CHESEREK HAS A RUNNER-UP FINISH IN NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS IN OREGON
Soph. has greatest finish ever by a SBP x-country runner

Dec. 4, 2010

Edward Cheserek has been living a dream since arriving from Kenya over the summer.

On Saturday, his dream turned magical when he put up a superb effort while finishing second in the Nike National Championships in Oregon.

The 16-year-old sophomore capped his initial season in a Gray Bees uniform with a time of 16:01.5 in Portland and just missed catching pre-race favorite, Lukas Verzbicas of Illinois, at the finish line. Verzbicas, the 2009 Foot Locker National champion, came in only two seconds ahead of the charging Cheserek.

"Edward ran a great race and it was the perfect ending to his season," said St. Benedict's coach Marty Hannon. "We couldn't be prouder of him. He's just a great kid and deserves everything he accomplishes - on the track and beyond."

Cheserek's effort against a thoroughly loaded field in the mud at Portland Meadows bettered the sixth place effort put up by Brandon Jarrett '08, now at Harvard, in the 2007 Foot Locker Nationals in San Diego.

Cheserek's feat, however, may measure up to be just a little bit better than Jarrett's. He finished higher in the standings, was even closing in on Verzbicas, a world-class triathlon competitor, at the finish line and out-dueled last year's champion, Craig Lutz of Texas, coming down the stretch. Lutz finished third in 16:04.4.

He also avenged two earlier season defeats to Jim Rosa of West Windsor-Plainsboro North, who wound up way back in the pack in 78th after a 17:30.3. Rosa beat Cheserek with a record-setting effort in the Northeast Regional in New York a week earlier.

"Our plan was for him to go out and push the pace," explained Hannon on how they expected Cheserek to contend with the speed of his fellow competitors. "Edward kept pushing the pace and made those guys have to run hard until they started to drop off. He worked the plan to perfection."

Cheserek got out to his usual sizzling start among the field of 199 competitors and was in front for most of the first 2 miles of the 3.1 mile race - trading the lead with Lutz a number of times.

Verzbicas, however, made his big move with about three quarters of a mile left to get a four- or five-second bulge on Cheserek, who nearly wiped out the gap as the two came to the line while pushing Lutz to a distant third over the final 150 meters.

"This really was a magical season for Edward,'' said Hannon. ''He's an amazing talent and it's great to see him have this success after living in poverty in Kenya his whole life. "Running will help Edward get into a college and is a means to a better life for him and his family. It's his dream."

A dream Hannon and assistant coach Chelule Ngetich, will have to keep building upon over the next 2 1/2 years.

"We'll just have to take it one race at a time," said Hannon. "It puts special attention on Chelule and I to make sure Edward reaches his potential and continues to improve over the next couple of years. We're very excited."

--By Ron Jandoli

CHESEREK BATTLES FALLING TEMPERATURES; QUALIFIES FOR NATIONALS

Nov. 27, 2010

Edward Cheserek isn't quite used to the winter-like conditions he came across on Saturday in the Nike Northeast Regional Cross Country Championships.

But, despite having a gripping chill nearly take his breath away, the Kenyan-born Cheserek still had enough fortitude to finish second in Wappingers Falls, N.Y. and qualify for this Saturday's National Championships in Oregon.

Cheserek ran a 15:48.3, only nine seconds off the former course record, in weather conditions that saw flurries falling from the sky at the end of the race at Bowdoin Park on the banks of the Hudson River.

"The cold. I couldn't breath," said Cheserek soon after crossing the finish line. The sophomore said conditions rarely got this extreme in homeland, except maybe a few times at night during the winter season in July.

Even though he was hampered by the cold, only one person stood between Cheserek and the finish line. That was Jim Rosa of West Windsor-Plainsboro North, who put up a record-setting performance, taking three seconds off the previous standard with a scintillating run of 15:35.5.

"Jim Rosa is an outstanding runner - one of the best in the country," said St. Benedict's coach Marty Hannon.

