N.J. CATHOLUIC TRACK CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIPS CHALLENGES RUNNERS
After winning state Prep title, x-country team finishes third in NJCTC meet

Nov. 11, 2008

Coach Marty Hannon, along with assistants Chelule Ngetich and Ed Thornton, were very surprised when the XC team took home the State Prep title once again.

"I hope the guys on the team can appreciate what a great accomplishment it was to win State Preps for the 4th year in a row," said Hannon, "I also wish that they get a great deal of satisfaction from their achievement - and that it translates to the hard times when the workouts are difficult. My hope is that they will ask how they can go the next step."

Coming off the state Prep meet, the biggest race of the year for the St. Benedict's, the runners very faced with another challenge in last Saturday's New Jersey Catholic Track Conference Championships, which was held at Warinanco Park.

Driving into the park the runners all thought the conditions were perfect with temperatures in the mid 60s and a little rain to keep everyone cool. Unfortunately, the NJSIAA sectionals were held that morning and hundreds of runners had already run on the course before the Catholic Conferences even began. As the team did their warm up and saw the course close at hand they knew it was going to be a challenge. Mud and puddles of rain covered the course and made the 5k run a challenge. It was very difficult for runners to gain any traction on the ground and they saw many runners, including some at the front, fall in the slippery conditions.

The St. Benedict's runners competed in two races Saturday. The first was held with four of our runners in the freshman race. Dante Bennett ran great in a time of 15:40 on the 2.25 mile course. Kolonji Foster, 71st, also ran well coming in right behind Dante, who placed 66th. Other runners in the frosh race were Kenyon Wright, 95th, and Kendall Kirkland, 103rd, who are both improving and looking to the winter track season to show the sprinter side of them. The winter track season officially begins on November 15th and the young guns on the team should help tremendously with the many goals they wish to achieve.

Despite the conditions, the varsity team ran very well and placed 3rd in the Boys A Division. Freshman Jared Mason placed 27th overall and came in at a time of 18:22. He was followed by Daniel Gaspar, 38th; Garland Miller, 50th; and Sergio Wilcher, 65th. The other varsity runners in this race were John Joseph and Mikolaj Mika who both ran great regardless of the less than favorable circumstances.

"The team has continued to show improvement and strength as the season comes to an end. We have much to look forward to in the final meet of the XC season as well as the upcoming winter track season," said coach Thornton.

The Footlocker Eastern Regionals will take place at Van Cortland Park in The Bronx on November 29th and will be the final test for our cross-country runners this year.

When asked about the Cross Country team's future Coach Marty Hannon said, "These kids have a lot of promise. My hope and prayer for them is that they know that talent is half of the battle. The other half is the desire to put in the effort to become the great team that they can be."

--By Ed Thornton

GRAY BEES X-COUNTRY TEAM WINS FOURTH STRAIGHT PREP TITLE

St. Benedict's cross country team was supposed to have a down year after seeing Brandon Jarrett graduate and move on to Harvard.

Though the Gray Bees lost their All-American, they didn't lose their moxie.

Spurred on once again by a strong underclass effort, coupled with a superb effort from one of their senior leaders in Matt Jensen, St. Benedict's won its fourth successive state Prep A championship on Wednesday at Blair Academy.

St. Benedict's, which had four runners in the top 16, scored a 60-71 victory over runner-up Peddie. Pingry finished third with 72 points, while the host school placed fourth with 82 points.

"The team running in a pack was key," said Jensen. "I wasn't expecting to go out so fast (5:06 first mile), but I felt good and continued the pace."

Jensen led the charge for the Gray Bees by placing fourth overall in a time of 17:12.59. Jared Mason, who spent most of the season completing an undefeated campaign in freshman races, showed he is ready to take the next step. The sensational freshman placed seventh in 17:30.05, five spots ahead of Garland Miller, who ran a 17:59.14. Mason ran his personal best (16:45) in a 5K race last weekend in the Essex County Championships when St. Benedict's placed ninth in the team standings, despite missing a couple key runners.

Daniel Gaspar placed 16th in the Prep championship effort in a time of 17:59.14, while Sergio Wilcher, who missed the county championships with an injured ankle, rounded out the top five for St. Benedict's with an 18:10.02 showing. Joshua Ajamu and Mikolaj Mika also competed in the event, posting times of 19:18.27 and 19:59.18, respectively.

"I did not expect us to win. I felt shocked and surprised," Mason said. "I felt tired throughout the race and didn't think I could hold on. But I thought about winning it for the school and kept at it."

RUNNERS REACHING THE HOME STRETCH WITH EYE ON THE FUTURE

Oct. 18, 2008

The Cross Country team traveled up to Providence, R.I. this past weekend for the prestigious Brown University Invitational and the freshmen continue to show the future is extremely bright for St. Benedict's.

The freshman ran in a 2.25 mile race nice and early at 9:45 a.m. in very cool temperatures. Jared Mason led the pack and ran alone for the majority of the race, taking 1st place in a time of 13:32.8. Sergio Wilcher and Daniel Gaspar followed Mason, taking fourth and 27th place, respectively. The other freshmen running in this race were Kolonji Foster and Kenyon Wright, who both finished strong giving the frosh team eight place out of 21 teams in their last freshman race of the season.

The freshmen show a lot of "promise for the future," explained coach Marty Hannon. But so do the sophomores and juniors on the team. The talent of Garland Miller and Jason Presley (sophomores), and Joshua Ajamu and John Joseph (juniors), give this team a lot of potential to be a powerhouse in the upcoming years. The team must continue to work hard if they wish to succeed at the level they are capable of. The ability the team currently has promises a very good indoor and outdoor track season as well.

"I have a lot of hope for this team for the future," says Hannon, "but we must all work for it... There are no guarantees."

The varsity guys also ran very well in Rhode Island, despite not having a full five runners to count as a team. Miller ran a great race with a time of 17:14.9. Ajamu (18:14.5) and Joseph (18:47.1) both ran extremely well, getting personal records in their 5k race. Ajamu ran this race last year and improved his time by over 40 seconds. He has progressed tremendously over the duration of this season.

With the year entering "Championship Season," the Cross Country team is looking to continue their strong legacy of past years. The freshmen have been running well and will now join the varsity for the reminder of the meet. Mason, in particular, has had an outstanding season and is undefeated in all freshman races, including multiple large races such as the Manhattan College Invitational, the Shore Coaches Invitational and the Brown Invitational. "If Mason continues to work hard, he could be one of the best distance/middle distance runners in the state some day," said Hannon. "We are also seeing talent from freshmen Sergio Wilcher and Daniel Gaspar, who continuously put up strong times to help the team."

The Essex County Championships are coming up on Oct. 31, followed by State Prep Championships on Nov. 5 before the Catholic Conference Championships are staged on Nov. 8. If the team continues to work hard and stay focused through the following weeks, they can do very well in the remaining meets.

--By Ed Thornton

Click here for Cross Country News from the 2007 season.