The distance team entered the county meet set to score some big points in the 800, 1600, 3200, 4x800 and 4x400, despite the seniors having had the prom the night before. Although it did not go quite as we had hoped, still, a massive amount of points were accrued by the athletes in those events, resulting in a second-place finish behind Rancocas Valley in the overall team standings.
The 3200 was first and we had the top three seeds in the event with Enzo Corona, Sean Sooy and Ben Weiner. We knew there were two other athletes in the field (one from Shawnee and one from Rancocas Valley) who could be competitive. After the second lap where the pace dropped off, Ben Weiner went to the lead but was unable to string out the pack of five. He held the lead until the final lap when the “kicking” began. Off of the slow pace, the final 400 was fast, with Enzo closing the fastest to take the victory. He was followed by the Shawnee runner with Sean and Ben in third and fourth, giving the team twenty points.
The 4x800 relay (Matteo Evola, Andrew Free, Enzo Corona -on a double , Tate Midora) went next and we knew, once again, that Rancocas Valley and Shawnee would be competitive. We just wanted to keep Tate, our anchor runner, close so he could make a run at the victory. Unfortunately, after the first three legs, we were well behind and had to settle for a third place finish and six additional points.
The Open 800 went as expected. Bobby Poplau, Ben Realley and Tate Midora (on a double) were the top three seeds. With no one really close to Bobby, he decided to just go out and see how fast he could time trial an 800. The answer was - FAST! His 1:53.15 was an outdoor PR and a new County Meet Record! Ben and Tate fought off a challenge from an RV runner to take 2nd and 3rd with Tate setting a small PR in the process despite it being his second race of the meet! That gave us another twenty-four points to put us at fifty.
We only entered two athletes in the 1600 - Nick Kuenkel and Logan Bromley - but they made the most of it with a one-two finish. Nick went from the gun and ran an aggressive race. He was never challenged as he led from start to finish with a five second victory in 4:19.59. Logan raced the rest of the field and successfully fought of the challenge of two other sophomores over the final 200 to take second with a new PR of 4:24.41! Given the uneven way in which the race progressed, it is clear that Logan can run faster given the right race conditions! That gave us eighteen more points moving us to sixty eight.
In the final event, we were hoping to make a run at a victory in the 4x400 Meter Relay. However, the first three runners, Ben Realley, Nick Kuenkel and Matteo Evola, were showing the fatigue of their previous races and all were well off of their best times, leaving Bobby Poplau well behind. Bobby closed very well with a new relay PR of 49.8 but it was only good for third in the seeded heat and 5th over all (.01 seconds behind Shawnee’s time from heat 1). That gave us an additional two points bring the distance total to seventy (of the eighty points scored by the team).
Next up, the team will run a dual meet against CH East this week. We will be without our top distance runners who will skip the meet to train for the rest of the championship season - conference, sectionals, states and MOC.
Fundraising Goals
It is the mission of 4xAlumni to support the current crop of track and field and cross country athletes.
We are focusing on 5 major areas that we feel, with the support of the coaches, are important for this generation of student-athletes:
Offset or completely cover the cost of post-season events not sponsored by the school. This includes National Meets (cross country, indoor and outdoor track) and invitationals (Oregon, etc).
Award scholarships for deserving seniors.
Provide State Champions and School Record holders with gifts.
Support families with athletes who would like to attend a cross country camp but cannot afford it.
Provide funding for athletes needing physiotherapy who cannot afford it.
We currently only have the availability to collect funds via Venmo, but we are actively seeking ways to collect via credit card, Zelle, PayPal, and other forms to accommodate the ecosystem in 2024.
During the months of April, May, and June, we will be collecting funds that will directly contribute to scholarships for graduating seniors. Please consider donating to help fund our scholarship money.
Venmo: @ Cherokee4xalumni
Sectionals Meet Up
Looking forward to the end of the season, Cherokee will be competing in the Group 4 Sectionals at Pennsauken HS on May 31st and June 1st. Because of the proximity to local watering holes and Marlton, the 4xAlumni group will be meeting at Double Nickle to celebrate the season and get another chance to connect with others.
Please consider joining us after the track meet at Double Nickel (1585 Route 73 Pennsauken) at 3 pm on June 1st. We’ll have 4xAlumni gear to give away + much more. This is a 19/21+ event.
Consider filling out this Form so we can have an idea how many are attending.
About 4xAlumni
We are a non-profit organization with volunteer board members that seek to help provide funds that go directly to the current team. Our mission is:
to provide funding for travel and lodging to championship meets not covered by the school.
to provide scholarships to graduating seniors.
to provide recognition and awards to State Champion winners and new School Record holders.
to provide funding for current athletes who need assistance attending cross country camp.
to provide funding for current athletes who need assistance seeking treatment from injuries related to track/cross country.
Our Board
President: Jeff Storch ‘99
Vice President: Michelle (Bilicki) Wolosky ‘00
Secretary and Treasurer: Caitlin (O’Malley) Bertheaud ‘05
Social Media & Communication: Lisa Burkholder ‘06
Marketing & Fundraising: Marc Pelerin ‘02
Event Coordinator: Tim Haggerty ‘96
Team Liaison: Dave Sitzer ‘00
Voting Members: Joe Halin ‘00 & Sunny Patel ‘96
Venmo: @ Cherokee4xalumni