Both Cheserek and Rosa bested a field of 245 runners from eight states and were among five qualifiers for the National Championships this Saturday (Dec. 4) in Portland. Rosa, who also beat Cheserek in the Manhattan Invitational earlier this year, will be among the favorites going into that race.

It looked as though Cheserek may have Rosa's number after losing by six seconds in The Bronx in their first meeting of the season. The St. Benedict's star tore up Bowdoin Park's first major hill at the 1 1/2-mile mark and built a 20-meter lead on the Rosa.

But Rosa wouldn't be broken and caught Cheserek by the time they entered the flat part of the course with about a mile left. Rosa then made his move over the last 1/2-mile and Cheserek didn't have an answer for the runner from Mercer County or the cold air filling his lungs.

"I was surprised," said Cheserek of Rosa's comeback after the uphill surge. "I am not used to the cold and I couldn't do anything when he got away. Maybe I could have won if I didn't have that problem.

"But it was a good run and I'll get another chance."

Notes: The 7th Annual Nike Nationals will take place at Portland Meadows - a horse track that will feature multiple loops and man-made obstacles for the x-country layout. The boys championship race will begin 1 p.m. (EST).

While Cheserek was competing in the Championship Race, the rest of his teammates competed in an earlier Open Race. Tahlief Jackson led the Gray Bees effort in that race with a 38-place finish with a time of 18:18.1 and was followed by Garland Miller (18:40.8), Adebayo Eisape (19:00.0), Jason Presley (19:58.8) and Morgan Kipchumba (20:10.9).

A special kudos has to go out to Dr. Paul Hetzel '62 and his son, Brian, for making the trek from Massachusetts to watch the Gray Bees runners, especially Cheserek. Dr. Paul was a great runner during his time at The Hive and was a member of the school's record-breaking 4x800-meter relay team. Brian has spent a great deal of time in Kenya and Tanzania, a country where his father helped establish a clinic, and spoke in the native dialect (Swahili) to Cheserek and St. Benedict's assistant coach Chelule Ngetich after the race.

--By Ron Jandoli

ANOTHER DAY, ANOTHER RECORD FOR CHESEREK
Sophomore breaks record that stood for 22 years

Nov. 6, 2010

Amazing. Incredible. Effortless.

Those were just some of the words heard bellowing out of the crowd and from coaches alike after Edward Cheserek's latest record-breaking feat.

The Gray Bees sophomore phenom shattered his third course record in 9 days when he ran a 15:18.45 to establish a new mark at the 54th New Jersey Catholic Track Conference Championships on Saturday in Elizabeth.

Cheserek took down the 22-year-old record of 15:28 on the 3.25 mile course at Warinanco Park that was set by Mike Mykytok of Bound Brook back in 1988.

"Really," said Cheserek when told of how old the record was. "I felt pretty good. My speed was right where I wanted today."

Cheserek wanted to finish the first mile under 4:50 and came in under that mark by four seconds. By then, he'd already built a 30-yard lead on runner-up finisher Morgan Pearson, the Delbarton runner who finished a distant second, 22 seconds behind.

It was the third course record in as many races for Cheserek. He also set course marks at Brookdale Park at the Essex County Championships on Oct. 29 with a 14:42 and at the state prep meet at Blair last Wednesday in 15:22.

"I wanted to get the record and it feels good to get it," he said.

The Gray Bees, which finished with 146 points, finished third as a team in the A Division standings behind champion Don Bosco Prep (100) and Delbarton (144).

The ever-steady Garland Miller came in second for coach Marty Hannon's team with an 18-place finish in 17:17.5. Tahlief Jackson (17:25), Adebayo Eisape (17:51) and Morgan Kipchumba (18:43) finished out the scoring for the Gray Bees.

But all the talk after the race was about Cheserek.

"Clearly Edward is a special kid," said coach Hannon. "I wasn't sure anyone could bring down that record. To see this record go down was amazing!"

Cheserek will now have a couple weeks of training before his stiffest test to date when all the top runners in New Jersey - the true "Meet of Champions" - are among the field at the Nike Northeast Regional on Nov. 27 at Bowdoin Park in Wappingers Falls, N.Y.

