The Cougars won the Essex County championship. From left are Coach Chris Faraone, Tim Depue, Rob Howell, Avery Coreschi, Ricky Hankey, Jonathan Salinardo (with the trophy), David Ives, Jared Pangallozzi, and Edward Martinez.
MAPLEWOOD (updated Saturday Oct. 29, 11:38 a.m.) – The Columbia High School boys’ varsity cross-country team won the Essex County championship at cold and blustery Brookdale Park in Bloomfield on Friday, Oct. 28.
The Cougars finished first among 21 teams and defeated second place Seton Hall Prep by a score of 53-67 based on the first five runners scoring for each team according to the place they finished. The score between the two teams was tied after the first four runners for each team had finished. When Columbia’s Avery Coreschi finished 18th, 14 places in front of Seton Hall Prep’s fifth runner, the county championship was sealed.
The team’s average time for the 5K (3.1 mile) course was 16:14, 13 seconds in front of Seton Hall Prep. Competing in a field of 149 runners, the Cougars placed all five scoring runners in the Top 20 with medal-winning performances. Senior captain Jared Pangallozzi finished third in 15:36 with a per mile pace of 5:01. He was followed by four juniors to close out the scoring for Columbia: David Ives, sixth; Tim Depue, 11th; Jonathan Salinardo, 15th; and Coreschi, 18th. The time span between the first and fifth runners, known as the compression, was a tight one at 1:03 in light of Pangallozzi’s fast finish as Columbia’s first runner.
The next cross-country meet for the boys’ varsity team will be Saturday, Nov. 5, when they compete in the New Jersey North Section 2, Group 4 Championships at Greystone Park in Morris Plains.
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Congratulations Avery And the others On the great job you all did .Keep up the great job you all are doing.Good luck this Saturday .I hope you all win.Kenneth J Joyce.