taking 1-2-3. Alex Schneeberg won in 21:21, Sara Christian was 2nd in 21:23, and Erin Schafer was 3rd in 21:35. The team was second. Jr. Jackie Pignataro (22nd) and fr. Jamie Tavalare (28th) were the other two scorers.

Girls & Boys Post Improvements at Old Bridge Fall Classic

The xc teams traveled to Jamesburg on Saturday, 10/15, to race at Thompson Park.
The girls varsity turned in their most impressive performance of the season taking 3rd place behind the #9 and 12 ranked teams in the state. Their total of 85 points was just behind Group 4 powers Bridgewater-Raritan's 55 and Hunterdon Central's 73. After setting a school record for team average at Greystone Park in last week's NJAC meet at 20:40, the top 5 girls ran 20:38.2, one of the best team average's ever recorded by the M.O. girls, and possibly the best ever. Junior Marissa Karl led the way in 9th (20:19), followed closely by frosh Sarah Masukewicz in 14th (20:25), senior Steph Smith 15th (20:33), sophs Lindsay Schafer in 19th (20:44) and Mariah Christian 28th (21:10). Sr. Danielle Halikias was 59th (22:15) and soph Erin Schafer 63rd (22:26).
The J.V. girls were 5th with soph Sara Christian crossing the line in 4th (22:14) and sr. Katrina Laemmerhirt 10th (22:51). Also scoring were junior Jackie Pignataro (23rd, 23:30) and frosh Jamie Tavalare (31st, 24:01) and Katherine Bausch (36th, 24:06).

The boys faced tough competition in their race with 3 state ranked teams and many Group 4 schools. The team placed 14th overall and recorded their best team time of the season at 18:00, better than their 18:46 last time at Greystone. Scott Rennalls continued to be the team leader and ran his best time of the season,placing 52nd in 17:39. Junior Nick Miele and soph Eddie Garcia both cracked the 18 minute mark for the first time ever, in 56th (17:44) and 66th (17:54) respectively. Also running their bests ever were sophs Nick Yanakas (84th, 18:13) and Steve Kubicki (98th, 18:34). Soph Joey Ulbrich got his first sub-19 time as well (106, 18:46). Soph Jake Tanenbaum, moving up to the varsity, was 142 in 19:55.
The boys j.v. were 18th. Jr. Matt McNamara was in first at 120 (21:08). The other runners were Ryan Schilling (132), Mike Henry (155), Scott Gong (160), Ryan Leone (163), and Jon Bass (170).

Passaic Invite Results

9/24: Garrett Mtn. site of the North Jersey State Sectionals

The boys and girls teams made their annual trip to the Passaic Coaches Invitational on Saturday, September 24, to test themselves out on the North 1 State Sectional course.
The Marauders left with 21 medals overall and competed in all six available races to them at the varsity, novice, and frosh levels.
In varsity action, the girls took 4th, even though holding back for their upcoming race 3 days later back at Greystone Park (NJAC race #2). Marissa Karl was the top finisher in 20th at 22:21, followed by Steph Smith (22, 22:28), Lindsay Schafer (25, 22:34), Mariah Christian (26, 22:35), Danielle Halikias (28, 22:39), Erin Miller (29, 22:40), and Alex Schneeberg (38, 23:13).
The boys placed 6th and were led by Scott Rennalls in 19th at 17:55. Soph Eddie Garcia came next (27, 18:32) and jr. Nick Miele (32, 18:54). Soph newcomer Nick Yanakas just missed a medal in 36th and was followed by sophs Joey Ulbrich (54), Sean Gallagher (61), and Steve Kubicki (62).
The girls novice race was the highlight of the day as M.O. put its 6 runners from 1st to 11th and romped over the field, taking 1st with 26 points. Sara Christian won the race in her first time over the varsity course in 23:21. Newcomer sr. Katrina Laemmerhirt (3rd), soph Erin Schafer (6th), jr. Jackie Pignataro (7th), soph Sarah Miller (10th), and sr. Sam Tavalare (11th) dominated the race to earn the first place trophy. In the boys novice race, Jack Tanenbaum (24), Gennaro Ruggiero (30), Dan Nemeth (32), and Jack Greenbaum (34) all earned medals and brought the boys in 5th.
Katherine Bausch (24) and Jamie Tavalare (29) got medals in the freshmen girls race.