Included in the field in the regional test will be Jim Rosa from West Windsor-Plainsboro North, the same runner Cheserek lost to in the Manhattan Invitational earlier this year. But, in that race, Cheserek had only been training for less than two weeks after returning from stress fracture.

The top 5 runners from the regional test will advance into the 7th annual Nike Nationals on Dec. 4 at Portland Meadows in Oregon. Hannon hopes Cheserek will take his foot off the gas a little and just qualify for nationals, just one week later.

"My hope is that Edward can 'chill' for (the regionals) and qualify for nationals," explained Hannon. "It is very hard to run two flat out races two weeks in a row and not be tired on the second one. But the competitive juices will be flowing and I'm sure it will be hard for Edward to hold back. We'll see."

--By Ron Jandoli

CHESEREK LEADS GRAYS BEES TO ESSEX COUNTY CHAMPIONSHIP
Sophomore runs fastest 5-K in New Jersey history

Oct. 29, 2010

Edward Cheserek served notice that he will be a runner in the national title chase by season's end.

The sophomore sensation from Kenya won a showdown with Livingston's Jeramy Elkaim by surging ahead just before the two-mile mark and winning the Essex County Championships in record fashion.

Cheserek easily put away Elkaim and shattered the course record by 14 seconds and, while do so, ran the fastest 5-K time by a New Jersey high school runner in history with a clocking of 14:42 at Brookdale Park in Montclair.

Not to be lost in Cheserek's scintillating effort was the fact that St. Benedict's won its first team title since 2006 by edging Livingston for the county crown.

And what made the day even more special was that the man who was responsible for getting Cheserek to New Jersey from Kenya, Fr. Richard Quinn, was on hand to see the incredible showing. Quinn, who's worked in Kenya since 1972, was in his native New Jersey visiting on leave from his missionary in the African country dissected by the equator.

"It is so great seeing Edward again. He was a frightened young man when I first met him in Kenya and now he seems so well adjusted," said Fr. Quinn, a Maryknoll priest, who was also responsible for bringing Morgan Kipchumba stateside and to The Hive last year.

"I never thought I'd see him run and now I'm here. It's very rewarding to see Edward and Morgan and watching them run."

Cheserek, who's been going out of the gate at breakneck pace in most of his races thus far, sat back - at the request of his coaches - and stayed on his shoulder of Elkaim for the first mile and a half.

But, as the two runners approached the only hill on the course as they approached two miles, Cheserek made his move and Elkaim didn't have an answer. By the time they reached the two-mile marker, Cheserek's lead was 11 seconds and the only thing left to chance was whether or not he'd get the record.

Once Cheserek reached the final 100 meters on the track in the park, everyone in attendance knew the record was his as his crossed the line destroying the old record set a year ago by Verona's Dave Oster.

"It feels good,' said Cheserek. "I'm happy to get the record, but I think I can run even faster."

Elkaim, who set the NJSIAA Meet of Champions 3,200 record of 8:46.04 last spring, had nothing but praise when it was over.

"He's one of the most talented runners I've ever seen," Elkaim told The Star-Ledger. "He's strong and has plenty of foot speed. What he did today was ridiculous. He just broke me I guess and was the better runner."

Cheserek wasn't the only bright spot for the Gray Bee. Jason Presley helped St. Benedict' wrest the team title from three-time defending champion Millburn.

St. Benedict's trailed Livingston by two points after each team had four runners across. But Presley, a senior, came up with the race of his life, placing 29th in 17:13 - 58 seconds faster than the time he ran on the same course last year.

"Doc (coach Marty Hannon) said it could come down to our fifth guy, so it was time for me to step up and do something for the team," said Presley said, whose been the sixth-man all year, but nailed down the all-important fifth spot for his team this time. "This is pretty incredible to be one of the reasons we won."

Notes: The other runners who scored for the Gray Bees were Tahlief Jackson, who placed seventh in 16:20, Garland Miller (12th in 16:41) and Adebayo Eisape's (18th in 16:57). Kipchumba finished out of the scoring, but still ran a formidable 17:57 for a 54th place effort.

