State champion Debra Vento was the headline grabber this year as the Freehold Borough junior high jumper reached heights that earned her a national ranking.
Meanwhile, Vento’s teammate, Diana Costanzo, emerged as one of the state’s best shot putters during the 2001-02 season.
Equally impressive was the way a young Manalapan team dominated the Freehold District championships. They appear set up to make a run at repeat championships.
As always, it seems the District had some of the finest talent in the Shore area and the state, and it is reflected by the accomplishments of the News Transcript’s 2002 All-Freehold Regional District Girls’ Track and Field Team.
Heading the team is Vento at high jump and 55-meter hurdles, and shot putter Costanzo. Joining them are Manalapan’s Tanisha Hamilton (55-meter dash), Freehold Township’s Katie Cherewich (400) and Jen Gaffey (1,600), Freehold Borough’s Kristie Buble (800) and the 1,600 relay team is the Patriot quartet of Cherewich, Gerry Sultana, Samantha Moody and Kate Moltisanti.
Vento established herself as the area’s best-ever indoor high jumper. She had a near-perfect season, capturing the Freehold District and Monmouth County titles and placing second at the Shore Conference. She was perfect in state competition, teaming up with Kathy Doran to win the state Group II high jump relay title. On her own, she won the Group II state title and saved her best for the Meet of Champions, where her personal best 5-8 not only won the state championship, but at the time was the second best jump in the country. Vento went on to add the Eastern State’s title to her résumé and finished eighth at the national championships (5-5). Her 5-8 is the best-ever under cover from a District jumper. She is looking at a very promising outdoor season.
The Colonial junior was also the best hurdler in the area. She won the Freehold District title and was sixth in the county.
Vento’s teammate Costanzo also came up big this winter. She had a personal best 39-0 3/4 and won the Monmouth County and Freehold District titles. She set a meet record at the District meet. The Freehold senior was second in the Shore Conference and fifth at Group II.
Gaffey’s season was again interrupted by injury, but the Patriot senior had again done enough to make her All-District. Gaffey was fifth in a loaded Monmouth County 1,600 field that included three Group state champions. She ran her best time at the Group IV state championships, where she was sixth (5:26.16) and qualified for the MOC, where she was 17th.
Laura Saffer is the up-and-coming distance standout. The Manalapan sophomore followed up her District cross country championship in the fall by winning the 1,600 and 3,200 titles at the Freehold District meet. The latter was her first indoor 3,200. She was eighth in the 1,600 at the county.
Buble enjoyed her breakthrough season during the 2001 winter season when she won the District title at 800 meters. This year, she repeated as the 800 champion. She was ninth in Monmouth County and 10th in Group II with her best time of the year, 2:32.28.
Cherewich was the dominant long-sprinter in the District. The senior easily won her second straight District title. She was fourth in Monmouth County and Shore Conference championships and 10th in Group IV with her fastest time (1:00.92). Cherewich proved she can be competitive at the longer distances when she stepped up and finished third in the 800 at the District meet.
Cherewich and teammates Sultana, Moody and Moltisanti were the District’s best 1,600-meter relay team. In addition to the District title, they were third in the county and fourth in the conference. Their best time was 4:17.48.
The competition in the 55-meter dash was as close as it has been in years among three sprinters, Colts Neck’s Becky Mergenthaler, Manalapan’s Tanisha Hamilton and Howell’s Cara Hammond. No one was able to separate themselves from the others. The county and conference meets were a wash as Mergenthaler (fifth) topped Hamilton (sixth) and Hammond (eighth) at the county, and Hamilton (fifth) bested Mergenthaler (seventh) and Hammond (eighth) in the conference.
At the state meets, Hammond was faster than Hamilton in Group IV, but neither advanced to the final. Over in Group II, Mergenthaler was fifth and was the only sprinter to advance to the MOC.
They all met one last time at the District championships where Hamilton picked up the win in the fastest time of the year (7.5). That gave the Brave junior the ever-so-slight edge over Mergenthaler.
Those earning honorable mention for the 2001-02 season are: Becky Mergenthaler and Danielle Plenzo of Colts Neck; Kathy Doran of Freehold Borough; Cara Hammond, Heather Garleb and Samantha Graffeo of Howell; Joanna Fay, Laura Little, Sophia Machado, Jenn Brand, Andrea Vourtsis and Deanna Lyons of Manalapan; and Diane Cerquiera, Marlboro.