The team is shaping up well with many of the young guys showing vast improvement, not only in their times but in how they train and race! At this point in the beginning of October, the dual meet results are 5 - 1 and the team is on its way to becoming the Olympic Conference, American Division Champions for the 10th year in a row!
On October 4, 2006, Cherokee met Pennsauken High School in the final dual meet of the season and won an easy victory, giving Cherokee a 6 - 1 record and the Olympic Conference, American Division Championship!
Knowing that Pennsauken was rebuilding this year, the coaches held out the Varsity for training and gave the responsibility for winning this meet to the JV and Freshmen squads. Cherokee's twelve runners swept the Pennsauken squad with Sean Hartnett taking first, followed by Ian Foley, Brenden Burke, Evan Stone, Joe Foley, Liam Eells, Kyle Miller, Rob Roselli, Scott Woodmansee, Frank Devine, Adam Henriksen and Mike Czuba. The biggest improvement was made by Kyle Miller, who dropped 37 seconds from his last time on the course, and for that Kyle was named the "Runner of the Meet." GO KYLE!
On October 7, 2006, Cherokee traveled to the Shore Coaches Meet on the state championship course at Holmdel. Two of Cherokee's Varsity runners were missing but several of the young guys stepped up and helped the team take 6th place overall in the 5K Varsity A race. Junior Alex Yersak led the group with a 4th place finish in 16:22, a 20 second PR on the legendary course; and he was followed by Sophomore Chris Applegate, Senior Mike Medvec, and Sophomores Sean Hartnett and Marc Saccomanno. Considering it was the first time for the sophomores on the 5K course, they did a great job! The team took 6th overall in the race.
Later, the Freshmen had their first chance at the 2 mile course in the Frosh A Race and they didn't disappoint! Steve Burkholder and Matt McCarroll set the pace, finishing in 2nd and 3rd place, 11:40 and 11:41 respectively! They were closely followed by Ian Foley in 22nd and Frank Devine in 25th! Mike Czuba closed out the scoring by taking 99th overall and helping the team take 5th place overall. Looking back in Cherokee history, Keith Krieger, a 2001 graduate and a "South Jersey Runner of the Year," ran 11:37 on this course as a Freshman; and Greg Bredeck, a 2005 graduate, winner of the Footlocker Freshman Race at VanCortlandt Park, and another "South Jersey Runner of the Year," completed the course in 11:42 in his Freshman year!
In the last race of the day, the 5K JV A Race, the squad, led by Sophomores Ryan McNair (23rd) and Evan Stone (26th) took 8th overall! Sophomores Rob Roselli (39th), Kyle Miller (46th) and Adam Henriksen (80th) completed the scoring for the team.
The coaches selected Freshman Frank Devine as the "Runner of the Meet," citing his overall time but focusing mostly on the competitive spirit he showed throughout the race: Frank stayed focused throughout and "raced" the entire way! GO FRANK!
Complete results available at: Shore Coaches Meet Results
On October 14, 2006, Cherokee continued its season at the S. J. Open, hosted by Delsea High School. While the Varsity squad was hampered by the absence of two members, Alex Yersak led the Chiefs to a 5th place finish! Alex took 1st in the race, with Chris Applegate taking 11th, and Matt McCarroll and Mike Medvec closing in 41st and 43rd. Marc Saccomanno and Sean Hartnett finished just after them in 55th and 56th!
The JV squad steamrolled the opposition and set PR's as they took 1st place in their race! Rob Roselli led the team with a 4th place finish, and he was closely followed by the rest of the scorers: Brenden Burke in 6th, Ryan McNair in 10th, Evan Stone in 11th), and Kyle Miller in 12th! Liam Eells followed in 30th; Adam Henriksen in 41st, and Josh Ungerleider in 49th!
Only two Freshmen competed in the Freshman Race: Frank Devine took 8th and Mike Czuba took 40th against 98 competitors in the event!
The coaches selected Rob Roselli as the "Runner of the Meet," noting the aggressive way he led the team in the JV race. GO ROB!
Results at: SJTCA
On October 20, 2006, Cherokee traveled to the wind-swept fields of Millcreek Park in Willingboro for the Burlington County Open. There they hoped to add to their record of eight victories in the last nine years! But that was not to be as a much-improved Shawnee High School won the meet by a close five points, and Seneca High School slipped ahead of the Chiefs by only one point!
The Varsity squad was led by Alex Yersak who took 1st in the race! He was followed by Chris Applegate in 8th; Steve Burkholder in 16th; Matt McCarroll in 18th; Mike Medvec in 21st; Colin Cunningham in 23rd; and Marc Saccomanno in 31st.
In the "Mixed Class Race," Cherokee scored well in all four classes! Freshmen Ian Foley took 1st, closely followed by Frank Devine in 3rd and Mike Czuba in 11th! The Sophomores completely dominated their race, with Sean Hartnett taking 1st; Rob Roselli in 2nd; Ryan McNair in 3rd; Evan Stone in 5th; Kyle Miller in 6th; Adam Henriksen in 7th; and Josh Ungerleider in 14th! The Juniors also raced well, with Kevin Schickling in 1st; Brenden Burke in 2nd; and Liam Eells in 8th! In the Senior race, Joe Foley took 4th!
The coaches selected Chris Applegate as the "Runner of the Meet," as he, once again, challenged both his teammates and the field, finishing 2nd on the team and 8th overall! GO CHRIS!
As a result of Alex Yersak's victories in both the SJ Open and the Burlington County Open, Alex was named "Player of the Week" by the Camden Courier-Post. Congratulations!
Complete results at: Ed Colona
On October 22, 2006, Coach Shaklee defended his title at the annual Cherry Hill JCC 5K Roadrace. Indeed, both he and his wife, Cricket Batz Shaklee took 1st overall male and female! It was a "threepeat" for both.
Quote overheard in the crowd after the race: "Wow, Steve is awesome! What is he, 40 . . . 43?" Wow, indeed!