Besides Fr. Quinn, a number of alumni were also on hand to root on the new county champions. Some of the men cheering on their alma mater at an Alumni Reception set up at Brookdale Park were Wayne Litwick '53, who was the track coach from 1964 through '72, Bryan Scotland '05, a former star runner for Hannon, Leonard Andres '55, John Matthews IV '85, John Matthews III '59, Raf Sanchez '96 and Jonathan Nelson '83.

To view more photos of the race and the Alumni gather, please visit Mike Scanlan's website.

--By Ron Jandoli

CHESEREK JUST MISSES RECORD IN WINNING FOR 2ND TIME IN THREE OUTINGS
Water Polo and Soccer teams keep winning streaks alive

Oct. 16, 2010

The buzz about Edward Cheserek continues making its way up the Eastern Seaboard.

This week's stop was New England.

The sophomore sensation put forth perhaps the best race of his short, yet stunning rookie season when he just missed the course record while winning the Brown Invitational on Saturday in Rhode Island.

Cheserek shredded the 3.1-mile course at Goddard Park with a 15:00.8, No. 2 in course history, to win the Championship race in Warwick. He won by five seconds over John Murray of nearby Shrewsbury High and just missed the course record of 15:00 set in 2004 by Cory Thorne of Rhode Island.

This comes on the heels of his first placed effort two weeks ago American Independent Schools Championships in North Carolina and last week's runner-up finish in the loaded field at the Manhattan Invitational.

"He's getting stronger and stronger. Edward looked like he could have run another 5k when it was over," said St. Benedict's coach Marty Hannon. "We thought he was going to get the course record and go under 15, but just missed it."

Cheserek, who ran 4:38 for the first mile and 5:06 on the sandy, slippery part of the course for the second mile, shattered the school-record of 15:12 that Brandon Jarrett established on the same course in 2007.

Tahlief Jackson and Garland Miller also fared well in the race. Jackson, who ran in his first race as a member of the Gray Bees team since transferring into The Hive this summer, placed 39th with a time of 16:33.7, while Miller, who was toe-to-toe with Jackson, fell down the stretch run and finished in 16:53.2. Adebayo Eisape (17:47) and Morgan Kipchumba (18:00) also ran for Hannon's club.

Cheserek and his teammates will now return to New Jersey with their eyes squarely on the individual and team titles in the Essex County Championships on Oct. 29. The Alumni Association will be holding a gathering that day at Brookdale Park, so come out and root on the Gray Bees as they try to claim the county title. For further information about the Alumni reception, please contact Didier Jean-Baptiste at 973-792-5747.

The water polo team continues to make its way toward a .500 record.

Coach Glenn Cassidy's club moved to 7-9 on the year with their fourth straight triumph with a thrilling 15-13 victory over a club from Princeton on Saturday.

Anthony Nunez led the effort with five goals, while Love Mansuy produced a hat trick and Dennis Tassie and Charles Evans scored twice each when the Gray Bees played without two of its starters - Gio Urquilla (on a college visit) and Isaiah Del Rios (injured).

"I was very impressed with the overall team effort, especially without two starters," said Cassidy, whose team has won four straight games.

All told, seven players made it into the goal-scoring column - a first-time feat for one of Cassidy's clubs - and Andrew Caetano even managed to score his first varsity goal. Also scoring once was Gavin Mulholland and David Philemon.

"It's nice to have this little streak going and to get the record back to a more respectable 7-9," said Cassidy, whose club now has more than a week off before its next test against Lawrenceville (Oct. 27).

The soccer team ruined Pennington's Homecoming celebration Saturday night with its fifth successive triumph.

The Gray Bees came out and played with a purpose in a game that pitted last year's state Prep A Championship teams going head-to-head. And like last year when the Gray Bees captured its 21st straight state title, a dominating first half keyed the 4-1 effort.

Christiano Francois scored twice in the opening stanza - in the 8th and 28th minutes - to keep Pennington at bay.