Opening NJAC Action Highlighted by Sulley Girl Win 200

The girls went 3-0 and the boys 2-1 in the opening NJAC race Wednesday, 9/21, at Greystone Park. After just missing the 200 girl win milestone for their coach at the end of last year, the girls began the season by besting Vernon (26-33), Pope John (25-32), and Montville (19-42). Team depth proved the key to all three victories. Against Pope John, MO put four in before the Lions' 3rd and 11 in before their 5th. Against Vernon, Marissa Karl won and then 9 Marauders got in before the 4th Vernon runner. The score against Montville was the most lopsided, with 7 in the first 9 places. Karl also took first in that race. After Karl, the MO varsity was Steph Smith, Erin Miller, Mariah Christian, Lindsay Schafer, Danielle Halikias, and Alex Schneeberg.

The boys got off to a good start. While Montville took 1-2, the male harriers struck back by taking 7 of the next 8 positions to win in 27-32. Vernon, who handily beat MO boys last year, proved to be a weaker team in 2011. The Marauders took places 1-4 and 6-10 to wallop them 16-47. Pope John was too strong as it down the boys 15-49. P.J. would have beaten every team in the race, which included Mendham, Randolph, Roxbury, and Morris Knolls.

In the frosh/j.v. race, 9th grader Katherine Bausch was a close 2nd.

Roxbury Invitational Opener for 2011 XC

The Mount Olive Boys and Girls Cross Country teams opened their 2011 season with a stellar effort at the Roxbury Invitational on September 10. The Marauders came home with a total of 18 medals from the class meet held at Horseshoe Lake Park.

The highest individual showings came in the sophomore girl race in which Lindsay Schafer and Mariah Christian placed 3-4 and led the soph ladies to a 1st Place win! The team, pictured right, also included Sara Christian (10), Erin Schafer(12), Atalia Bermudez (14), and Sarah Miller (30).

In the Jr-Sr girls race, Marissa Karl and Steph Smith went back to back in 7-8 and led the girls to a 6th place showing. Katrina Laemmerhirt (27) and Sam Tavalare (35) were the other scorers in this meet that uses a 4-runner total.

Eddie Garcia was the highest boy finisher for the team, taking 8th in the soph race. Nick Yanakas grabbed a medal in his debut in 25th. The soph teamtook 6th overall. In varsity boys, Scott Rennalls brought his team in 8th with his 22nd place, followed closely by Nick Miele in 27. The frosh girls had several medal winners in Katherine Bausch (16) and Jamie Tavalare (26).

RANDOLPH CHAMPS FOR BOYS!!!

For the first time in school history (1974), the boys track team won their division of the Randolph Relays on Sat., 4/30.
This was the 3rd relay meet of the season for the boys. Two weeks earlier the team had competed in cold, wet conditions at the Morris Hills Relays. There, the strength of the jumps team was evident as it has been all season. Cory Colligan, Matt Herb, and soph Justin Maksimow combined for 112'10" to take 2nd place there, while Maksimow and Herb teamed with Antonio Hunt to take 3rd in the long jump with a 54' 7" total. The 4 x 100 team (5th), 4 x 200 (6th), and shot put (5th) all placed as well to help the team score.
As stated the boys won the Large School Division of the Randolph Relays by accumulating 53 points. The team of Juan Rios, Dan Maya, Hunt and Colligan won both the 4 x 100 and 4 x 200, both in season-best times. The 400 H team of Antonio and Gennaro Ruggiero and Hunt grabbed silver in the 3 x 400H relays. All 3 boys ran p.r.'s. Also, the long jump and pole vault teams took silver medals. Maksimow, Herb and Cuellar did a s.b. 56' 8" in the long jump while Kramaritsch, Ed Feeney, and Matt Messina vaulted to a total of 32' 6". Kramartisch hit his first 13 foot vault of the seaon.
The girls team was second at Randolph behind the host girls. Like their counterparts the girls 4 x 100 and 4 x 200 teams did well, taking 1st and 2nd respectively. Jr. Armani Blair, Lina Koch, sr. Camille Ingles, and fr. Keturah Orji teamed in the shorter race, with fr. Alicia Warren taking Koch's place in the longer one.
Inglese (16' 9") and Orji (16' 1") went 1-2 in the l.j. and with jr. Gentrix Shanga won that event. Orji led Ali Schroeder and Katrina Laemmerhirt to 2nd place in the h.j.
The distance girls made some waves for the first time in the season. They placed in every relay: 2nd in the 4 x 800 (Sam Tavalare, Laemmerhirt, Lindsay Schafer, and Marissa Karl. A different foursome took 5th in the 4 x 1600 (Alex Schneeberg, Steph Smith, Erin Miller, Mariah Chrisitan). Finally, the distance medley of Karl, Warren, Tavalare and Danielle Halikias placed 4th.

