It took more than one of the fastest long-distance runners in the state for the Haddonfield girls’ track and field team to repeat as state champions.
The Bulldawgs won their second straight Group II championship and third in four years at the Group II state finals in South Plainfield on May 29 and 30.
The Haddonfield girls pulled out a title thanks to a combination of individual and team success.
Sophomore Briana Gess was a big part of the Bulldawgs’ title. One of the best long-distance runners in the state, Gess won the 800m, 1600m and 3200m runs at the Group II championships. Combined with a sixth-place finish in the 400m dash, Gess earned 31 points for her team.
Jason Russo, head coach for the girls’ team, said Gess was motivated to continue improving on the times she set during her freshman season.
“She’s very highly motivated on her own,” Russo said. “We’re just making sure that we don’t overdo it, that she’s getting in the right amount of work.”
Gess’ success continued at the Meet of Champions on June 3, where she defended her state championship in the 1600m. Gess ran a time of 4:48.05 to beat second place Julia Guerra of Indian Hills by more than three seconds.
As well as Gess performed, Haddonfield wouldn’t have been able to clinch the team championship without its relay teams. The 4x800m relay team finished in first place with a time of 9:33.37, finishing more than five seconds ahead of second place Sterling. The 4×400 relay team also put up points, finishing in second place with a time of 4:00.85.
The winning 4x800m relay team consisted of a pair of freshmen in Casey Clarke and Lilly Minor, sophomore Kaitlyn Bonnet and senior Julia Fonshell. The improvements of the underclassmen were a big reason for the team’s success.
“(They) had amazing improvement over the course of the season,” Russo said.
Kaitlyn was also a part of the 4x400m relay team that also included her older sister Carly, senior Gia DelDuca and sophomore Bridget Kane.
Russo was especially proud of DelDuca’s improvement. DelDuca led off for the team and ran her leg under a minute, setting the pace for the team.
“She saved her best for the end of the year,” Russo said.
The two relay teams were the difference in the final rankings, combining for 18 team points. This helped boost Haddonfield’s total to 53 points, giving it 13 more points than runners-up Deptford and Ramapo.
This year’s title was different than the ones the girls’ team won in 2012 and 2014. Haddonfield overcame a lot of adversity to win this year’s championship.
“We battled a lot of injuries, and the girls lost some meets that in the past they haven’t lost,” Russo said. “They didn’t lose focus and they didn’t beat themselves up too much. They kept moving forward.”
Russo added he is excited for the future of the girls’ team. In addition to Clarke and Minor, the Bulldawgs had a number of fast freshmen who have formed the foundation for the program’s future.
Russo believes the underclassmen will be motivated and ready next year to make a dash for a third straight state championship.
“They’re always looking to do what last year’s team did,” he said. “That’s not something for me to bring up, that’s something they want to.”