Coach Jim Wandling's club upped the cushion to 3-0 when Cris Hernandez converted a feed from Musa Sackoon seven minutes into the second half. But unlike last year when Pennington rallied to within one when the Gray Bees prevailed, 3-2, this time around SBP wouldn't relent.

Any hope Pennington had of coming back again this year were dashed by Naoh Sadaoui's goal in the 63rd minute.

The Mercer County school did, however, become the third team to score against SBP's stingy defense this year when they hit the net, but that came with only 57 ticks left on the clock.

CHESEREK JOINS ELITE COMPANY ON THE X-COUNTRY CIRCUIT
Soccer teams caps 3-week road trip with pair of victories
Water polo team makes it two straight triumphs

Oct. 9, 2010

Jim Rosa of West Windsor-Plainsboro North is supposed to challenge for a national title by season's end.

St. Benedict's Edward Cheserek, however, made the star from Mercer County realize he will have company the entire way.

On Saturday, Cheserek ran should-to-shoulder with Rosa for much of the race and only a stumble separated the two standouts in the Eastern States Championship at the Manhattan Invitational in The Bronx.

Cheserek, who got tripped up less than a half-mile from the finish line, placed second to Rosa just two weeks after returning to training following an injury he suffered back in August. The sophomore turned in a time of 12.34, just 6 seconds behind Rosa after the two went head-to-head in a much-anticipated showdown at Van Cortlandt Park.

"I wanted to show everyone that I could run with the big boys," said Cheserek, who came to The Hive from Kenya in the summer. "I am happy with how I raced. We stayed together the whole way right until the end."

Rosa, who admitted that this was the toughest race he's ever run, couldn't believe the moxie of Cheserek, who, until last week, hadn't even run a race on American soil. He won a much smaller national independent schools race in his debut in N.C. on Oct. 2 and was right with the much-more heralded Rosa until the two tangled coming down the stretch.

"I've had tough competition before, but in terms of effort, that was the toughest," Rosa told The Star-Ledger after the race. "Every time I thought I had a gap on him and thought I had the race won, he'd come right back on me. He's an unbelievable runner."

Cheserek not only hung with Rosa, he beat some of the strongest and fastest runners the tri-state has to offer. He is anxious to see Rosa again next month in the Nike Northeast Regional Championships.

And, who knows, with more than just two weeks training, the outcome might be much different.

"It was nice to have great competition," said Cheserek. "He (Rosa) ran a great race."

Other Gray Bees runners who competed in the race were Adebayo Eisape (14:43), Morgan Kipchumba (15:20) and Jason Pressley (15:27).

To view more photos of the event, please visit Mike Scanlan's website.

The Gray Bees soccer team capped a long road trip that seemingly dragged on forever when the team was stuck on the bus heading to Connecticut for 8 1/2 hours Friday night.

Then, after surviving a traffic tie up that added an extra 5 hours to their trek, the Gray Bees were left without a field when they showed up for their game against Xavier Saturday afternoon.

Unplayable field conditions forced coach Jim Wandling's team to play at a nearby high school instead of at UConn. But to the Gray Bees credit, they went out a posted a commendable 1-0 victory over Xavier.

"To not get to our hotel until 4 a.m. and then be forced to switch fields after showing up, I was just happy to get out of there with a victory," said Wandling after Saturday's game. "I've seen challenges before, but what we went through the last 24 hours is incredible."

The Gray Bees, although scoring just once, were never in trouble against Xavier, as its 21-2 shot advantage would attest.

SBP scored the lone goal in the 21st minute when Musa Sackoon followed his own shot and scored off a rebound after Christiano Francois sent him into the box on a through ball.

The Gray Bees missed a couple of quality opportunities before and after the goal, but Wandling will give his team a pass. But there weren't any free passes on Sunday against undefeated Old Lyme, another Connecticut foe, and the Gray Bees looked fully recovered from their severe case of "bus-lag."

Wandling's club jumped all over the team that came into the contest at 9-0 and posted a resounding 7-0 victory. St. Benedict's ran out to a 3-0 first-half lead and never looked back. Noah Sadaoui opened the scoring just eight minutes into the game before Cris Hernandez and Jon Moraes capped first half effort with goals.