Boys Rolling Over Opponents

Since splitting the first meet of the season, beating Montville and losing to host Pope John, the Marauder men have gone on a tear, ripping up Jefferson, Sparta, High Point and Vernon. With one final meet to go at home against Morris Hills, the squad has a 5-1 record.
The high point scorer for the team has been senior Matt Herb, who has been unbeatable in his specialty the high jump. He is undefeated in that event for the season. In addition, he is 4 for 4 in the triple jump against these last opponents and won the long jump twice.
Sr. Antonio Hunt and jr. Cory Colligan have been a strong duo behind him.
Transfer Hunt has placed in the top 3 in every meet in 3 or 4 events per meet. He has placed 1st 5 times; he is the top 110H man and has split with Colligan in the 100 and 200. Colligan has been a key performer in both those sprint races and the long jump and triple jump.
The team has done well with key people in their best events: sr. Paul Kramaritsch has hit p.r.'s in the pole vault (13') and is unbeaten. Sr. Chris Victoria has led the throwers in the shot and disc. He has picked up 6' in the shot from the beginning of the season and has now hit over 46'. Sr. Zach Miller and jr. Scott Rennalls have covered the distances. Miller has hit p.r.'s in both the 1600 and 3200.
Jr. Antonio Ruggiero has been consistent in the 400H and backing up in the 110H. Soph Chris Cuellar is the leader for MO in both the jav and long jump.
The girls are 4-2. Most outstanding has been fr. Keturah Orji, who has won practically everything she's been in--100, 200, 110H, high jump, and long jump. Sr. Allissa Hoffmann has been the top thrower and gone past her own school record in the javelin. Soph Marissa Karl has run away from most opponents in the 800 and 1600--running 2:23 and 5:15.

OPENING RESULTS

Several boys teams traveled to Summit to participate in the relays on Saturday, 4/2. The shot putters brought home medals with their 5th place. Chris Victoria (42'11"), Rob Parisi (38' 52.25"), and Matt Deptula (34' 9.25") totaled 116' 1.5". The 400H trio of Antonio Genarro (63.3), Gennaro Ruggiero (64.2), and Mike Gonzalez (66.1) placed 7th in 3:13.4. The disc team was 11th; Victoria had the team's best throw with a 122'6". At Pope John the boys and girls both split their meets, both losing to Pope John and both beating Montville. The boys lost to P.J. 92-48 while the girls lost 102-38. The boys beat Montville 101-38 and the girls 111-16. The big name for the boys was Matt Herb, who won the high jump against both teams, opening with a 6'2" height. He recorded two more firsts in winning the triple jump at 39' 3/4" and added two 2nds in the long jump, just going over 19'. In fact, the jumps were the strong area for the boys as they wracked up 26 out of 36 pts. vs. P.J. and 29 against Montville. Chris Cuellar took 1st in the l.j. at 19'9" in his first-ever try. Justin Maksimow added 3rds in the l.j. and t.j. (2nd against P.J.). Sr. Paul Kramaritsch won the p.v. at 11'. The boy sprinters overwhelmed Montville going 1-2 in the 100 and 200 with Cory Colligan and Dan Maya and sweeping the 400 and relay. Antonio Hunt led a sweep of the 110H against Montville and Antonio Ruggiero a sweep of the 400H. Scott Rennalls placed 1st in the 800/1600 against Montville. Keturah Orji made her outdoor debut noteworthy by winning the 100 in 12.5 over indoor county champ Julia Rizio of Montville. She won the 200 against Montville and was 2nd against P.J. Alyssa Hoffman won the jav overall with a 100' heave. Sam Tavalare was the winner of the l.j. at 15' 7". She also ran 1:02.8 in the 400 to take 1st and 3rd. Marissa Karl ran 5:27 to take 1st against Montville and narrowly lose the 1600 against P.J. Danielle Halikias led a 1-2-3 sweep against Montville in the 3200. Marissa Karl also led a 1-2 sweep of Montville in the 800 and 1600.

