Track Stars Shine at Nationals, Named All-American

Thanks to outstanding performances this past weekend at the Nike Indoor Nationals in Boston, the town of Cranford has two high school All-Americans to call their own.

Senior Kelly Burke and junior Natalie Englese needed to finish in the top six in their respective events to receive high school track's highest honor. It started when Burke finished second in the triple jump at 39'6.5", a personal best and a Union County record.

"Kelly has worked very hard throughout her high school career to achieve what she has achieved," said Cranford head coach Peter Kane. "Her jump of 39'6.5" is the fourth best indoor jump ever in New Jersey. She deserves every award she earns because of her work ethic and dedication. I'm very proud of her and very happy she's on our team."

"This weekend was really exciting," said Burke, who will be headed to the University of Notre Dame to continue her career. "This was the first time we've ever gone to Boston for Nationals. Usually we go to New York. It was great. I got to compete in a team event, shuttle hurdles, and then I got to do triple jump and pole vault. I went into triple jump not expecting to get into the finals. My first jump in finals, I ended up moving from fourth to second. It's just the best feeling ever. In pole vault I ended up with a personal-best by two inches from my indoor season and I ended up getting seventh. It was a really great end to my last indoor season."

Meanwhile, Englese finished third in the 400-meter with a time of 55.95, eclipsing her all-time best effort while smashing the Union County mark as well.

"Natalie has pushed herself to be able to compete at a very elite level," Kane said. "After the Meet of Champions and the Nike National meet, she knows that she can run with anyone. I'm looking forward to seeing her train and progress throughout the spring season. I don't believe there is any record that is safe from her."

"This was an awesome weekend," Englese said. "Going into the 400 as a top-eight, I made the finals, I had the eighth position, so I just gave everything I had and luckily I came out with a medal and became All-American. It was really exciting. I looked over to my coach and he was holding up number three. I was shocked. I couldn't believe I got third."

Both athletes always wanted to achieve All-American status, and they knew it would take a tremendous amount of hard work to get to stand on the national podium.

"I definitely reached my goals," said Burke. "All-American was definitely a goal of mine. The fact that I got past sixth for anything was just amazing. That I got second in triple jump was one of the most amazing feelings ever."

"I set high goals for myself," Englese said. "We wrote on a piece of paper things we wanted to accomplish. I couldn't ask for a better ending. This is such a great year with the Meet of Champions and now Nationals. It's still so unreal. I'm so happy and I hope it carries on to the spring season."

All in all, it was an amazing weekend for Kane and his staff, who headed to Beantown with six student-athletes ready to compete. Others who qualified for the Nationals were the Shuttle Hurdle Relay team of sophomores Rebecca Shiminov and Gillian Burke, freshman Bryanna Grant and Kelly Burke. They took 11th in a time of 37.21.

"The kids and coaching staff were very focused and excited for the entire weekend," said Kane. "We had a great time preparing for the competition and the kids stepped up and performed on the biggest stage in the nation. To have these results gets everyone very excited for the outdoor season ahead. We are very proud of the girls."