Winter weather helps Hopewell become better

INDOOR TRACK

By: John E. Powers
   The Hopewell Valley High School girls and boys’ indoor track teams have taken advantage of the unusually mild winter, and have been very productive.
   Both teams swept triangular meets with Allentown and Princeton Tuesday night at Jadwin Gymnasium, and both had good performances at last Saturday’s Colonial Valley Conference Batch Meet at Lawrenceville Prep.
   "We’ve been very good with the weather until now," Hopewell boys coach Jim Logue said Tuesday morning. "I think it’s really helped the guys improve. They have been putting in a lot of work and have really improved across the board. Our middle distance runners, our sprinters and hurdlers are really holding their own. Our distance runners are really the strongest part of the team right now."
   Chris Baumback won the 1,600-meter run Saturday with a 4:48.4 and Evan Kita was fourth in 5:09. The distance medley relay pf team was second to West Windsor-Plainsboro South 11:42.2-11:36.6. Rob Alicea and Chris Womack were 5-6 in the 45-meter dash. The 4×400 team was third behind runner-up West Windsor-Plainsboro South and Trenton. Hopewell ran a 3:48.1. Trenton won it in 3:37.2.
   The boys are scheduled run again Saturday in the Ed Poreda Invitational at Lawrenceville at 1 p.m. That will be followed by a trip Wednesday to the new John Bennett Indoor Facility in Toms River for the South Jersey Track Coaches Meet. The Mercer County Meet will be held in the same facility Feb. 11.
   "I look at winter (season) differently than some coaches," Logue said. "Some coaches look at it as a training season for spring, but they wouldn’t have a championship for it if it was just for training. We can get ready for the spring, but we can also qualify to go to the states or nationals. That’s what we’re striving for. We don’t take the meets lightly."
   The girls won the distance medley Saturday as the team ran 13:40 and another team took fourth in 14:10.9. Melissa Grecco and Julie Jablonski went 1-2 in the 1,600 running 5:26 and 5:38 respectively and Margi Emhoff was fifth in 6:00.9. Nicole Ferrera was second in the 45-meter dash in 6.3. Julie Alexander was second in the 45-meter hurdles in 7.6 and Shayne Hughes was fifth in 7.9. The 4×400 team was fifth in 4:39.1.
   "We were basically using it as a nice practice opportunity to get inside, we didn’t have any other goals in mind," girls’ coach Aaron Oldfield said. "I thought we did well. All in all it was a good day."
   Oldfield said the 4×800 team of Sara Gustafson, Claire Buck, Megan Fitzpatrick and Grecco would compete in the New Balance Collegiate Meet Saturday at the New York Armory.
   "I think our best is 9:40, so if we could eventually go under 9:35 that would really be nice and I think we should be able to do that," Oldfield said. "Our goal is to qualify for the Championship of America Race in April (at the Penn Relays). We have already made the qualifying time, but we want to get into the top 12 on Friday."
   Danielle Mottle was third in the shot put last Thursday at the Colonial Valley Conference shot put/high jump meet. Mottle threw 29-6.5. Dave Anderson was fourth at 45-11. Jaime Kianka was sixth in the high jump, clearing 4-foot-6.