Indoor Awards

Matt Herb was named First Team High Jump by the Daily Record. Ashley Tomasula made 2nd team Pole Vault and Marissa Karl 2nd Team 1000 m run. Honorable Mentions went to sprinters Cory Colligan and Armani Blair and hurdler Ingrid Nimoh. The Star Ledger named Herb 2nd Team H.J. and Tomasula 2nd Team P.V., while Karl took 3rd Team 1000 honors and Ingrid Nimoh in 55H. For the boys Scott Rennalls was 3rd Team 800. The girls 4 x 400 was also named 3rd team: Sam Tavalare, Marissa Karl, Alicia Warren, and Ingrid Nimoh. In all, six M.O. indoor track athletes were in the top 50 in the N.J. performance list. Marissa Karl had the 11th best 1000m time at 3:09.1 and also the 38th best time at 2:21 for 800. Ashley Tomasula was tied at 12th for her 11' in the pole vault. Matt Herb was tied in 24th place for his 6'2" efforts in the high jump. Scott Rennalls was 28th in the 1000 at 2:42.7. Katurah Orji as 31st in the 200 with her 26.84 and 43rd in the 55 with a 7.48. Ingrid Nimoh had the 45th best 55H time at 8.75. The girls sprint med team was 25th with its 4:28 clocking by Armani Blair, Ingrid Nimoh, Sam Tavalare and Marissa Karl.

Loschiavo Run

About 140 runners braved cold and windy weather to participate in this year's Loschiavo Run, held at the high school Saturday, March 26. The run, held each year since the death of track member John Loschiavo, raises money for scholarships to MOHS seniors.

Senior distance ace Zach Miller kept the first place honors for the home town in the 4 mile run. His time of 22:58 was a :58 p.r. over his time last year. Steve Wagner was 3rd in 24:49 and Scott Rennalls 4th in 25:11. Seven MO boys tracksters placed in the top ten. Soph Marissa Karl was the first female finisher and won the h.s. division in 27:14. Danielle Halikias was 3rd (27:21) and frosh teammates Mariah Christian and Lindsay Schafer were 4th and 5th (29:05, 29:21).

Jr. Sam Tavalare was 3rd overall in the 2 mile and Emily Crowley 5th. Fr. xc runner Stephen Carlstrom was 4th.

Eastern States Championships

The final competition of the 2010-2011 indoor season for the MOTF teams was the prestigious Eastern States Championships, held at the 168th St. Armory in NYC. Athletes must qualify according to entry guidelines and then be selected by the Games Committee. Three MO girls made the cut. Coach Joe Hehn took two of his sprint proteges in for races in the 55 and 200. Ketura Orji qualified for the semis in the 55 after a 7.48 trial. Amazingly, this time tied the school record held by Jackie Sendgikoski. She placed 20th overall in the semis, running a 7.56. She came back in the 200 later, joining teammate Armani Blair. Armani blazed the 1 lap in 27.46 to take 22nd overall. Keturah ran in a later heat and finished 19th with a 27.03.
In the field, Ashley Tomasula had her last vault competition and successfully cleared 11' again, good for 7th in the field. Ashley continued to equal her own school record set earlier in the season.

