Girls and Boys Race to Strong Season Finish

 The Livingston High School boys and girls cross country teams weaved in and out of the spectators yesterday at the State Group Championships in Holmdel Park. Wearing green warmups on their backs and looks of confidence on their faces, both squads looked poised to tackle the best Group IV high schools in New Jersey.

The girls were up first, and as the gun went off at 10:05 AM they took to a notoriously tough course made even more treacherous by constant rain.

After a grueling uphill climb off the start and a tight middle pack, sophomore Eloissa Cusi was the first Livingston runner to come down the final stretch.  She crossed the line going full steam and clocked in at 20:02 - good enough for 23rd overall.  

Nipping at Cusi's heels, though, was Senior Monica Kinsella, who finished 27th overall with a time of 20:17.

"We ran really well as a team," Kinsella said of Livingston's performance on the day.  "We always work well together.  There are no superstars on this team."

Senior Hallie Farber was quick to add that "we all take turns leading.  We're a family and we love each other.  When one of us has a bad day, someone steps up."

Keith Chaudruc is the coach of both the boys and the girls squads and he agreed that the team's efforts and goals are shared.

"The individual goals take care of themselves," he said after the race.  "I think a lot of our team's success is that they believe in one another.  They strive for team goals more than any individual goals."

The girls do know a thing or two about goals, too.  

"It's been a historic season," Coach Chaudruc noted.  "The girls won the Super Essex Conference Championships, and they won the Essex County Championships for the fourth time in a row.  We went undefeated and finished with a 10-0 record."

The girls finished 12th out of the 20 schools racing and averaged 20:59 as a team.  Their total time for the course was 1:44:59, and it capped off a year characterized by hard work from the beginning.  

Coach Chaudruc had nothing but positive things to say about their dedication.

"I'm really proud of the girls.  They worked hard all summer in preparation."

The boys hit the track nearly an hour later at 10:50 and found it considerably more muddy.  Several other runners fell into the finish line, but the unfavorable conditions didn't stop Livingston from giving it their all. 

A 19th out of 20 team finish wasn't an ideal end to the season, but senior runner Jeremy Garber assessed the positives as well as the negatives to a tough race and a great year.  

"We came in hoping to get in the top half but it was kind of a bad day for us.  Unfortunately, the course was pretty beat up in the last mile," he said. 

The team had serious expectations for themselves:; last year's team did well and Livingston knew the bar was set high.  

"Last year we had a strong team," Garber noted.  "But I think we matched them well.  I'm proud of our season overall."

They finished with a 1:31:08 combined time, and Coach Chaudruc echoed Garber's sentiments.  

"The boys has a very successful season.  They were 14-0 in the first year of the Super Essex Conference American Division.  It's been a nice year." 

While attendees and runners were soaked walking back to their cars to go home, everyone in green hopped on the bus with nothing to regret.