LHS Girls Cross Country Qualifies For Group 4 State Championship

LIVINGSTON, NJ — The following news release comes courtesy of the Livingston High School Girls Cross Country team. Find out how to post announcements or events to your local Patch site.

On Saturday, Nov. 2, eighty teams at 4 venues across the state would vie in the first step of the 3 tier State Meet of Champions tournament. From these 4 venues, only 20 teams would earn spots in the 2nd level, the Group 4 State Championships to be held at Holmdel Park. Livingston would compete in the Group 4 North 1 State Sectional Championship race which was contested at Garrett Mountain in Woodland Park. Seventeen teams were represented here, and only the top 5 teams and top 15 individuals would qualify for the next level of competition, the Group 4 State Championship. The squad was having a historic season with a conference and county titles under their belts and were determined to not let the season end quite yet. The favorite was the #11 State ranked squad, Ridgewood. The lancers were seeded 3rd about 56 points behind Memorial HS, and a mere 15–30 points from 6th and not qualifying. The top 2 spots appeared to be a lock on paper with a battle for the next 3 qualifying spots among 5 teams, LHS, Hackensack, Morristown, Bergen County Tech and Montclair. The lancers were determined to earn a top 5 spot and keep their season going. It had been a pre-season goal for this year.

The weather was sunny and crisp, an ideal day for a XC race. The coaching staff was optimistic that the squads' goal was achievable, and the preparation of the team was underway. The Group 4 girls would run the final race of the day at 1:30 PM. The varsity 7 had run a meet here earlier in the year and done well. Their practice earlier in the week, gave them a fresh review of the course. They were aware of the increased level of competition in this meet and difficulty of the course, but this did not deter them. They responded in the affirmative and were ready to test themselves against the course, the clock, their own willpower and some of the states best teams and runners. And so it was that Sophia Paparsenos, Sarah Nidhan, Lila Maru, Sophie Schumacher, Kiera D'Souza, Avery Lerman and Annie Ferrans, lined up with almost 100 other athletes, ready to compete over this storied XC course.

The race shot out fast with a group from Ridgewood, Ava Neretic of West Orange (WO), Leslie Munoz of Memorial and Paparsenos leading the charge, holding the first 8 spots through the mile. Close behind were another group of athletes fighting for their teams and also the coveted top 15 spots which would guarantee an individual berth in the Group 4 Championship. Among those was LHS Schumacher and Nidhan along with Corrine Stewart (Montclair) and Violet Kohlenstein (WO), all in the mix keeping their focus strong. A bit further back was Maru working to take and hold every spot she could. D'Souza was once again the lancers 5th , with Lerman and Ferrans also working hard towards the team goal. The girls were “all in” and digging deep in this highly competitive field over rough and undulating terrain. Paparsenos maintained her position heading to the 2 mile mark, with Schumacher and Nidhan not far behind. Maru and D'Souza were a bit further back but this was shaping up to be a quality effort by the lancers. As they crossed the road with about 800 meters left, and began the final uphill to the finish, the squad was looking good and the coaches and team fans were sensing the goals might be met. Paparsenos had maintained her spot and would finish in 7th place clocking 20:44. Schumacher gained ground earning an individual auto qualifier with a 13th place finish in 21:29. Nidhan was not far behind in 17th at 21:51. With Ridgewood grabbing 7 of the top 18 spots, the LHS crew looked in good shape to earn their ticket to the Group 4 Championship. With Maru(23:02;28th) , and D'Souza (23:41; 44th) completing the scoring for LHS, the girls scored 98 points for 3rd, only 8 points out of 2nd(Memorial ;91pts) to secure their trip to the Group 4 Championship at Holmdel on 11/9. Lerman (24:57; 64th) and Ferrans (25:43: 73rd) rounded out the team and finished well for LHS, with 6 of the 7 running faster times than they had at their prior meet on the mountain. Nidhan and D'Souza had both run over a minute faster this time around which helped the crew clock a 22:09 top 5 average and a 1-5 split of 2:57. That average was an LHS best at Garrett Mountain since 2011 and their lowest point total at the Sectional meet since 2009. Morristown was 4th with 132 pts while Hackensack and Bergen County Tech both scored 159 with Hackensack getting the 5th and final qualifying berth by 6th runner tie breaker rule. Montclair grabbed 7th with 181. Neretic (4th), Stewart (9th) and Kohlenstein (11th) all advanced individually.

On this day on this mountain and this course these young ladies took the challenge and went at it hard. They had achieved their goal, the season was not over. Their 3rd place team finish and with all giving their best, had secured a place at the Group 4 State Championship to be held at historic Holmdel Park on Saturday 11/9, with their race starting at 1 PM.

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