Winter Track: North Plainfield wins first sectional title

The North Plainfield High School boys winter track team received quite the surprise on Friday at the NJSIAA North 2 Group II meet on Friday.

Heading into the 55 meter dash finals, the Canucks learned they were winning. 

"One of the kids came up and said we’re winning and we sprinted over to the results board and saw we were winning by three points," North Plainfield coach Cara Colabelli said. "So we started doing the math and what other events we needed to win and if we didn’t get second in the 4x4 we would lose by one point."

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Colabelli, who is in her first year as head coach, said her team's main goal for the meet was to make it through to the Group Championships, which are Feb. 16. Winning was a completely unexpected, but welcome, bonus. 

Daniel Duncan, Smith, Edgardo Villafane and Quinn Gilmore ran the 4x400 in 3:33.09, coming in second to West Side, which finished in 3:31.91. That second place finish was enough to give North Plainfield its first sectional title in program history, 57-56 over West Side. 

"Myself and my assistant coaches were almost crying, we were running around in circles in the Bennett Center like we were the kids," Colabelli said. "It’s exciting when you’ve never done it before, especially when you didn’t expect it until midway through the meet and it’s come down to one event. We ran a 3:33, and the best time we had run all season was a 3:38, so I knew we had to shave five or six seconds off to come in second and those kids ran the race of their life."

Villafane won the 400 meter dash in 51.09 and Duncan placed fourth in 52.63. Duncan came in second in the 55 meter dash in 6.68, Villafane was fourth in 6.71 and Brandon Smith finished fifth (6.74). 

In the 55 meter hurdles Brandon Smith finished third in 7.93 and Rey Fowler was sixth in 8.20. Fowler also placed second in the high jump, clearing 5-feet, 8-inches. Trevor Sullivan placed third in the shot put with a throw of 46-4.50. 

"It felt good, it’s still kind of crazy but it says that all the hard work that we put in this winter paid off," Ryan Smith said of the win.

North Plainfield has been working hard all season, and started the season with wins at the Demarest and Merli Invitationals. From there, Colabelli said times have been coming down more and more as the season has progressed. 

"I think it just means finally our program is on the upswing and the boys, they come to practice every day and they work so hard," Colabelli said. "All season we’ve been seeing success we haven’t seen before. We’re in a tough conference, so it’s good to see the hard work paying off."

While Groups are up next, Ryan Smith and the rest of the team have their sights set on the Meet of Champions. The Canucks will look to build on their sectional title and go even further. 

"The team was more focused and we were ready to work hard this year," Smith said. "From talking to people from over the summer, we all have one goal which is to make it to the MOC and perform well there."

Record-setting day for Governor Livingston's Vanriele

Governor Livingston sophomore Victoria Vanriele had a record-setting day on Friday in the North 2 Group II sectional meet. 

Vanriele won the 800 meter run in 2:10.27, which was the No. 1 time in New Jersey so far this year, as well the No. 2 time in the country. She also set the new North 2 Group II sectional meet record, the overall sectional meet record and the Bennett Center record. 

Neptune graduate and 2016 Olympian Ajeé Wilson set the venue record of 2:10.45 in 2009. The overall sectional record was 2:13.07 set by Southern's Jillian Smith, and the North 2 Group II sectional record was 2:18.23 set by Summit's Katie Wilson in 2011. 

Governor Livingston placed second with 57 points, behind West Essex which won the meet with 74 points. 

Strong showing for Voorhees

Chris Romero won two races as the Voorhees boys team placed third in North 2 Group II with 36 points. Romero won the 1600 meter run in 4:15.86 and the 3200 meter run in 9:35. 

Lauren Wagner won the 1600 in 5:16.67 as the girls team placed third with 48 points. Nicole Cassavell placed first in the 3200 in 11:13.47 and Wagner was second in 11:24.94. 

