Crossroads Track Teams Provide Bright Future for SBHS

A dynasty like that of the South Brunswick High School track program does not appear overnight.

The seeds of dominance both the girls and boys teams at SBHS have shown both in Middlesex County and statewide is sewn by the up and coming next generation of stars at the Crossroads middle schools. Both of the middle school boys and girls track teams recently swept the Greater Middlesex Conference championships, which was the third straight title for the girls and second straight for the boys at Crossroads.

"We were in third place for most of the meet, but when we got the scores for the jumps and throws we pulled ahead, so it was really exciting at the end," said Head Coach Sue Hurley.

The squads combined for a 37-1 record this year, in Hurley's second season as head coach. Hurley said the huge turnout of 240 kids going out for the team, with six coaches, left the staff plenty of options moving forward.

"In the beginning, we had a lot of people who had never been on the track and didn't know any of the events," Hurley said. "After the first week of introducing them to each event and trying different things, we decide what we can try to improve on. We use our 8th grade captains to model the work effort so the younger kids see every day how we can become better. The work ethic of our captains is infectious, so everyone wanted to help the team be successful."

The boys team was led by 8th grade sprinter Harmodio Cruz, who tied the school record in the 200, and combined with the 4x100 relay team, including Vincent Jackson and Xavier O’Brien, to set a school and GMC record time of 47.88.

Jackson also set a record in the 100 meters with a time of 11.41. Charles Powell set a GMC high jump record with a height of 5 feet 4 inches.

Like the boys squad, the girls received strong performances by several top athletes, like 8th grader Sydney Schneider, who set a school record in the high jump with 5 feet.

Olivia Scattergood led the way in winning the shot put and the discus events, with a school record throw of 32 feet 8 inches. 8th grader Natalie Ginez swept the 800 and 1600 meter runs, earning the label as the team's "distance queen" by Hurley.

Gillian Chambres competed and placed in four different events as well.

"She's been a real iron horse for us," Hurley noted.

Hurley also pointed to the leadership of captains like Korin Man for the boys and Francesca Dimitrakis for the girls, in addition to the other captains, as vital cogs in the program's success.

as the SBHS boys track team followed up their first state championship during the winter season, and their second straight GMC spring title, with their first spring team Group 4 State Championship this past weekend. 

The girls team also recently won an unprecedented  and Kristin Krier captured a Group 4 state title in the javelin.

With several talented athletes on their way to SBHS next year, the level of success enjoyed at the high school level shows no signs of slowing down any time soon.

"I think we have a strong core coming up if they stick with it," Hurley said. "We work closely with the high school coaches, they come to watch our practices and talk to our kids, so they know how successful the high school team is. That's where the effort comes in, because they want to be part of it. With the core we have coming up from the 8th graders, the very strong tradition of South Brunswick track should continue."