Hopewell school board cheers four fall interscholastic teams

Teams include girls and boys cross country, debating, and boys soccer.

By John Tredrea
   Four highly successful fall-season interscholastic teams from Central High School (CHS) drew praise and congratulations from school officials during a recent school board meeting.
   Members of the teams — girls and boys cross country, debating, and boys soccer — attended the meeting along with their coaches and the school district’s athletic director, Kiki Enderle.
   Coached by Aaron Oldfield, HoVal’s girls cross country team turned in a 2002 season that embellished the team’s status as one of the top high school athletic groups in this part of the country. The team went undefeated, again, this year, going 15-0.
   "This brings their winning streak to 68 in all," said Ms. Enderle. The team also won the Group II state championship, won its sixth consecutive CVC (Colonial Valley Conference) title and fourth Mercer County championship.
   These harriers aren’t too shabby in the classroom, either. Collectively, the girls turned in a grade point average of 93 percent during the cross country season. "Really outstanding," Ms. Enderle told beaming board members, school administrators and parents.
   High school debating team coach Sharlyn Durkee also attended the meeting, noting that her team also won the CVC, for the second year in a row, in 2002. Team members included Jon Callan and Scott Babinowich, who were partners during debates with opposing schools, and Sagar Shah and Ameya Agaskar, also partners.
   "Either Jon or Scott was judged best speaker at every event they competed in," Ms. Durkee said. "Sagar and Ameya also had fine seasons. Sagar was undefeated."
   Responded board President Sally Turner: "It’s wonderful to see our students are so diversified in their talents."
   HoVal’s boys cross country team was undefeated in 11 dual meets during the 2002 season, Ms. Enderle said. The team, coached by Dave Wilson, was CVC champion and second in the Mercer County championships. Team members had a collective grade point average of 90 percent during the season. "An awesome job," Ms. Enderle said.
   Central High School’s boys soccer has a long-standing reputation as one of the premiere units of its kind in this part of the country. Last fall, which also marked the re-establishment of interscholastic football at CHS, did nothing to tarnish it. For the second year in a row, HoVal boys soccer advanced to the state championship game, compiling a fine 15-5-3 record en route. Coached by Tony Suozzo and his assistant Ed Gola, a HoVal alumnus who was a fine athlete during his Bulldog days, the team had a grade point average of 88 percent during its demanding season.