Staff Writer Lauren Knego: lknego@gannettnj.com; on Twitter: @laurenknego

BOYS RESULTS

NORTH 2 GROUP II

TEAM SCORES: 1. North Plainfield 57; 2. West Side 56; 3. Voorhees 36; 4. Bernards 33; 5. Snyder 22; 6. Ridgefield Park 19; 7. Fort Lee 14; 7. Governor Livingston 14; 9. Hillside 11; 9. West Essex 11; 11. Parsippany Hills 10; 12. Central 9; 13. Hanover Park 8; 14. Madison 4; 14. Caldwell 4; 16. Garfield 2. 

55 METER DASH: 1. Isaiah Green (West Side) 6.67; 2. Daniel Duncan (North Plainfield) 6.68; 3. Cameron Shaw (Ridgefield Park) 6.69; 4. Edgardo Villafane (North Plainfield) 6.71; 5. Brandon Smith (North Plainfield) 6.74; 6. Nathaniel Erickson (Madison) 6.77. 

400 METER DASH: 1. Edgardo Villafane (North Plainfield) 51.09; 2. Jarrett Gentles (West Side) 52.10; 3. Jakai Coker (West Side) 52.28; 4. Daniel Duncan (North Plainfield) 52.63; 5. Pape Yanka (Central) 53.08; 6. Denilson Vincent (Hillside) 54.41.

800 METER RUN: 1. Stuart Gruters (Bernards) 2:02.45; 2. Maxwell Page (Voorhees) 2:02.60; 3. Pape Yanka (Central) 2:03.74; 4. Jarrett Gentles (West Side) 2:03.78; 5. Israel Torres (Garfield) 2:04.75; 6. Nico Rosamilia (West Essex) 2:04.78. 

1600 METER RUN: 1. Chris Romero (Voorhees) 4:25.86; 2. Benedictus Bago (Snyder) 4:32.04; 3. Stuart Gruters (Bernards) 4:35.24; 4. Ryder Morrello (West Essex) 4:38.28; 5. Justin Hayden (Caldwell) 4:40.04; 6. Daniel McConnell (Voorhees) 4:40.99. 

3200 METER RUN: 1. Chris Romero (Voorhees) 9:35; 2. Benedictus Bago (Snyder) 9:55.42; 3. Ryder Morrello (West Essex) 10:05.19; 4. Alex Aranas (Gov. Livingston) 10:13.89; 5. Justin Hayden (Caldwell) 10:15.69; 6. Dylan Fritz (Voorhees) 10:16.64. 

55 METER HURDLES: 1. Isaiah Greene (West Side) 7.60; 2. Doug Ladzinski (Gov. Livingston) 7.76; 3. Brandon Smith (North Plainfield) 7.93; 4. Jack Memoli (Voorhees) 7.95; 5. Tiyaun Evans (West Side) 8.05; 6. Rey Fowler (North Plainfield) 8.20. 

4x400 METER RELAY: 1. West Side (Jimlee James, Jakai Coker, Jarrett Gentles, Samuel Colon III) 3:31.91; 2. North Plainfield 3:33.09; 3. Snyder 3:36.33; 4. Fort Lee 3:37.45; 5. Bernards 3:37.73; 6. Madison 3:41.06. 

HIGH JUMP: 1. Emanuel Montoya (Fort Lee) 6-2; 2. Rey Fowler (North Plainfield) 5-8; 3. James Louis (Hillside) 5-6; 4. Kizmar Dukes (Hillside) 5-6; 5. Darren DelDuca (Gov. Livingston) 5-6; 6. Jarrett Gentles (West Side) 5-4. 

POLE VAULT: 1. Mitchell Buteau (Bernards) 13-0; 2. Robert Escarret (Ridgefield Park) 12-6; 3. Nicholas Re (Bernards) 11-0; 3. Alphonso Lawrence (West Side) 11-0; 5. Chase Dreitlein (Madison) 9-6; 6. Liam Orth (Ridgefield Park) 9-6. 

