By James Lambert
Union Catholic pulled out the brooms on Saturday at Holmdel Park.
The Union Catholic boys and girls cross country teams swept team titles at the 51st Shore Coaches Invitational, with the Vikings also taking the girls team merge championship in a dominant showing that showcased the incredible depth of the program.
The UC girls, the preseason No. 1 team in the country, were far from full strength but it didn’t matter. With seniors Paige Sheppard, Cayleigh Kaiser, Sophia Thompson and Kayla Devine held out, the Vikings showcased their loaded sophomore class and rolled to victory in the E Division.
Union Catholic put four sophomores and a junior in the top seven, going 2-4-5-6-7. Sophomore Harper Telesca led the way by finishing second in 18:50.91, followed by sophomores Abigail Robisky and Eden Solorzano, who placed fourth and fifth in 18:59.07 and 18:59.31, respectively. Jia Jain was sixth in 19:20.37, and junior Saffa Ellis finished seventh in 19:52.74.
The Vikings scored 24 points to defeat No. 6-ranked Haddonfield, which finished with 49. Union Catholic’s five scorers averaged 19:12 and had a 61-second compression.
Robisky’s performance was particularly impressive in her first-ever race at Holmdel Park. The sophomore finished third in the 400-meter at last spring’s Meet of Champions and set a New Jersey freshman record of 2:05.24 in the 800. After putting in serious work to crack UC’s loaded lineup this season, Robisky has emerged as one of the most pleasant surprises in the state.
She is a perfect example of what can happen when an athlete pours their heart and soul into training and trusts the process.
The Vikings’ depth was on full display, with sophomore Myra Sakhuja finishing 18th in 21:02.36 and senior Aubrey Devers placing 24th in 21:14.45.
Union Catholic also dominated the team merge, scoring 97 points to finish first. No. 2-ranked Ridgewood, the A Division champion, was second with 156 points, followed by Middletown South with 217.
The UC boys, ranked No. 2 in the state, pulled out a thrilling victory in the F Division, edging No. 7-ranked Glassboro, 39-49, and finished third in the overall team merge.
Senior Jayden Aine led the Vikings by finishing third in 16:27.32, followed by senior Danny Kuran in fourth at 16:32.97. Junior Nathan Simonich was sixth in 16:35.04, senior Quintin Clemons placed 11th in 16:56.05, and senior Nick Frank finished 16th in 17:04.46 to complete the scoring five.
Union Catholic averaged 16:43 and had a 37-second compression from its first to fifth runners. Senior Manny Sanchez was 17th in 17:10.86, giving the Vikings six runners in the top 17.
The Vikings also won the boys JV D Division Championship with Jeremiah Shepherd leading the charge with a winning time of 17:15.