By RICH FISHER
Contributing Editor
The Christian Brothers Academy, Lincroft, cross country team is in a rut. But it’s a rut that never gets old.
Every meet in which the Colts do something amazing, they follow up with something more amazing – which is why, when CBA runs in the Dec. 6 Nike Cross Nationals in Portland, Ore., Sean McCafferty feels good about his team’s chances.
“We definitely do,” the veteran coach said when asked if CBA has a shot to win its first national crown since 2011. “There are a few teams that are really good. Some of it is a roll of the dice, whoever has a good day. … A team from Colorado is probably the number one team and there are a few others who are close. We’re the closest to that number one team.”
The CBA cross country runners and coaches stand proud after winning their fourth straight Meet of Champions title and 28th overall on Nov. 15 at Holmdel Park. Photo by Larry Levanti/https://larrylevanti.com
There are plenty of reasons for McCafferty’s confidence. The Colts have a senior-laden lineup but numerous runners were competing on varsity for the first time as CBA graduated a strong senior class last year. Everyone stepped up.
In short, the Colts:
– Ran their unthinkable dual-meet winning streak to 400 over 51 years.
–Won the Shore A North Divisional Meet, the Varsity A Race at the Shore Coaches Invitational, Manhattan Invitational’s Eastern States Championship; and the Shore Conference championship without its top runner, senior Luke Hnatt.
– Won the NJSIAA Non-Public A group meet at Holmdel Park with an average time of 16:00 per runner.
That was just an appetizer.
Gavin Schmitt (left) and Luke Hnatt rejoice after Hnatt took first and Schmitt claimed second at the Meet of Champions. Photo by Larry Levanti/https://larrylevanti.com
In the Nov. 15 Meet of Champions at Holmdel Park, CBA won its fourth straight title and record 28th overall. The Colts broke the course record of 15:42 they set last year by averaging 15:40 this time. Hnatt was CBA’s third straight individual MOC winner in a time of 15:23. Junior Gavin Schmitt was second in 15:27.
Other Top-12 finishers were seniors Sean Galvin (7th, 15:47), Ryan Collins (10th, 15;50) and Wyatt Falkowski (12th, 15:54). Senior Matt McInerny (25th, 16:16) and Gavin’s brother, sophomore Liam Schmitt (33rd, 16:22), rounded out the CBA finishers.
McCafferty said the goal was to win, not re-set the record.
“I set up a game plan where we score whatever points I think we can score,” he said. “I give them a game plan that says, ‘You be here at this point, you be here at this point,’ and it sets them up for success in racing. If the (record) time comes out, the time comes out. I was surprised because this year, they hadn’t shown that yet. They really came through.”
They came through even more at the Nov. 22 Nike Northeast Regional at Bowdoin Park in Wappingers Falls, NY. CBA averaged a course record 15:45, going 14 seconds better than last year’s time. Its 33 points outdistanced second-place Haddonfield by 100, after defeating the same school by 65 in the MOC.
Hnatt (15:24) and Gavin Schmitt (15:25) were 2-3; Falkowski (15:52), Collins (15:58) and Galvin (16:04) finished 10-13-16; and McInerney (16:32) and Liam Schmitt (16:40) went 47-57.
CBA junior Gavin Schmitt heads for a second-place finish at the NJSIAA Meet of Champions. Photo by Larry Levanti/https://larrylevanti.com
“The Bowdoin pace, that was wild how well they ran there,” McCafferty said. “That course is slower than Holmdel by quite a bit. And for them to almost average the same time as they did at the Meet of Champs was nuts.
In assessing his lineup, McCafferty said Hnatt is the team’s quiet leader while Gavin Schmitt is the outspoken one.
“Those two have made a really good pair together up top,” the coach said. “You couldn’t ask for more out of them. They’re as good as Joe (Barrett) from last year and now we have two of them. They’re happy, positive kids. They always believe in themselves.”
McCafferty describes Falkowski, Collins and Gavin as “some of the toughest kids you can have.” Falkowski and Galvin suffered health issues in the summer and are just now rounding into full strength.
“Wyatt is starting to take advantage of his speed at the beginning and end of races,” McCafferty said. After Collins ran a sub-par Non-Public A meet McCafferty told him he had to do better, and he ran 40 seconds faster at the Meet of Champs. “He’s the type of kid that takes that challenge on,” the coach said.
CBA senior Luke Hnatt proudly hoists his trophy after becoming the third straight Colts runner to win an individual Meet of Champions title. Photo by Larry Levanti/https://larrylevanti.com
Collins has stepped up his intensity after “I had trouble getting him to practice freshman and sophomore year. He’s come such a long way in his dedication to his team.”
McInerny, who didn’t start running with the Colts until last April, and Liam Schmitt have both steadily improved. McCafferty said McInerny’s athleticism should help at nationals because it’s a muddy, sloppy trail. And the coach loves the enthusiasm that the younger Schmitt brings to the team as he begins to believe in himself more each day.
The Colts flew to Oregon on Dec. 3. It’s a group that McCafferty feels has the right mindset for a national race.
“They 100 percent do,” he said. “It’s a greatness you need, and I think these guys have something different than guys I’ve had in the past. In the past we’ve had two or three that ran great on certain days. These guys are very tough one through seven. At this point they’re super confident, which is great.”