This page marks Track's Mid-Season with the Raider Relays (April 22nd); the dual meet with Pennsauken HS (April 25th); the Penn Relays (April 28th and 29th); the dual meet with Washington Township HS (May 2nd); the South Jersey Invitational (May 4th); the South Jersey Relays (May 6th); and the dual meet with Eastern Regional HS (May 9th).
Raider Relays
On April 22, 2006, Cherokee planned to compete at The Raider Relays in Hillsborough, North Jersey but the weather, once again, made that impractical. With reports of one to two inches of rain, winds up to 20 MPH, and temperatures up to only 51 degrees, the coach decided to skip this event and concentrate on the up-coming dual meet with Pennsauken and the Penn Relays.
Dual Meet: Pennsauken
On April 25, 2006, Cherokee traveled to Pennsauken High School knowing last year's Conference Champs were going to be difficult to beat. But the guys from Cherokee stepped-up in many areas, set many PR's and one school record, and defeated Pennsauken by a close 72 - 68. The dual meet record now stands at: 3 - 0!
There were numerous highlights throughout this meet! The vaulters, Eric Pontrello, Matt Addezzio, and Dan Radkowski swept their event; as did the 400 Intermediate Hurdlers, Robin Chen, Mike Schiafone and Aaron DeCaires. and the 110 High Hurdlers, Aaron Decaires, Robin Chen and Chris Chen! There were 6 PR's among the hurdlers in this meet!
The distance guys, led by Vin Marziano, Alex Yersak and Greg Bredeck in the 1600m, and by Kevin Schickling, Yersak, and Bredeck in the 3200m, also swept those events! Will Andes and Rich Nelson took 1st and 2nd in the 800m. High jumpers Lynell Payne, Don Causey and AJ Valentine took 2nd through 4th, with Payne setting a PR in both the High Jump and the Shot! At least two other individual performances deserve recognition as well. Steve Watson set two PR's, one in the 200m, and another, a school record in the Triple Jump! And Freshman Chris Applegate ran a 10:49 in the 3200m, a great time for an individual in his first season of running!
The most dramatic moment in the meet came at the end, going into the 4 X 400 relay, when the meet was on the line! All of the other events were finished and the score stood at 68 - 69! The team spread out around the track to encourage the relay foursome of AJ Valentine, Will Andes, Don Causey and Chris Steliga as the race unfolded. The Freshman Valentine ran tough against Pennsauken's fastest runner, staying within a few yards at the pass; Senior Andes ran a PR relay 400 to put the team in the lead; Sophomore Causey also ran a PR leg to maintain a slight lead in the race; and then Sophomore Steliga held off and then gained additional meters to take the baton across the line in 1st place! It couldn't have been better scripted in a Hollywood movie, unless, of course, a bevy of beautiful girls swept down from the stands and hugged the victorious team!
On May 1, 2006, the Monday following the meet, the writers at the Burlington County Times recognized Aaron DeCaires in their "Scholastic Highlights" section:
BOYS TRACK: AARON DeCAIRES, Cherokee
When Cherokee defeated defending Olympic Conference American Division champion Pennsauken
in a dual meet on Tuesdsay, one of the keys was the hurdles. The Chiefs outscored Pennsauken,
18-0, in the two hurdles races and finished with a four-point win (72-68).
Aaron DeCaires was a part of both those hurdles sweeps, winning the highs with a personal-best
15.9 and placing third in the intermediates. Robin Chen and Mike Schiafone also placed in the
highs, and Robin and Chris Chen also placed in the intermediates.
"Aaron has really begun to step it up this year as a junior," Cherokee coach Steve Shaklee
said. "He works very hard in practice and, as a result, continues to improve each meet.
He's also become a team leader, earning the respect of his teammates and the coaching
staff through his hard work and great attitude."
Thanks in large part to its deep stable of hurdlers, Cherokee is undefeated in dual meets,
taking a 3-0 record into tomorrow's dual meet against Washington Township.
Here are two pictures, one of which was supposed to accompany that selection. The first is one of a guy who all mothers love, the second is Aaron's "Bad to the Bone" look. You decide which should have appeared in the newspaper!
Penn Relays Carnival
On April 28, 2006, the Cherokee 4 X 800 team of AJ Valentine, Rich Nelson, Will Andes and Colin Cunningham took to the track at the 112th running of the Penn Relays. The team ran well but the outcome was disappointing as they finished only 62/100th of a second from advancing to the finals, the Championship of America on Saturday! Cherokee ran a season-best 7:59.24, thirteenth-fastest among the 60 schools in the race and third-best among New Jersey schools. Unfortunately, only the top 12 schools advanced.
Reuben Frank of the Burlington County Times had this to say about Will Andes' PR performance in the 4 X 800: Andes Due for a Great Race
On the same day, the 4 X 100 team of Steve Iwanczuk, Steve Watson, Chris Steliga and Tony Cotton ran, posting a time of 44.40 and finishing 84th out of 235 teams in the competition.
The following day, April 29, 2006, the 4 X 400 team of AJ Valentine, Don Causey, Will Andes and Chris Steliga ran in the "South Jersey: Large Schools Race" and took 4th out of 13 teams, posting a 3:30.54.
Complete results at: Penn Relays.
The 4 X 800!
The 4 X 100 from high above!
The 4 X 400!
Dual Meet: Washington Township
On May 2, 2006, Cherokee welcomed Washington Township High School and once again set a number of PR's on their way to another major dual meet victory: the final score 82 - 58. The dual meet record stands at 4 - 0 with only Eastern High School standing in the way of a Division Championship!
