Ridge Cross Country Ends Season At Meet Of Champions

BASKING RIDGE, NJ — On a beautiful fall Saturday, at Holmdel Park, the Ridge Cross Country team finished its season competing against New Jersey’s best runners at the Meet of Champions.

The previous week at the Group 4 State Championship, also held at Holmdel Park, the boys team qualified as a 10th-place wild card team and sophomore Rachel Biondo qualified as an individual during the girl’s race.

At Groups, Brenden McMahon finished in 15:41 and placed 4th – missing 3rd place by .015 seconds- earning him the second-fastest time at Holmdel in Ridge history. Dev Patel had a 44-second course PR with a 16th place finish, and Rachel ran a 20:07, also a personal best at Holmdel.

Representing Ridge at the Meet of Champions were junior captain Brenden McMahon, who placed 10th, and senior captains Dmitri Cole, 55th, and Dev Patel, 72nd.

Also racing were seniors Matthew Fukushima, who returned from an injury and placed 126th, and Justin Breivogal, 143rd. Junior Kaleb Huang, 138th and Sophomore Max Neumann, who finished in 157th place, rounded out the top 7.

Brenden McMahon’s 10th-place finish makes him the 3rd runner in Ridge history to individually medal at the Meet of Champions. Ridge as a team placed 11th overall.

In the girl’s race, Rachel placed 78th out of 160, ending her impressive cross-country season as a sophomore.

In two weeks, Brenden McMahon will race at Nike Cross Regionals Northeast at Bowdoin Park, Wappingers Falls, NY.

— Written by Brenden McMahon