Raiders’ Mauer runs to sectional title
By Justin Feil, The Packet Group
Paige Novak is looking forward to the Group IV girls state cross country championship.
It is a chance for the junior and her Hillsborough High School teammates to take to their favorite course — Holmdel Park — and go after the last two teams to beat them in championship meets.
”Our team morale has to have a lot more confidence and we have to have more belief in ourselves,” said Novak, a junior. “I think we’re really capable of doing great things. If we get on that, that’s when it’ll start going through.”
The Raiders saw Stephanie Mauer claim their first sectional champion on the girls side when she ran 18:36 at Thompson Park last Saturday to easily outdistance West Windsor-Plainsboro South’s Christina Rancan. Mauer missed last year’s sectional race due to an injury after placing third as a freshman.
Rancan’s Pirates team slipped by Hillsborough, 44-55. WW-P South along with Ridge, which edged Hillsborough for the Skyland Conference Championship, will both be in the Group IV race at Holmdel this Saturday.
”That’s the silver lining of (Saturday),” Novak said. “We’re going to see West Windsor-Plainsboro South again. We’re going to see Ridge again. We still have a chance to prove ourselves. It’s getting more and more vital to get it together.”
Mauer was 18 seconds better than Rancan to lead everyone. Molly Doyle was 10th in 19:37, Novak took 11th in 19:40, Olivia DeLorenzo was 16th in 19:54 and Courtney Skikus finished off the Raiders’ scoring in 17th in 20:04. Peri Bongiovanni was 19th in 20:13 and Kelly Cianciola was 23rd in 20:23.
”I didn’t think I did that good,” Novak said. “I ran faster last year. I think I wasn’t putting myself in the right position. I didn’t have the confidence to go where I wanted to be. I hope for groups I apply myself and push myself where I want to go.”
Brandon Tubby took seventh for the Hillsborough High School boys. The junior ran 16:17 to advance as an individual as a Top 10 finisher. He will represent the Raiders at the Group IV meet at Holmdel on Saturday.
Michael Digricoli was 23rd in 16:55. Spencer Russo took 25th in 16:59. Jake Thoden ran to 46th in 17:25. Jeremy Shipley rounded out their scoring in 54th place in 17:35. Michael Kinney was 59th in 17:45. Liam Baron finished 83rd in 18:27.
Hillsborough was sixth as a team, only five points out of tying Hunterdon Central for the fifth and final spot to advance out of the sectional to the group meet. The Raiders scored 155 points. South Brunswick won with 47 points. Hillsborough had the same average finish time as Hunterdon Central, 17:02.
In Mauer’s absence last year, Novak ran 19:10 to lead the Raiders. She was 30 seconds off that time of a year ago this year and was the Raiders’ third finisher.
”It was kind of different circumstances,” Novak said of last year. “We knew Stephanie wouldn’t be running anymore. I was the front-runner. The mental aspect of the race was different.”
Novak knows she has the potential to be closer to the top. She showed that last year, and she wants to make sure it was no fluke and that she uses the same drive that earned her a top time and spot.
”Getting that responsibility so suddenly and under bad circumstances, it made me want to do it,” Novak said. “After sectionals last year, I was upset we weren’t going to go any further without her. She’s a really important part of our team. Last year was different. I’m happy she’s back and things are going good for her.”
Novak is trying to make sure that it goes well for everyone. It’s a strength of the Raiders.”We all really, really care about cross country and each other,” Novak said. “If one of us does bad, we want to help them not feel bad. We’re a lot more motivated and a lot more invested. We realize this is when it needs to start happening.”
Novak and the Raiders know what to expect at Holmdel. Both Ridge and WW-P South are quick starters, and Hillsborough has gotten a taste of both of them in recent weeks. Hillsborough has seen Ridge twice, and they raced WW-P South on Saturday.
”The Pirates went out really fast,” Novak said. “They already packed in the front. The first 100, they all got in the front. That meant we had to break it up. I tried to hold back. I anticipated they would die out sooner, but they held it pretty well. That meant I had to pick them off one-by-one. There was one girl ahead of me that I didn’t catch toward the finish.”
Novak will come to the group meet with plenty of motivation. She has tried to prepare better this week for the big race.
”For myself, I’m focusing more,” Novak said. “I definitely eat healthy already, and I’ll focus on the little things and hopefully that little stuff gets along better. The last couple weeks, I’ve been caught up with homework and staying up late. I’ll crack down on what I do and hopefully that discipline will help me in the race.”
The Raiders gain a boost of confidence from knowing and embracing the Holmdel course. Historically, they have peaked at Holmdel in recent years, and Novak is hoping for more of the same.
”We definitely respect that course and we see that for a really good chance to show off our hills training,” Novak said. “I really like hills. That’s something that helps me there.
”We also try not to think of Holmdel as a crazy big thing, it’s still 5,000 meters. You don’t want to be thinking about it differently and psyching yourself out over the course.”
The same is true of the competition. The Raiders don’t want to overreact to their last couple of races. They just want to get back to running with the toughness that won them the Somerset County Championship.
”I know we have to be really smart about it,” Novak said. “We’re going to stay at a comfortable distance. You can’t give up a whole field. You need to stay close enough that you can pass them. You have to know you can get them at the top of ‘The Bowl’ or when things slow down. Holmdel is a really good course for us, and we’ll be able to show them what’s up. I hope something good happens and comes along.”