The Gray Bees (10-2) finished off Old Lyme in the second half behind goals from Leandro Lemache, Beau Gordon and Francois before Moraes knocked in his second.

The Gray Bees' trip to Connecticut capped an incredible, six-game road trip that began on Sept. 21. Wandling's club posted a 5-1 mark during that run and gave up just one goal and pumped in 18.

The Gray Bees return home, for the first time in 23 days, when it squares off against Hun at 3:30 on Tuesday at NJIT.

The Gray Bees water polo team made it two straight with its second straight victory of the season over Pingry.

Coach Glenn Cassidy's team traveled to Martinsville and received three goals apiece from Gio Urquilla and Anthony Nunez to post a 13-4 verdict over the Big Blue.

The Gray Bees got off to a slow start for the second successive outing, holding a slim 1-0 after the first quarter. But Cassidy's club started coming alive in the second period when they scored four times to take a 5-1 lead into intermission.

Dave Philemon, who scored twice, helped spark the team in the five-goal third quarter by producing a number of assists and steals as his team built a commanding, 10-2, spread and all but look up the outcome.

Isaiah Del Rios and Dennis Tassie also scored twice, while Love Mansuy added a single goal. Goalkeepers Kevin Gasper and Josue Del Rios played spectacular in net, while also contributing with a couple of assists.

"We had a slow start with memories of Wednesday," admitted Cassidy, whose team struggled early against Trinity (N.Y.) in its last outing. "(But) there's no question that the play of Philemon, especially in the third and fourth quarters, motivated the team."

--By Ron Jandoli

CHESEREK LIVES UP TO ALL THE HYPE: BIG TEST AHEAD
Soccer team drops second game of the season
Water polo team hangs tough in Conn.

Oct. 2, 2010

Edward Cheserek's long-awaited debut didn't disappoint.

The sophomore, who has been hyped since coming to The Hive from Kenya during the summer, ran for the first time in a Gray Bees uniform and bested the field for the title in the American Independent Schools Championships Saturday in Cary, N.C.

"We were excited to have him go in there and get a victory," said St. Benedict's coach Mary Hannon. "We knew he had a really good shot at winning, but it feels even better when he goes out and does it."

Cheserek, who didn't show much rust after returning to competitive running for the first time since suffering a stress fracture in August, won with a time of 15:24, which was good enough to beat out a pair of highly-touted North Carolina runners. He won by six seconds over Tom Graham of Cary and 11 seconds better than Scott Morgan of Winston Salem.

Cheserek's teammate and the runner whose been carrying the workload in his absence, Garland Miller, ran a very formidable race himself, scoring a medal with his 11th-place effort with a time of 16:58. That helped St. Benedict's finish second in the team standings behind Trinity Episcopal from Virginia.

"Edward ran very well for someone who missed a lot of training," said Hannon. "We're really looking forward to his next race."

Next up for Cheserek will be the Eastern States Championships next Saturday at the Manhattan Invitational at Van Cortlandt Park in The Bronx.

In a much-anticipated showdown, he will be among a talent-laden field, led by the meet favorite Jim Rosa of West Windsor-Plainsboro North. Rosa finished second in last year's Eastern States behind his brother, Joe, who set the meet record a year ago (12:03.8) on the 2.5-mile course. Joe Rosa is out for the season with a foot injury.

St. Benedict's soccer team has trailed in a game only twice this year. The only problem - both those games resulted in losses.

The Gray Bees fell behind in the first half for the second time all year, and for the second time, couldn't solve the defensive effort of the opposition while pushing forward for the final 40 minutes.

This time, it was Salesianum which stymied the potent offensive attack of coach Jim Wandling's team when the Gray Bees dropped a 1-0 verdict on Saturday night in Delaware.

Salesianum scored off a scramble with just 10 seconds left in the opening half and the Gray Bees could never solve the defensive shell of its Delaware foe.

