Johnson enjoys first and only season for PHS

Little Tigers, MHS, North, Kellner reach Group XC

By Justin Feil, Assistant Sports Editor
   Molly Johnson is making up for lost time.
   The Princeton High School senior is in her first season of cross country and helped the Little Tiger girls’ finish third in the Central Jersey Group III meet at Thompson Park on Saturday.
   ”We really came together as a team at sectionals,” said Johnson, who was PHS’ fourth finisher, 18th overall. “At counties, I didn’t perform very well. It all kind of clicked at sectionals. We really learned how to work as a team. We all finished pretty close to each other. We were all within 12 places. We could all see each other when we were racing. It made it more exciting. It was definitely a team victory.”
   PHS was led by Mina Juhn in 12th. Molly Lynch was 15th, Lena Frey 17th, Johnson 18th and Clara Hartmanshenn was 24th. With the performance, the Little Tigers advance to the Group III state meet at Holmdel Park on Saturday. Joining them at that race will be West Windsor-Plainsboro North. The Knights finished fifth at the CJ III meet.
   ”We qualified for groups,” said Knights head coach Bill Mealy. “That’s the first time that happened. They felt pretty good about that.
   ”Princeton got us today. They finished third. I’m sure one of our goals is to get that back. We beat them most of the season. They ran real well. They had a nice strategy and it worked well for them.”
   In the Central Jersey Group IV race at Thompson Park, Montgomery advanced by finishing fourth. Jillian Prentice’s second-place finish led the Cougars.
   ”I knew we wouldn’t beat Colts Neck and I didn’t think we could beat Howell,” MHS head coach Jim Goodfriend said of the top two finishers in the sectionals. “If we ran really well, we might have been third. But we did well. I’m really happy. We get to go on. We wanted to do that and get a little respect after the Skylands.
   ”Jillian ran well. (Amanda) Herrmann ran pretty well too. I was happy with her. I was happy with (Danielle) Baginsky. She PR’d and ran pretty well. I was happy with them all. We just haven’t had one meet where everybody PR’d.”
   MHS can hope for that meet at the Group IV state meet Saturday at Holmdel Park. Joining them as an individual will be West Windsor-Plainsboro South’s Katie Kellner. The junior was third in the CJ IV race as the Pirates finished sixth, one spot behind qualifying. They finished 16 points behind fifth-place South Brunswick though the Pirates’ sixth finisher was ahead of South Brunswick’s fifth. South’s fifth also beat Montgomery’s fifth finisher.
   ”It was a good day,” said Pirates head coach Josh Siegel. “We had a lot of PRs on that course. It was tough to have such a good season and lose at the end, but I’m proud of them. Katie had a good race. She gets to move on. I’m proud of her. She was pleased. She was faster than she ran last year. The third-place finish was fantastic.”
   ”It was such a rewarding experience for our girls,” he added. “At the beginning of the season, it didn’t look like we’d be quite like we were. They came together and pushed so hard. They gave everyone a run for their money.”
   The Pirates graduate two seniors from their top seven that finished second at the Mercer County Championships. There, PHS finished fourth. They also lost by one point in the dual meet to WW-P North. But PHS came on strong at sectionals and looks to finish the year on a high note at the group meet.
   ”If we’re rebuilding, third in sections is pretty impressive,” said PHS head coach Jim Smirk. “We’ll go in and see what we can do. Looking back at our past records, this is our seventh straight time going to states. It’s a pretty significant streak. Previously, the longest was five years. I think that’s a pretty good deal. It’s about having a good race and laying a good foundation for next year.
   ”It is a big deal for us to advance,” he added. “Coming fourth out of counties, there were a lot of questions if we’d move on.”
   Adding Molly Johnson has helped their chances. She is trying to make the most of her first season with the Little Tigers. After three years of soccer for PHS, she made the switch this fall, joining some friends and reuniting with her middle school and track and field coach, Smirk. Though she had track experience, she didn’t know exactly what to expect for herself in cross country.
   ”We lost so many seniors last year,” Johnson said. “It was kind of hard coming on a team that was county champs last year. It was kind of intimidating to come on a team that had such high expectations with girls that had done such amazing things.
   ”I wanted to do my best and see where it could take me. I’ve been running with Lena Frey. She’s taught me a lot. We work really well together. In races, we always run with each other. She’s helped me get better because I try to keep up with her.”
   Johnson couldn’t find a much better guide. Frey is in her fourth year with the PHS varsity. PHS wants to send out Frey, Johnson and their seniors on a high note at the group meet. The sectional finish was a strong indication they are shaping up just in time.
   ”We knew we were the underdog going into it because North had beaten us in the dual meet against them and also in counties,” Johnson said. “We had high hopes of facing them again and trying to beat them. We thought we could. We wanted to show we could do it. That was our main goal was to see if we could beat North in this last one.
   ”It was very exciting. We knew we could do what we did. It was just a matter of executing it. It’s nice to show what we could do.”
   Johnson is happy to be a part of the Little Tigers’ run. She has gotten all that she wanted out of her debut season.
   ”It’s been extremely exciting,” she said. “I’m glad I chose to do cross country. It’s been a real fruitful season.
   ”I do regret I didn’t start earlier. This season, I’ve learned so much. I wish I had one more year to see what more I could do. There’s always going to be that what if in the back of my brain. I’m happy I’m doing it and it’s going so well.”