Meet of Champs

Three Marauders made their fourth trip back to the Toms River bubble for the annual state finals known as the Meet of Champions. Junior Ashley Tomasula placed 8th overall, clearing 11'. Soph Marissa Karl placed 17th in the 800, running 2:23.44. Senior Matt Herb concluded his successful indoor jumping career with a clearance of the opening height of 6' to take 18th. This was Ashley's second trip to the MOC indoors, while it was a first-time appearance form both Marissa and Matt.

State Success

Last Saturday, Feb. 19, the qualifiers from the North 1, Group 3 State Sectional Championships competed in the Group 3 State Championships at the Bennet Center in Toms River.

Three individuals from the Marauder squads medaled and thus advanced to the Meet of Champions on Saturday, Feb. 26. The best 6 medalists from each of the 6 groups, plus 6 wildcards, move on to contest to see who's the best in NJ.

The highest place was junior Ashley Tomasula, who equaled her own school indoor record, taking 2nd at 11'. It was her second consecutive clearance of that height in as many weekends. Next highest was the bronze medal won by soph Marissa Karl in the 800 m. She zoomed to 3rd on a 2:21.85 p.r. improvement; she may have turned some heads because of her 2:25.25 from the week before and her 9th place seeding prior to the race. Finally, senior Matt Herb jumped 6'2" in the high jump along with 3 others, but was awarded 5th, his 5th time over that height this season. The winner went 6'4".

Both 4 x 400 teams ran their season bests. The girls team, pictured above, ran an automatic 4:15.09 for 12th place. Fr. Alicia Warren, jr. Sam Tavalare, jr. Ingrid Nimoh, and soph Marissa Karl ran .05 off their 4:14.8 at the Varsity Classic at the Armory, but will be given credit for the record because of the official auto timing. The flat nature of the Toms River oval makes times run there up to 4 sec. slower for 1600m than the banked track of the Armory. The all junior boys team of Mike Gonzalez, Dan Baules, Cory Colligan, and Scott Rennalls posted a 3:38.54. Speaking for the group, Scott said, "We're happy to run our fastest time of the season. We can still do better." Rennalls placed 11th in the 800 in 2:03.58, slightly off his 2:02.61 the week before. He did, however, post his best 400 split in 52.7.

Sam Tavalare placed 10th in the 800 in 2:28.51, her second time under 2:30. Fr. Keturah Orji and jr. Armani Blair were 18th and 19th in the 55 semis at 7.69 and 7.70 respectively. The 7.70 was Armani's best time of the season and a scant .01 off her p.r. of 7.69.

The girls were 9th overall with 14 pts.

North 1 Group 3 State Sectionals

The Marauders advanced a total of 11 athletes to the Group 3 State Championships this past Saturday, 2/13. Sr. Matt Herb successfully defended his h.j. title, winning that event at 6'. The next highest placing team members were jr. Ashley Tomasula, who cleared 11', breaking her own school record and soph Marissa Karl, who also took a silver in the 800 with a p.r. of 2:25.25. Karl also handled the second leg of the 4 x 400 team, which placed 3rd. Sam Tavalare joined her on that team, following her 4th place finish in her first non-relay 800, which she ran in 2:27.06. Ingrid Nimoh anchored that team and took the baton from her freshman sister Suzie. The team ran 4:15.45, not far off the school record set earlier in the week.
The biggest event of the night for the girls was the 55 dash. After going 3-4-5 in the semis, the same girls--Keturah Orji, Armani Blair, and Camille Inglese--went 3-4-5 in the finals, running 7.62-7.77-7.78. Keturah tied the 9th gr. record in the semis with her 7.58.
Jr. Danielle Halikias had the dreaded 7th place, but had stepped up to the 3200 for the first time and ran a respectable 12:34.8. She led fr. Mariah Christian to a 12:36 and jr. Alex Schneeberg to12:39. Fr. Alicia Warren had a p.r. in the 400, taking 10th in 1:04.33, and classmate Lindsay Schafer a 9th in the 1600 at 5:48.89. The girls finished tied for 3rd with 38 pts., their best team finish ever.
Jr. Scott Rennalls was the next highest boy finisher, finishing in 2:02.61 for 800m and getting 4th. He returned to run a 52.9 anchor for the 4 x 400 team, which ran their best of the season at 3:41.35. Jrs. Mike Gonzalez, Dan Baules, and Cory Colligan took the first three legs for the squad. The boys placed 6th overall with 18 pts.
The Group 3 Championships are Sat, 2/20, at 4 PM.

