Several wild cards gain entry to big show
By: Rudy Brandl
Erin Crawford knows there are no guarantees when a bunch of top-notch athletes line up on the track in quest of a state title.
The Hillsborough High senior track star will be banking on that at Sunday’s NJSIAA Meet of Champions at Princeton University’s Jadwin Gym. Last year, Crawford entered the big show with two State Group 4 titles in her pocket but fell just short of gold in both of her events. This time, Crawford will show up without a Group 4 gold but that doesn’t mean she can’t win one at the Meet of Champions.
Crawford, who has also qualified in the 55-meter hurdles and as the anchor on Hillsborough’s 4×400 relay team, will have her best shot at state gold in the 400 and 800. She finished second in both events at the state’s most prestigious meet last winter.
"Anything can happen," said Crawford, who also placed second by a microscopic margin in the 400 hurdles at the outdoor Meet of Champions last spring. "I’m just going to go out there and give it my best. It’s an honor just to be there, but I’m going to go for it."
Several HHS athletes will join Crawford in Princeton, including a large contingent of wild card entries who didn’t score points at the Group 4 meet but performed well enough to warrant an invitation.
Five girls, three boys and a relay team from Hillsborough earned wild cards. They’ll join Crawford and fellow medal hopefuls Nick Vaccaro, Hector Tirado, Jenizah Melendez and the girls’ 4×400 relay team.
Vaccaro, who is making his third straight trip to the indoor show, plans to run with the leaders in the 1,600. The senior, seeded eighth in a talented field, is confident he can capture a medal. He’ll be chasing Pete Hess of Toms River North and Hunterdon Central rival Chris Pannone.
"I definitely want to get a medal," said Vaccaro, who finished seventh in last year’s race. "I want to be up there with those guys. I just have to stay closer the whole time and really challenge those guys."
Vaccaro wasn’t satisfied with his Group 4 performance and knows it will take a faster time than 4:27.45 to stay in the mix this weekend. He posted his outdoor personal-best at last year’s Meet of Champs and is determined to repeat that cycle on the indoor circuit.
Tirado, the only other HHS boy to score in Group 4, believes he can add another foot or so to his ever-increasing personal-best in the shot put. He broke his own indoor school record with a 51-11 effort at the New Balance Invitational in January and figures it will take around 53 feet to secure a medal. Tirado is seeded 13th in the state field.
"I think I can hit 53," said Tirado, who’s making his first trip to the Meet of Champions. "I’ve done it in practice."
Fellow HHS shot putter Jenizah Melendez, a junior, will also be making her first appearance at the state’s biggest meet. Melendez is seeded 10th and has a legitimate shot at a medal.
"I went to the Group 4 meet in the spring and it was really intense," Melendez said. "I hope I can just rise to the occasion and be a good representative for my school."
Senior distance standout Mike Klueber is always dangerous in any big race because of his work ethic and determination. Although Klueber didn’t score in Group 4, his 3,200 time of 9:49.80 earned him the first wild card berth. Klueber is ranked 17th in the field.
High jumpers Bryan Fox, Jim Morley and Nicole Humphrey also earned wild cards, along with Lauren Kloss (800), Allison Marcsisin (1,600), Ashley Uniszkiewicz (3,200) and the boys’ 4×400 relay team with Tony Flores, Aneil Sahota, Franklin Andreyko, Mike Barberio, Adam Mallet and Vaccaro eligible. Joe Brennan (1,600) and Kelda Nelson (3,200) just missed the cut-off.
While Crawford and Vaccaro have the best shot at winning individual medals for the Raiders, the girls’ 4×400 relay team is seeded fourth. The team of Kloss, Eileen Cafferty, Yaneisha Warrick and Crawford is running 4-5 seconds slower than Trenton, Eastern and Willingboro, but anything can happen in a relay.
And at the Meet of Champions.

