By Bob Nuse, Sports Editor
It was a year highlighted by outstanding individual and and team accomplishments.
Which means it was a pretty typical year for athletes and teams from the Packet area. There were team titles and individual titles galore, helping to make 2016 another outstanding year for the locals.
Here is a countdown of the top 10 achievements in the area from the past year.
10: D’Amore the merrier: Montgomery High junior Dylan D’Amore’s quest to become the school’s second state wrestling champion fell just short as he finished fifth in the 285-pound weight class during the state finals in Atlantic City. D’Amore reached the state semifinals, where he dropped a 3-1 decision to River Dell’s Joe Longobardi. D’Amore won a district title and was second at regions on his way to a 40-4 record for the season. D’Amore is back this year and looking to join Anthony Cassar as the only Cougar wrestlers to win state championships.
9. Senior moments: During their respective careers, Tim Bason and Christina Rancan certainly made their marks on the distance running program at West Windsor-Plainsboro South. And both of the runners closed out those careers with statement performances. Bason won the mile at New Balance Nationals with a school-record time of 4:11.89. Rancan, who finished seventh in the girls mile at the national meet, was coming off an incredible performance at the Meet of Champions, where she won the 1,600 meters for the second straight year. Rancan became the first Pirate to repeat as a champion in an event when she finished first in 4:50.85.
8. Double take: In its second game of the 2014 season, the Hun School football team dropped a game at Poly Prep. The Raiders have not lost since. Todd Smith’s team ran the table again this season to complete a second straight undefeated season and win a third straight Mid-Atlantic Prep League title. Hun was 5-0 in MAPL play for the third straight year, winning their league games by an average margin of 29 points a game. The Raiders have now won 22 straight games over the past three seasons. The Raiders only MAPL test this season came against Peddie, where they rallied from a 14-0 deficit for a 23-14 win.
7. Easy as 1-2-3: The Montgomery High baseball team entered the Somerset County tournament as the No. 6 seed. By the time the tournament was over, there was no doubt which team deserved the championship. The Cougars knocked off the top three seeds in succession on their way to claiming the SCT title, including a 2-1 win over Watchung Hills in the final. Gavin Hollowell and Matt Gannon combined for the super pitching performance in the final, with Hollowell going the first six inning.
6. Celebrating in style: The Montgomery High girls fencing team made its 10th anniversary season a special one as the Cougars defeated 12-time champion Columbia in the state team final, 16-11. The Cougars finished with a 6-3 advantage in epee and sabre, while taking foil, 5-4. Montgomery’s program has not been around as long as some of the state’s more storied programs, but they certainly proved to be the state’s best this year. The Cougars impressive season also included a state championship for the foil squad of May Tieu on A strip, Laura Sun on B strip, and Elizabeth Tieu on C strip. The trio finished the day with 53 wins.
5. Two for the Hallidays: For the second time in three years, Princeton High graduates Zach and Kevin Halliday came home for their holiday break as national champions. The brothers from Cranbury helped the Tufts University men’s soccer program to its second national championship in three years, capping off their tournament run with 1-0 overtime win over Calvin in the championship game. Kevin Halliday had an assist on the game-winning goal. Zach, a senior, will graduate in May having helped the Jumbos to two national titles. Kevin, a junior, will be back next year trying to help Tufts win a third national title.
4. Super Sunday: Princeton Day School had the opportunity to host three state championships on the same day and the Panthers made the most of it by coming away with three state championships. The girls soccer team claimed a third straight Prep B title when the Panthers battled Montclair Kimberley to a draw in a weather-shortened final. The teams played nearly 84 scoreless minutes before weather ended the game and the teams were declared co-champions. Grace Barbara recorded the shutout in goal for the Panthers. The boys soccer team team used a goal from Ricardo Martinez to defeat Newark Academy, 1-0, for its first Prep B title since 2010. Ryan Sparks picked up the shutout in goal as the Panthers won the title under first-year head coach Ollie Hilliker. The field hockey team made it three titles in one day with a 2-0 win over Stuart Country Day School. The title was the first in 18 years for the Panthers, who received a pair of goals from Val Radvany in the win. The Panthers finished the season with 16 wins, just one year after winning just six games.
3. Life in the fast lane: Abby Berloco made the most of her sophomore season with the Princeton High girls swim team. She earned the Most Outstanding Swimmer Award after winning the 50 free and 400 free to help the Little Tigers to a fourth straight Mercer County championship. The Cranbury resident capped off her high school season with first-place finishes in a pair of races at the Meet of Champions – winning the 50 freestyle and the 100 freestyle while also helping the Little Tigers win the 400 freestyle relay. Berloco teamed with Maddie Deardorff, Brianna Romaine and Melinda Tang to win the final MOC relay in 3:28.60, which was just off the meet record. The same quartet of swimmers set records in the 200 medley relay and 400 freestyle relay at the Mercer County championships.
2. Mighty Tigers: For the second time in the last four years, the Princeton University football team claimed an Ivy League championship. The Tigers went 6-1 in Ivy League play, with their only loss coming in overtime against Harvard. Princeton shared the title with Penn, a team the Tigers defeated, 28-0, when the two teams met on the field. Princeton’s offense was led by John Lovett, who captured the Bushnell Cup as the Ivy League Offensive Player of the Year after he finished with 20 rushing touchdowns, threw 10 touchdown passes, and caught a touchdown pass to account for 31 touchdowns.
1. Fast on their feet: The Princeton High boys cross country team was able to check off every goal on its list this season, culminating with an impressive showing in winning the school’s first Meet of Champions title. The Little Tigers won the Mercer County championship, the Central Jersey Group IV title, the state Group IV title and then the MOC title. Alex Roth was third at the MOC, one of three Little Tigers to finish in the top 24 in the race. Will Hare finished 10th and Acascio Pinheiro was 24th to lead the way for Princeton. Roth, a senior, was the individual champion at the Mercer County meet, fourth at the CJ IV meet, and finished second at the state Group IV meet. He also qualified to run in the Nike National meet in Oregon.