Second Trip to Big Apple Fruitful for Tracksters

The indoor track & field squads made a hop across the Hudson for the second time this winter to whiz around the banked oval at the Armory.
The girls' 4 x 400 team achieved one of their season's goals by taking down the school record. The previous record, set in 1997, of 4:16, fell to the 4:14.8 run by Sam Tavalare (1:03), Marissa Karl (1:03), Alicia Warren (1:05), and Ingrid Nimoh (1:03). Tavalare and Karl had run the 1st and 2nd legs on the 4 x 800 earlier that gave took a final shot at that record; teaming with them were Laura Goodfriend and Bridget Phillip, who together ran a season best 10:06.9. Karl had the best leg of 2:25.
Sr. Matt Herb grabbed a 5th place medal in the h.j. at 6'2". Scott Rennalls had a season best at the 800 in 2:04.1. In the girls 800 jr. Erin Miller had a best in 2:38.3 and fr. Lyndsay Schafer a 2:35.6. Fr. Mariah Christian dropped 7 seconds off her time in running 5:48 for the 1600; jr. Danielle Halikias ran a first-ever 5:54.
Ashley Tomasula vaulted to a place in the p.v. at 10'6", equaling her own school record.
Ingrid Nimoh ran a hand-timed 8.7 in the 55h, while sr. Alex Reyes got a p.r. at 8.9
The sprinters did well on the infield in the 55. Jr. Armani Blair and fr. Keturah Orji ran 7.3 hand times. Camille Inglese recorded a 7.7. Onto the track, personal bests in the 200 were scored by Armani Blair, 26.8; sr. Camille Inglese, 27.5; jr. Cory Colligan, 23.6; Juan Rios, 24.4; and, in the best showing, Keturah Orji broke the freshman girl school record with a 26.6 (26.84).

Shot Putters Have Field Day

The throwing portion of the indoor team took their talents to nearby Randolph for the Randolph Shot Put Invitaional on Jan. 26. The group came away with no fewer than 10 p.r.'s under the direction of Coach Ondilla. Frosh Andrew Kraemer and Andrew DeVenezia and soph Jay Shah had the biggest improvements. Kraemer, the county frosh champ, improved on his best of 41' 6.5" with the 4k ball to 43'5" and medaled. DeVenezia went from 32'9" to 34'6". Shah threw the 12 pounder 37' 2.5", up from his previous 35'4". On the boys' side, other p.r.'s were scored by sr. Luke Bippus, 33'7"; soph Andrea DeCarlo, 26'5.25"; sr. Matt Deptula, 38'1"; and fr. Kevin Harrington, 30'4.25". For the girls, new bests were achieved by jr. Nicole Dei, 26'; sr. Alissa Hoffman, 31' 1.75"; and jr. Jessica Scairpone, 26'4". Two other girls, jr. Laura Kubicki and jr. Kerry Quinn, were within 6" of their p.r.'s. All in all, a great night out of shot putting.

Frosh/Novice Meet at Armory

The younger runners took a trip to the Big Apple on 1/31 to experience the banked turns of the famous 168th Street mondo surface oval. Freshman Katurah Orji came away with two medals and one class record. First, she placed third in the 55 dash in 7.7 and led teammate Suzie Nimoh in the same event to a 4th place finish in 7.8. Next, she won the seeded heat in 27.2 to break the freshman school record held by Armani Blair.
Also among the 9th graders, the girls 4 x 800 team had an exciting 3rd place finish. Mariah Christian, Erin Schafer, Sara Christian, and Lindsay Schafer raced to a 10:49 clocking to take bronze medals.
Danielle Halikias placed 2nd in the Novice girls 800 in 2:37.3. The varsity girls distance medley took 12th with their best time of the season in 13:27.8. The team was composed of soph Marissa Karl (3:58 1200), frosh Alicia Warren (400), and juniors Sam Tavalare (800) and Steph Smith (1600).