It was eerily reminiscent of the season-opener, which Wandling's troops thoroughly dominated but failed to produce a goal and dropped a 1-0 decision to New York's Chaminade.

"As a coaching staff we realize just how unlucky the boys have been in our two losses this year," said Wandling. "We have dominated both games in almost every way, but have paid a very heavy price on the only two goals we have given up on the season. The boys have deserved better, but that doesn't make it any easier for them."

Like the Chaminade contest, the Gray Bees missed a couple quality chances early and saw a miscue by their own goalkeeper cost them a goal. And for the second time, the Gray Bees couldn't recover, despite out-shooting Salesianum, 23-2.

"We played the game the way it should be played." said Wandling. "Unfortunately, we made one mistake that cost us dearly. This is now the same story following both losses.

"There is a real challenge put in front of the boys on the team now. Their response to these two losses in the early stages of the season will define their character as a team."

The Gray Bees water polo team fell on hard times for the second straight weekend, but salvaged some solid play by the end of a four-game tournament in Connecticut.

Coach Glenn Cassidy's team lost the first two games of the Cardinal Invitational by a combined 20 goals, but righted the ship in time for its final two games.

The Gray Bees played Greenwich B in its third contest and dropped a tight 14-10 contest. Cassidy's club had turned a five-goal deficit into just two, 12-10, with 3:16 left to play. But Greenwich scored on a man-up situation to quell the Gray Bees momentum at the end. Anthony Nunez led the attack with five goals in that game.

In perhaps the best game of the entire tournament, the Gray Bees hooked up with Choate Rosemary. After building a 4-0 lead early, SBP was looking at a 10-8 deficit after three quarters.

David Philemon, who scored his first varsity goal in the first game of the tourney, scored again in this one to close the Gray Bees deficit to 10-9 with 2:58 left. Gio Urquilla, who made the All-Tournament team, squared the match only 50 seconds later.

Choate answered with 1:24 left on the clock to retake the lead. But, once again, Cassidy's club showed its mettle by pulling even on Nunez' goal with 30 seconds left. Choate, however, quickly answered with a goal of its own only 10 seconds later to register the 11-10 victory.

"I was very disappointed with (the first two games). We didn't play to our potential," said Cassidy. "However, I couldn't be upset with the effort and heart shown in the Choate game. The kids never quit and they were playing very well.

"While we have a lot to work on, I really think we're working much better as a team than we were all season and that we are playing good polo. We just need to take it a little bit higher to start earning those wins."

SOCCER TEAM WINS A TOUGH ONE ON THE ROAD IN PENNSYLVANIA
X-Country, Water Polo teams also in action during busing weekend

Sept. 25, 2010

St. Benedict's squandered a couple of early scoring opportunities that could have changed the whole complexion of Saturday's game.

Without the quick strike, however, coach Jim Wandling's team found themselves in a dogfight. But, once again, the Gray Bees found a way to pull out a tight game.

Noah Sadaoui broke a scoreless deadlock midway through the second half for the second straight outing with a goal off a header that helped propel St. Benedict's past Central Dauphin, 1-0, in Harrisburg, Pa.

"We could have put them away right out of the gate, but couldn't find a way to finish," said Wandling, whose team ran its winning streak to seven games. "We kept them in the game and, in turn, that allowed them to get more organized and made it more difficult on us."

Beau Gordon and Musa Sackoon each missed on quality chances at the game's outset. Gordon did a nice job beating two defenders into the box, but misfired on his shot by knocking it right at the goalie, while Sackoon missed the mark by firing from long range instead of taking it toward the keeper on a break.

But, like its last game against Peddie (a 3-0 victory), the Gray Bees found a way to finally put one away.

And just like Peddie, it was Sadaoui who came to the rescue by scoring off a cross, just over a charging goalkeeper. He re-directed a header, on the cross from Cris Hernandez, and the ball bounded off the post and into the goal with 21 minutes left in the game.

