More Than 600 Race in 12th Annual Hillsborough Hop

The Hillsborough branch of the saw its strongest turnout at the 12th annual Hillsborough Hop 5K road race on Saturday with approximately 615 registered runners.

Hillsborough Mayor Suraci started the race, which began at 8 a.m. at the Hillsborough YMCA, that wound through local roads and ended at the

Proceeds from the event go to the Y’s Strong Kids fund, ensuring all community residents have access to programs that help them live healthier lives.

The top finisher in the race was Joseph Spaniol, 16, who runs track for , with a time of 17.56.71 minutes.

The top three male and female finishers were Spaniol, Jay Coleman, 16, and Brendan Crowley, 16, both of Hillsborough, Lyndsay McMeen, 33, of Morristown, Mary Dombrowsi, 17, of Hillsborough, and Stephanie Mauer, 14, of Franklin.

Prizes were also awarded in age categories ranging from 8-and-under, to ages 70-74. One of the most popular categories is the parent-child, with 48 teams participating this year. That event was won by Hillsborough resident Traci Kinst, 42, and her son Jack, 13.

“This year is one of our biggest,” said Adele Morgan, a Y swim coach and the registration coordinator for the event. “This is a race that families can run together and I think that is why it’s so popular. We offer a wide variety of age groups and are one of the few races that have an eight and under category. We are pleased to be able to host this great community event every year.”

New this year was a contest awarding a trophy to the Hillsborough school with the highest percentage of participants in the race. Claiming the first “The Hoppy” trophy was the , which fielded 65 runners. The trophy will be awarded to the school next week.

The contest aims to improve the health and wellness of kids and encourage them to get fit through running.

“It is great to see our students participating in a community event that stresses the importance of a healthy lifestyle,” Schools Superintendent Jorden Schiff said.

There were more than 100 volunteers, including Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Hillsborough High School honor students and YMCA members.

Last year, Strong Kids funds allowed the Y to provide $260,000 in financial assistance to more than 800 community members, offering reduced-price memberships, child care, camp and other programs to families, children and seniors, offsetting their limited incomes.

Full race results will be available here.