BIG PERFORMANCES IN BIG MEETS

At the Morris County Championships on 1/19, the girls squad placed 5th overall with 24 points, their best finish since 2001. The highest placing medalist was junor Ashley Tomasula, who took silver in the pole vault at 10' 6", the 12th best vault in N.J. Classmate Ingrid Nimoh had a breakthrough evening in the hurdles, first smashing her p.r. of 9.28 by running 8.81 to qualify for the finals. She then took 3rd in the finals in 8.75, currently the 21st fastest time in the state. The 4 x 400 team also took 3rd in 4:17.36 with Nimoh anchoring; the opening 3 legs were handled by Sam Tavalare, Marissa Karl, and Alicia Warren. Karl also had a huge p.r. in the 1000m where she took 4th. She improved 6 seconds to 3:09.09, 9th best time in N.J. and one of the fastest M.O. times ever run.
The boys team finished 12th overall with 10.75 pts. The big event for the men was the h.j.: Matt Herb took 3rd with a 6' leap. First-year man Kifton Vanemon tied for 5th at 5'4". Scott Rennalls took 4th in the 1000 in 2:42.68, a season best.
Earlier in the week at the Freshmen/Sophomore County Championships the frosh girls took 5th with 21 pts. while the soph boys took 5th with 19. There were several gold medal achievements. First, Matt Kraemer won the 9th grade shot, throwing the 4k ball 41' 6.5". The frosh 4 x 400 were victorious in 4:40.23 with a team of Suzie Nimoh, Katurah Orji, Lindsay Schafer, and Alicia Warren. The soph boys were also winners with the team of Mike Eppel, Justin Bakelmun, Gennaro Ruggiero, and Anthony Talanca in 3:52.07. Bronze medals were won by Talanca in the soph boys 600m (1:33.92) and Orji in the fr. girls 55 (7.90). Nimoh picked up two more medals in the fr. 55 (5th--8.12) and fr. 300 (5th--46.99). Eppel took a 5th in the soph 300 in 39.86, and Warren a 6th in the fr. 300 (47.04) and Phil Demeo a 6th in the soph soph shot (37' 1.5").

Championships Under Way

The Championship schedule opened up on Jan. 3 for the Marauders with the County Relays and continued with the State Relays on Jan. 15.
On 1/3 the girls placed 6th as a team, their best showing since 2004 when they also placed 6th. Three outstanding bronze medal efforts highlighted the lady varsity effort. First up was the 4 x 200 team of Armani Blair, Camille Inglese, Katurah Orji, and Ingrid Nimoh (1:53.74). The sprint med showed its quality again when Blair and Nimoh ran their second 200's of the evening and joined Sam Tavalare (400) and Marissa Karl (800) to record a 4:27.48, slightly better than their earlier season time. Icing it off were Nimoh, Tavalare, and Karl joined by Alicia Warren in the 4 x 400 for the last medals of the night.
The younger girls wanted to show their older sisters some stuff, so they ran and threw to medals in the JV 4 x 400--1st! (S. Nimoh, Warren, Courtney Hart & Gentrix Shanga); the JV 4 x 800--3rd--with Meisel, Ashley Torres, Erin Schafer & Mariah Christian; and 4th in the JV Shot with Manjarres and Kerry Quinn.
In the boys varsity the top team was the high jump. Matt Herb had the best jump of the evening and teamed with Kifton Vanemon to take 2nd. The sprint med kept pace with the girls by taking third--jr. Dan Baules & Cory Colligan handled the first two legs before handing off to Eppel and Rennals to bring it home. In the distance med, sr. Steve Wagner, sophs Mike Gonzalez and Anthony Talanca handed off to sr. anchor Zach Miller to take 6th.
In J.V. action, the putters of Matt Kraemer and Jay Shah took 3rd place.
At the Group 3 State Relays, the exciting MO girls sprint medley team showed their mettle by taking 3rd place medals. Sam Tavalare (1:03), Armani Blair (27.), Katurah Orji (27.) and Marissa Karl (2:26.) recorded a new school mark in the event: 4:25.11. Next best was the 4 x 200 team who scored 10th with a 1:53.41 (Blair, Inglese, Orji, I. Nimoh). The 4 x 400 team of Tavalare, Karl, Warren, and Nimoh was 11th.
For the boys, Matt Herb and Kifton Vanemon teamed up again to nab 6th place in the high jump. The most exciting action of the track for the Marauders was the sprint medley. Scott Rennalls reeled in every team in front of him and outleaned West Milford and Shawnee for the win in the 3rd section, one in front of the seeded heat. The first three legs were handled by Anthony Talanca, Cory Colligan, and Mike Eppel. Their time of 3:54.1 placed 8th overall.
Finally, the 4 x 200 squad of Cory Colligan, Justin Bakelmun, Dan Baules, and Juan Rios ran their best time of the season at 1:41.29.

