Smolinka shatters mark, places sixth overall
by Rudy Brandl, Sports Editor
Who were those girls in the red varsity jackets with the letter H on the NJSIAA Meet of Champions podium at Holmdel Park?
The Hillsborough High girls have been quiet all season. They haven’t been mentioned among the state’s elite cross country teams. Even standout runner Ashley Smolinka rarely receives any ink outside of her home town.
After Saturday’s outstanding performance on a blustery, cold day at the Meet of Champs, the Hillsborough girls have officially arrived on the state scene. In the program’s first trip to the M of C, the HHS girls finished third in the state.
The Raiders were making school history just by making the Meet of Champions field, but they made the most of their opportunity by achieving even more. Head coach Rich Refi’s young ladies tied the 2007 gymnasts for the highest placement for a Hillsborough team at a state championship event.
“Today is the proudest and the happiest I’ve ever been as a coach,” said Refi, who’s been coaching high school sports for 19 years. “I thought we’d place in the top five. I had confidence, but I don’t think any of them believed it. This is beyond huge. Now, they believe in themselves. Now, they’ve set the bar.”
Smolinka led the way with a monster performance that established another new HHS record for the state championship course at Holmdel Park. Running on her favorite course, Smolinka shattered her own HHS girls’ standard by over 20 seconds and finished sixth in the state in a time of 18:40.
The Hillsborough junior was ranked 24th after a supbar race the previous Sunday at the Group 4 Championships. She was determined to atone for that rare off-day and came though with a huge effort to lead her team.
“It’s such a great feeling,” said Smolinka, who secured an M of C medal for the third consecutive year. “Last week was not good at all. I really wasn’t sure what to expect.”
Refi wasn’t surprised by Smolinka’s performance. After watching her move up from a unseeded positions to the medals podium in her first two years, Refi has come to expect a huge finishing race from Smolinka in Holmdel.
“Ashley is a gamer,” Refi said. “There’s no reason to think she wouldn’t do it. She’s done it every year. Her goal was top 10. I thought she could be in the top seven.”
Smolinka enjoyed the company of her teammates for the first time in her three trips to the M of C. They followed her lead and came up with huge performances of their own.
Sophomore Julianna Miller finished 44th overall but 21st among team racers in a time of 19:45, her personal record and third time under 20 minutes at Holmdel. Senior Meredith Mayes broke 20 again and placed 52nd overall and 25th among runners representing teams in 19:58.
It was a special day for Mayes, the only senior among the top five that set another school record for five-runner average. The HHS girls broke 20 minutes and averaged 19:56.97.
“It was a really great experience,” Mayes said. “We honestly were expecting sixth, maybe fifth at best. It’s just so great finishing third.”
The Raiders finished with 158 points and placed behind Skyland Conference rivals Voorhees (138) and Ridge (139). Hillsborough finished in front of Voorhees at the Skyland Conference Championships in October. All the attention has gone to Ridge and Voorhees this season, while Hillsborough has very quietly moved up the ranks.
“It really helps when you run under the radar,” Mayes said. “There’s no pressure and nobody expects you to do anything. When you surprise people, it’s so great.”
Junior Nicole Rittman ran a spectacular race as the team’s fourth finisher, hitting the wire in 20:19 for 74th place overall and No. 40 among team participants. Sophomore Amber Gorman rounded out the top five by placing 108th overall and 70th among team runners with a Holmdel best of 21:05.
Senior Michelle Dennis ran her personal record for the course four years after her older brother, Brian, made school history by placing third at the Meet of Champs. Michelle Dennis clocked in at 22:09 and teammate Caitlyn Kozlowski finished in 22:17.
“When you run your best on the last day, that’s all you can ask for,” Refi said. “The defining moment is to get on that podium on the last day. That’s when it matters.”
Hillsborough senior Jordan Magath competed in the boys’ race for the second straight year. Although he didn’t reach his goal of a new personal record or a spot on the podium, Magath took things in stride.
“I felt OK, but it just wasn’t my day,” said Magath, who finished 47th in 16:44. “It might not have been the result I wanted, but I still think I had a great season.”
Magath planned to draft off Manalapan’s Robby Andrews, who got away from him after the first mile. Magath rallied from way back to finish 10th in Group 4 the previous week but didn’t have the finishing kick to catch the pack this time.
Smolinka made sure the leaders didn’t get too far away from her in the girls’ race. She had much greater motivation to run hard this time, since her team was counting on her. Smolinka cherished both medals, for individual and team honors, but really enjoyed sharing the moment with her teammates.
“It’s so exciting,” Smolinka said. “We’ve all been talking about getting on the podium since the summer. Nobody noticed us all season. It’s so nice to be together on the podium.”