Knight senior among medalists at Meet of Champions
By Justin Feil, Assistant Sports Editor
Trish Reilly was running in third and just getting ready to make her move in the Meet of Champions girls 1,600 meters when she went down in a heap on top of South Brunswick’s Sophia Ginez.
”It took me a second to register what happened it happened so quickly,” said Reilly, a senior at West Windsor-Plainsboro North. “The first thought that I had was to get up and run. I was suddenly watching the race take off without me. That wasn’t something I was about to let happen.”
Reilly peeled herself off Ginez as quickly as possible and caught five girls who had passed her during the fall to finish sixth and earn a medal at the MOC on Saturday.
”As I think of it now, I still think of it with a lot of frustration,” said Reilly, who still ran 5:04.79. “I think it told a little about myself and my character with racing. I think once I calm down, I’ll look at it as a good experience.”
Brian Gould thought the performance was as good as gold. The WW-P North coach had seen plenty of Reilly’s races in cross country and on the track, but nothing like the perseverance he witnessed in her final two laps. The Columbia-bound Reilly felt she was on pace to challenge her personal-best 4:58.95 from the Group III meet the week before. Then came the fall.
”Just about anybody in that situation would give up and feel sorry for yourself,” Gould said. “She bounced right up. She was inside the last quarter (mile). She got up and caught five girls in the last lap. She’s such a tough kid. She has so much heart. All the great things she’s done, that was probably the best race she’s run. She managed to get up and medal after getting laid out flat on the track. She’s a tough kid.”
Reilly’s season continues at the Eastern States Invitational where she will run the mile for the Knights distance medley relay that is trying to qualify for the national indoor meet.
WW-P North boys distance stars Jim Rosa, Joe Rosa and Tyler Corkedale all medaled as did shot putter Corey Abernathy. It took standout performances to top the Rosa brothers.
”Five kids medal out of eight competing, that was a great day,” Gould said. “It’s the best state meet we’ve ever had. They ran great, jumped great and threw great. It was an awesome day.”
Jim Rosa ran an indoor best 4:13.12 to finish second in the 1,600; Joe ran an indoor best 9:13.30 for second in the 3,200. Both set school records. Corkedale overcame a slow start in the mile for fourth in 4:18.65. Abernathy improved two inches over last week to finish fourth with a best of 56-feet-7.
Kevin Foy was West Windsor-Plainsboro South’s top boys finisher in 11th in the 3,200. Katie Kellner was 10th and her sister Caroline Kellner 12th in the girls 3,200. Just ahead of them was Montgomery High’s Jillian Prentice in seventh place. It was her first MOC. It’s the junior’s first season of indoor track after giving up swimming in the winter.
”I was really excited with it especially going in seeded 10th and getting seventh,” said Prentice, who ran a season-best 10:53.40. “I was happy with that improvement. I had a lot of fun with winter track. I’m glad I did it. I like being with the team. I was really glad with my decision.”
Prentice showed some resilience in reaching the MOC. She was sick in the days leading up to the Group IV meet, but still managed a then-best 11:02.
”It definitely made me feel more confident that I could go faster,” she said. “I had done 11:02 with the mile beforehand (at the Central Jersey IV meet). Then I did 11:02 when I was sick.
”I felt a lot better coming into the meet and a lot more confident,” she added. “I felt strong and recovered from being sick.”
Finishing in the top seven at the MOC raises her confidence going into the outdoor season. She will run at Easterns and then nationals before the spring season begins.
”I’m hoping that it’ll help me a lot,” Prentice said. “Before, when I was coming from swimming, I had to get back into running shape. Swimming took up so much time, I didn’t get to run much. I’m hoping it’ll keep me in better shape for track.”
MHS’ Fiona Paladino was seventh in the girls high jump and Laura Ng tied for 10th in the pole vault. The Princeton High School boys were 21st in the 4×400 relay while Bryell Wheeler was 19th in the 55-meter dash for the Little Tigers girls.

