13 Track Stars Ready For State Finals This Weekend

Last week, the Cougars competed in the state sectional track meet in South Plainfield and the results were impressive.

Eight girls made it on to the next round by finishing in the top six, while five boys advanced. That total of 13 will be in action in this weekend's group championships held in Egg Harbor Township.

Notre Dame-bound senior Kelly Burke will lead the contingent, one week after she broke two state sectional records and her county record in the pole vault by clearing 12-7 on her third attempt. She only took one attempt in the triple jump competition because of a turf toe injury and broke the sectional record as well, jumping in 39-4, beating the second-place finisher by more than four feet.

"It was good to get over 12-7 again, it reinforces the fact that it wasn't a fluke, that I actually got over it with my skill and my form is getting better," said Burke. "But my foot has really been bothering me. I have turf toe, so the fact that I was able to do that on one jump at triple jump and then at pole vault is pretty good."

"I hate that her high school career is coming to an end," said Cranford track coach Peter Kane, who runs the program along with John Schiano. "It feels like it's gone so fast. Next Thursday is the Meet of Champions and that's the end of her high school scholastic career. We go to Nationals in North Carolina at the end of June. We're chasing after a Meet of Champions title."

There were other standouts last week who will look to make their presence felt this weekend. Senior Will Smith won the mile to make him state sectional champion with a final time of 4:27. Senior Errol Petgrave will continue on thanks to a sixth-place finish in the discus last weekend. Natalie Englese has returned from injury in fine form, winning the 400 and the 200.

"I know that Will Smith has a very good shot at winning the group state championship at the mile. The seeds are out, times are posted, and he's a few seconds away. I think if he gets himself into the right mindset for that race that's he's got a real shot at winning that thing. Jeff Sun in the 800 took third last week with a PR, and he also has a shot at moving on."

The boys' team will send out a new addition this year when the 4 X 8 team takes center stage. It will hopefully be a prep race for the Meet of Champions, which is adding the race for the first time. The boys are three spots away from making it.

There is a team championship for the group meet. The girls' team, which finished second to Camden last year, will need to edge Delsea and Bernards, two of the tougher teams.

"You have to get a little lucky and you have to be good to win it," said Kane. "We have the ability to win certain events. If Kelly and Natalie can come through with big wins, then we have a real shot at winning it."

Freshman Bryanna Grant is the only other person besides Burke to qualify for the group championship in all four events she entered: the hurdles, high jump, triple jump and pole vault.

The young talent is stepping up and it bodes well for the future of the program.

"This has to be the best girls' team I've had," said Kane. "We have depth. You saw that in the county. It was all the new names. I have a lot of sophomores competing. We hear their names all the time. Rebecca Shiminoff, Megan Schetelich, Kate Evans, Devon Cacchione, Cara Costa. All these girls are new, they're all sophomores. They're learning and getting better every week."