BY LAILA MOHAMED-ALI
The boys cross-country team competed at NJSIAA Sectionals where Daniel McFarland and Ronald Ciaccia qualified for the Group IV State Championship. The boys and girls raced well in the GMCs, with the boys placing seventh and the girls placing fifth.
After placing second in the Divisional meet, the boys got to compete at Sectionals as a team. “We worked very hard over the season to prepare for this race. This is what everyone waits for during cross country season,” said Veer Shah. “
Ciaccia and McFarland placed in the top 15 at Sectionals, which qualified them for the Group IV Championship. “It shows my training worked because I recently competed at Meet of Champions. Meet of Champs was my only goal of the season, and only the fastest runners get to race there,” said Ciaccia, who got the chance to compete against the top 150 runners in New Jersey.
McFarland, an outstanding runner this year, placed first in the 5000-meter race at the Thompson Park Class Meet on September 27. “It felt really good to come out on top and win the whole meet, especially because I have been working very hard all offseason for a moment like this,” said McFarland.
In GMCs, the boys placed seventh and the girls placed fifth. These high scores marked significant accomplishments for the team. “It felt good placing that high considering the ups and downs we faced and the teams we were going against,” said Amy Valazza.
The boy’s senior race at the beginning of the season resulted in a proud victory with Ciaccia placing first and Jason Kasoff placing second overall. “It felt great to place so high for my team, especially since we have been working so hard over the summer,” said Jason Kasoff, “It showed that all of my hard work was finally paying off for my last cross-country season.”
The team made great use of their offseason by training hard. Conditioning prepared them to improve their times this season. “Putting in countless hours throughout the summer, showing up for practices and captains’ practices, keeping each other accountable and really focusing on the summer training helped us start the season in shape and prepared,” said Paulina Lewczuk.
Posted on 11/20/25
Photos by Lor Photography
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