SHOT PUT: 1. Justin Gurth (Parsippany) 53-11.75; 2. Matthew James (Hanover Park) 48-3; 3. Trevor Sullivan (North Plainfield) 46-4.50; 4. Chris Bouchard (Ridgefield Park) 42-2.25; 5. Ryan Bourdeau (Voorhees) 41-3.50; 6. Mohammed Kamara (Central) 39-3. 

NORTH 2 GROUP III

TEAM SCORES: 1. Mendham 62; 2. Chatham 53; 3. Middletown North 34; 4. Woodbridge 31; 5. Scotch Plains-Fanwood 27; 6. Cranford 19; 7. Summit 18; 7. Middletown South 18; 9. Ferris 17; 10. Irvington 15; 11. Colonia 9; 12. West Morris 6; 13. Somerville 1. 

55 METER DASH: 1. Ivan Daniels (Ferris) 6.69; 2. Nelson Wyatt (Colonia) 6.70; 3. Dwight Henry (Irvington) 6.71; 4. Joshua Cadet (Cranford) 6.79; 5. Jacob Leigh (Scotch Plains-Fanwood) 6.80; 6. Ayomide Oyewole (Colonia) 6.81. 

400 METER DASH: 1. Frankie Marrone (Middletown North) 51.46; 2. Jack Bunting (Summit) 52.24; 3. Brandon Laraque (Woodbridge) 52.49; 4. Colin Hall (Mendham) 52.88; 5. Michael Veltz (Irvington) 53.40; 6. Joshua Cadet (Cranford) 53.43. 

800 METER RUN: 1. Steven Payne (Woodbridge) 2:00.12; 2. Colin Hall (Mendam) 2:01.24; 3. Clardo Nestor (Ferris) 2:01.25; 4. Jacob Pantoya (Summit) 2:01.93; 5. Liam Cadden (Chatham) 2:02.69; 6. Desmond Marfo (Irvington) 2:02.94. 

1600 METER RUN: 1. Jack Stanley (Mendham) 4:25.34; 2. Colin Logsdon (Chatham) 4:26.27; 3. Val Figueira (Mendham) 4:27.93; 4. Brandon Garcia (Scotch Plains-Fanwood) 4:30.23; 5. Liam Cadden (Chatham) 4:31.24; 6. Alex Williams (Chatham) 4:31.24. 

3200 METER RUN: 1. Jack Stanley (Mendham) 9:32.29; 2. Colin Logsdon (Chatham) 9:34.49; 3. Jack Jennings (Mendham) 9:36.72; 4. Matt Lepine (Middletown South) 9:37.43; 5. Bo Raadam (Chatham) 9:38.13; 6. John McGovern (Somerville) 9:38.58. 

55 METER HURDLES: 1. Josiah Cadet (Cranford) 7.68; 2. Kyle Estivene (Scotch Plains-Fanwood) 7.70; 3. Hans Gallagher (Mendham) 8.04; 4. Dwight Henry (Irvington) 8.06; 5. Dhvanil Nanshah (Scotch Plains-Fanwood) 8.14; 6. Kristian Roos (Chatham) 8.21. 

4x400 METER RELAY: 1. Scotch Plains-Fanwood (Jacob Leigh, Justin Sanders, Kyle Estivene, Max Toll) 3:23.23; 2. Middletown North 3:33.49; 3. Woodbridge 3:34.16; 4. Mendham 3:34.72; 5. Irvington 3:34.78; 6. Ferris 3:36.18. 

HIGH JUMP: 1. Mark Anselmi (Middletown South) 6-5; 2. Thomas Walsh (Chatham) 6-0; 3. Dorian Jackson (Summit) 5-10; 4. Jonathan Scamardella (Middletown South) 5-10; 5. Brian Dorobis (Middletown North) 5-10; 6. Jacob  Leigh (Scotch Plains-Fanwood) 5-8. 