Overall, the jumpers and distance guys stand out as keys to the meet, but others played important roles. Early in the meet, High Jumpers, Lynell Payne, Don Causey and AJ Valentine swept the event and put 9 points on the Cherokee side! Long Jumpers Chris Steliga, who set another PR of 20' 5", and Steve Watson took 1st and 3rd and added more early points. Later, in the Triple Jump, the same twosome, with Watson in the lead this time, took 1st and 2nd! And in the Vault, Freshman Vaulter Eric Pontrello set another new PR and advanced the SJ Freshman Vault Record to 13' while taking 1st in the event!
The distance squad had another outstanding day by sweeping the 800m and 3200m, and taking 1st and 2nd in the 1600m! Will Andes took 1st in both the 800m and the 1600m. He was closely followed by Rich Nelson who took 2nd in both races and set PRs in both! Perhaps the loudest cheer of the day came when a Washington Township runner passed Colin Cunningham on the last turn of the 800m and Colin responded decisively, overtaking his opponent, taking 3rd, and setting his own PR in the race! In the 3200m, four of Cherokee's runners set PRs as they battled Washington Township's top distance ace: Vin Marziano, Alex Yersak and Greg Bredeck swept the event, and they were closely followed by Kevin "Ted" Schickling!
Others who played important roles included the High Hurdlers who swept their event -- Aaron DeCaires, Robin Chen and Chris Chen -- and Steve Iwanczuk who took a critical 1st place in the 200m Dash! Although the meet had been decided by then, the 4 X 400m team of AJ Valentine, Don Causey, Will Andes and Chris Steliga took 1st as well, running even faster than their previous season-best at Pennsauken!
South Jersey Invitational
On May 4, 2006, several of Cherokee's athletes traveled to Buena High School for the South Jersey Invitational, a meet designed to bring together many of the best track and field athletes in South Jersey. The coach rested some of his top performers but a few others performed well at the meet. Highlights included Steve Watson's 4th in the Triple Jump with a 42' 3" leap; and Robin Chen's 10th in the 400IH in 58.94! Four distance guys -- typically 3200m runners -- set impressive PR's in the 1600m: Vin Marziano took 5th in 4:27.76, about an 8 second PR; Alex Yersak took 18th in 4:35.12; Greg Bredeck took 17th in 4:37.37; and Kevin Schickling took 22nd in 4:40.24!
There were some Freshmen events as well. AJ Valentine took 4th in the 400m in a 53.4; while Chris Applegate took 14th in the 1600m in 5:01.85, and Marc Saccomanno took 18th in the same event in 5:09.68.
Complete results at: SJTCA Word Document
The meet began at 6:30PM and darkness soon limited the number of photographs taken.
South Jersey Relays
On May 6, 2006, a group of Cherokee athletes traveled again to Buena High School for the South Jersey Relay Carnival. The Freshmen, in particular, competed well in four events. In, perhaps, the most hotly contested race of the day, the team of Marc Saccomanno, Tony Cotton, AJ Valentine and Chris Applegate took an agonizing second in the Distance Medley Relay by only 1/10th of a second, finishing in 11:47.80. The Freshman 4 X 100m Relay team of Tony Cotton, Major Mobley, AJ Valentine and Mike Brocco took 3rd in 48:10; while the Freshman 4 X 200m Relay team of Chao Weng, Travis Ruhl, Jordan Berry and Mike Brocco took 5th in 1:49.50. In two lightly contested events, the Freshman 4 X 110m Shuttle Hurdle Relay team of Major Mobley, Travis Ruhl, Chao Weng, and Mike Brocco took 1st in 1:15.30; and the Freshman High Jump Relay team of AJ Valentine -- setting a PR of 5' 8" -- and Major Mobley took 1st as well.
Among Varsity performers, the 3 X 400m Shuttle Hurdle Relay team of Aaron DeCaires, Robin Chen, and Mike Schiafone took 4th in 3:02.40; and the 4 X 110m Shuttle Hurdle Relay team of Aaron Decaires, Chris Chen, Robin Chen and Mike Schiafone took 5th in 1:06.70.
Details are available at: SJTCA Word Document
No photographs are available from this meet.
Dual Meet: Eastern Regional High School
Sadness in Mudville . . . mighty Casey struck out!
On May 9, 2006, Cherokee welcomed Eastern Regional High School for the dual meet battle that would decide the Division Championship. But, after several improbable victories against tough teams like Pennsauken and Washington Township, the team fell short of its goal: Eastern - 79; Cherokee - 61. The team dual meet record for 2006: 4 - 1. The team accomplishment: tied with Washington Township and Eastern Regional for the Division Championship.
Highlights of this meet included the all-but-one-point sweep in the distance events: 1, 2, and 3 in the 1600m by Rich Nelson, Vin Marziano, and Greg Bredeck; 1, 2 and 3 in the 3200m by Greg Bredeck, Vin Marziano, and Kevin "Ted" Schickling; and 1 and 2 in the 800m by Rich Nelson and Colin Cunningham! In the sprints and hurdles, Steve Iwanczuk and Steve Watson took 1st and 3rd in the 100m; AJ Valentine took a PR 3rd in the 400m; Mike Schiafone took a 3rd in the 400IM; and Chris Chen and Robin Chen took 2nd and 3rd in the 110HH. In the jumps, Eric Pontrello and Matt Addezzio took 1st and 2nd in the Vault; Steve Watson and Aaron DeCaires took 2nd and 3rd in both the Long Jump and Triple Jump; and Don Causey and Lynell Payne took 2nd and 3rd in the HJ. Lastly, in the weight events, Glen Pease took a 2nd in the Disc!