The Gray Bees defensive unit, which hasn't allowed a goal in its last seven outings, made the lone goal stand. Goalkeeper Tom Bull made 2 saves, although he was never seriously tested because of the stellar play of his front men, Spencer Hambleton, Dani Rodriguez, Luis Bejarano and Diego Ceron.

Sadaoui extended his team-leading goal-scoring total to 11 goals, while Hernandez handed out his 7th assist to go along with his seven goals this year.

"We're not happy with performances lately," said Wandling. "But Central Dauphin was a quality team and what matters most is that we won."

Coach Marty Hannon's cross country team had its final tune-up before the National Prep Championships next weekend in Cary, N.C. when both Edward Cheserek and transfer Tahlief Jackson will compete for the first time this season.

"It's been like holding back stallions," said Hannon. "But they've really been patient and we're excited to have them out there running with the rest of the team for the remainder of the season."

Without their two stars, the Gray Bees competed in the 44th Passaic County Coaches Invitational at Garret Mountain in West Paterson. Garland Miller placed just outside the top 10 with a time of 17:11, which was good enough for 11th place in the Group 4 race.

The Gray Bees were placed in the largest Group 4 classification, despite being one of the smaller sized schools in the meet. But that was fine with Hannon, who thinks his team benefits more from stiffer competition amongst the larger schools.

Miller's time, however, would have been good enough for first or second place in the other 3 group classifications used for the race.

"Garland is running great," said Hannon. "He and Tahlief should be quite close. (Our) top three will be amazing."

The water polo team traveled to Pennsylvania for the two-day, Beast of the East Tournament.

Coach Glenn Cassisdy's club salvaged a disappointing weekend with an 11-7 victory over Hazelton in the final match of the four-game tournament. Gio Urquilla and Love Mansuy led the way three goals apiece, while Anthony Nunez chipped in with 2.

The Gray Bees dropped two games on Friday, a 19-6 setback to North Penn and a 14-9 decision against Perkiomen Valley. Nunez led the way in the first game and Urquilla the second, each registering a hat trick.

On Saturday morning, Cassidy's club had a low-scoring battle with Wyoming Valley, but couldn't pull it out, losing 7-5 with Mansuy leading the way for SBP with 3 goals.

Mansuy finished the two-day spread with a team-leading 9 goals, while Urquilla and Nunez had 6 each.

CROSS COUNTRY TEAM SHOWS PLENTY OF IMPROVEMENT FROM 2009
Water Polo team has setback in season opener

Sept. 12, 2010

Despite missing two of its top three runners, the Gray Bees cross-country team put up a very formidable effort in the season-opening Newark Academy Invitational.

Coach Marty Hannon's runners, led by a third-place overall effort from Garland Miller, placed second in the team standings when Blair successfully defended its title in the 33rd Invitational in Livingston.

St. Benedict's was running without the services of an injured Edward Cheserek and transfer Tahlief Jackson.

Cheserek, the phenom from Kenya, who suffered a stress fracture in preseason training, has an outside chance of running in the Passaic County Coaches Invitational on Sept. 25. If not, he and Jackson should both be ready to compete on Oct. 2 in the National Prep Championships.

"When we get everyone healthy," stated Hannon, "we will have a shot at winning county's (Oct. 29) and state preps (Nov. 3)."

But, until then, Hannon is optimistic after seeing the times turned in Saturday by the lineup he put on the course.

Miller finished third with a time of 16:52, which is 28 seconds faster than the time he posted on the same course a year ago. Adebayo Eisape (17:58) and Morgan Kipchumba (18:02) each took more than a minute off their times from last season while finishing 9th and 11th, respectively. Jason Presley placed 12th in 18:04, 47 seconds better than the 2009 Invitational.

"I'm proud of these guys," said Hannon. "It's early in the season, but very positive." The water polo team also opened up its season with a game Friday afternoon. The Gray Bees dropped a 15-10 verdict to Germantown Academy in Pennsylvania.

Coach Glenn Cassidy's keep fighting to the final whistle, finishing strong with 6 goals in the final quarter.

"Disappointing start," said Cassidy, "but not discouraged. Saw some good things."

Click here for Cross Country News from the 2009 season.