POLE VAULT: 1. Julian deKeyzer (Chatham) 11-0; 2. Collin Testa (Mendham) 11-0; 3. Jesus Rodriguez (Middletown North) 10-6; 4. Mark Lynch (Cranford) 10-6; 5. Justin Liu (Middletown North) 10-0; 6. Phillip Wu (Chatham) 10-0. 

SHOT PUT: 1. Sam Dennerlein (Chatham) 46-10.25; 2. Amir Mustafa (Woodbridge) 46-8; 3. David Huizenga (West Morris) 46-5.50; 4. Eamonn Flynn (Middletown North) 41-10.25; 5. Salvatore Salesi (Middletown North) 41-7.25; 6. Christopher Solivan (Woodbridge) 40-6. 

GIRLS RESULTS

NORTH 2 GROUP II

TEAM SCORES: 1. West Essex 74; 2. Governor Livingston 57; 3. Voorhees 48; 4. Hanover Park 32; 5. Bernards 18; 6. Snyder 16; 7. North Star Academy 12; 8. Fort Lee 11; 9. West Side 10; 9. Parsippany 10; 11. Madison 9; 12. North Plainfield 4; 13. Ridgefield Park 3; 14. Hillside 2; 14. Parsippany Hills 2; 14. Caldwell 2. 

400 METER DASH: 1. Reanda Richards (West Essex) 57.23; 2. Alexia Perez (West Essex) 1:00.79; 3. Tiyauna Evans (West Side) 1:01.53; 4. Sophie Cresitello (Gov. Livingston) 1:01.69; 5. Vivian Onnembo (West Essex) 1:02.15; 6. Kristin Hardy (Parsippany) 1:02.40. 

800 METER RUN: 1. Victoria Vanriele (Gov. Livingston) 2:10.27; 2. Reanda Richards (West Essex) 2:19.27; 3. Kelsey Klein (Bernards) 2:19.56; 4. Alexia Perez (West Essex) 2:27.13; 5. Robin Collura (Caldwell) 2:28.33; 6. Kristin Hardy (Parsippany) 2:28.78. 

1600 METER RUN: 1. Lauren Wagner (Voorhees) 5:16.67; 2. Emma McGill (Voorhees) 5:21.45; 3. Grace Reynolds (Hanover Park) 5:25.76; 4. Caroline Mondelli (Gov. Livingston) 5:26.98; 5. Alexia Perez (West Essex) 5:35.52; 6. Erin Splaine (Gov. Livingston) 5:53.29. 

3200 METER RUN: 1. Nicole Cassavell (Voorhees) 11:13.47; 2. Lauren Wagner (Voorhees) 11:24.94; 3. Emily Sell (Voorhees) 11:43.93; 4. Caroline Mondelli (Gov. Livingston) 11:44.30; 5. Caroline McDowell (Bernards) 12:04.26; 6. Gillian Parrett (Madison) 12:29.61. 

55 METER HURDLES: 1. Reanda Richards (West Essex) 8.39; 2. Jenna Chan (West Essex) 8.73; 3. Olivia Shoshan (Parsippany) 8.74; 4. Sydney Muhando (North Plainfield) 8.94; 5. Nakiyah Whitner (Hillside) 8.96; 6. Eva Roberts (Hanover Park) 9.18. 

4x400 METER RELAY: 1. West Essex (Alexia Perez, Reanda Richards, Gabriela Karch, Vivian Onnembo) 4:06.08; 2. Gov. Livingston 4:08.41; 3. Snyder 4:19.73; 4. Parsippany 4:22.82; 5. West Side 4:23.81; 6. Fort Lee 4:24.49. 

HIGH JUMP: 1. Jessica Ripperger (Gov. Livingston) 5-0; 2. Lani Sabeh (Hanover Park) 4-10; 3. Kaylee Fayth Crisitello (Voorhees) 4-8; 4. Eliza Bruncaj (Hanover Park) 4-8; 5. Jada Carroll (Ridgefield Park) 4-8; 6. Julia Geiger (West Essex) 4-8. 