New Year News

The end of the 2010 and the start of 2011 have yielded a bumper crop of 51 medals in Invitational competition for the boys and girls indoor track and field teams.

Of special note is a new school record in the girls pole vault by junior Ashley Tomasula. At the Valentine meet on 1/14, Ashley broke her own school record in placing 2nd at 10'6". With many meets to go, this record will not stand long.

In a different jump event, senior Matt Herb has been on a tear in his specialty, the high jump. At the Racine meet on 12/29, he hit a p.r. of 6'2", and then hit it again at the Back meet on 1/7, taking the gold.

Junior Scott Rennalls has been the best performer on the track for the boys, with two silvers in the Racine and Back competitions, one at 800m (2:06.12) and the other at 1000m (2:43.27). He also teamed with jr. Mike Gonzalez and sophs Anthony Talanca & Mike Eppel for medals in the 4 x 400 at the Racine meet.

Various varsity have been tuning up for the championships in their specialties. At the Racine event, the girls quartet of jrs. Sam Tavalare & Ingrid Nimoh, soph Marissa Karl, and fr. Alicia Warren won an exciting 4 x 400 in 4:20.88. Earlier, Tavalare, Nimoh, and Karl teamed with jr. Armani Blair to take bronze in the sprint med at 4:28.90. Individually, Karl has thrown her name into the hat for the County meet with a 3rd in the 1000m at 3:15.33 (3rd at the Back meet). At the same comp, Nimoh took 5th in the 55H, while Blair took 6th in the 55. Armani had also taken a 4th in the 55 at the Racine meet.

Individuall, the boys did well at the Back meet with Dan Maya taking 5th in the 55 and Zach Miller 6th in the 1600. Though not medalling, many Marauders have been breaking their p.r.'s steadily throughout the season.

The underclassmen have absolutely shone throughout the season. At the Racine meet, the following scored: Matt Kraemer (2nd--fr. shot); Kerry Quinn (2nd--J.V. shot); Lindsay Schafer (2nd--Nov. 800); 4ths for Mike Eppel (JV 55), Heather Palanchi (JV 55); Nicole Dei (JV Shot). 5ths for Billy Behre (Fr. shot) and Shayla Holloway (JV 55) and 6ths for Luke DeVenezia (Fr. shot), Kelly Sagi (JV 55) and Amanda Meisel (JV 800).

At the Cliff Back meet: 1sts--L. Schafer (JV 1000) and Suzie Nimoh (JV 55); 2nd--G. Ruggiero (JV 600); 3rds--Laura Kubicki (JV Shot) & Nimoh (JV 300); 4ths--Steve Kubicki (Fr. 1600), Eppel (JV 55), Warren (JV 300); 6ths--Sean Gallagher (Fr. 1600) & Aimee Manjarres (JV Shot).

At the Valentine Meet: 1sts--Gennaro Ruggiero (VJ 600), Jay Shah (JV Shot), Kraemer (Fr. Shot); 4ths--Jon Damus (JV 55), DeVenzia (Fr. Shot); and 5ths--Sagi (JV 300) & Jessica Scairpone (JV Shot).