POLE VAULT: 1. Francesca Porambo (Bernards) 12-0; 2. Lauren Saifi (Gov. Livingston) 11-6; 3. Victoria Agaliotis (Hanover Park) 9-0; 4. Julia Geiger (West Essex) 8-6; 5. Hanna Nordstrom (Gov. Livingston) 8-0; 6. Fiona Cummings (Ridgefield Park) 7-6. 

SHOT PUT: 1. Alicia Campbell (Snyder) 32-7; 2. Anna Erickson (Madison) 32-5; 3. Alexa Saldida (Gov. Livingston) 31-2.25; 4. Zainab Olanipekun (Hanover Park) 30-0.25; 5. Zarria Brake (West Side) 30-0; 6. Gianna Tito (Hanover Park) 29-0. 

NORTH 2 GROUP III

TEAM SCORES: 1. Woodbridge 43; 2. Middletown North 40; 3. Middletown South 38; 4. Summit 36; 5. West Morris 28; 6. Millburn 20; 7. Mendham 19; 8. Cranford 15; 9. Orange 14; 10. J.F. Kennedy 13; 11. Scotch Plains-Fanwood 12; 12. Chatham 10; 12. Ferris 10; 14. Colonia 9; 15. Irvington 3. 

55 METER DASH: 1. Icisys Sadler (Summit) 7.47; 2. Aaliyah Corrica (Summit) 7.51; 3. Nyah Anderson (Woodbridge) 7.54; 4. Trinity Hart (Scotch Plains-Fanwood) 7.58; 5. Auslin Mills (J.F. Kennedy) 7.65; 6. Imani Rivers (Scotch Plains-Fanwood) 7.69.

400 METER DASH: 1. Trinity Eason (Woodbridge) 59.47; 2. Jendaya Williamson (West Morris) 59.55; 3. Kelli Molnar (Middletown North) 1:00.02; 4. Kaylah Davis (Woodbridge) 1:01.35; 5. Crystal Robinson (West Morris) 1:01.57; 6. Olayinka Ilelaboye (Colonia) 1:01.66. 

800 METER RUN: 1. Madison Brand (Middletown South) 2:19.30; 2. Trinity Eason (Woodbridge) 2:19.81; 3. Kelly Mehorter (Scotch Plains-Fanwood) 2:25.74; 4. Kaylah Davis (Woodbridge) 2:25.91; 5. Lindsay Aschmies (Cranford) 2:26.48; 6. Catherine Catipay (Woodbridge) 2:26.91. 

1600 METER RUN: 1. Madison Brand (Middletown South) 5:01.83; 2. Shelby Piccinic (Colonia) 5:07.10; 3. Julia Trethaway (West Morris) 5:18.80; 4. Lucy Jeffs (Mendham) 5:23.09; 5. Danielle Smith (Middletown South) 5:23.75; 6. Ella Chomiak (Mendham) 5:24.08.

4x400 METER RELAY: 1. Woodbridge (Kaylah Davis, Camryn Taylor, Catherine Catipay, Trinity Eason) 4:05.27; 2. Middletown North 4:10.63; 3. Mendham 4:13.19; 4. Chatham 4:15.31; 5. West Morris 4:16.84; 6. Scotch Plains-Fanwood 4:17.34. 

HIGH JUMP: 1. Jelisa Lovett (J.F. Kennedy) 5-2; 2. Darien Rinn (Middletown North) 5-2; 3. Emily Kanter (Millburn) 4-10; 4. Katelyn Reid (Middletown North) 4-10; 5. Lindsay Aschmies (Cranford) 4-8; 5. Sasha Knapp (Cranford) 4-8. 

POLE VAULT: 1. Hanna Capone (Cranford) 9-3; 2. Kate Repka (Millburn) 8-6; 3. Rachel Thornton (Millburn) 8-0; 4. Danielle Kearns (Middletown North) 8-0; 5. Madison Monath (Middletown North) 7-0; 6. Sadaf Manjara (J.F. Kennedy) 7-0.