So much for the dreaded sophomore slump.
In her second season on the Haddonfield Memorial High School cross-country team, 16-year-old Briana Gess is continuing the historic pace of her freshman season.
Gess remains undefeated this season by finishing first in the B Division race in 14:25.8, good for eighth best in state history, at the 42nd Manhattan Invitational on Oct. 11 at Van Cortlandt Park in the Bronx.
“I feel pretty good about my race. Wasn’t my best, but I’m still happy that I was able to drop time and our team did really well, so we got free shirts!” Gess said. “It’s such an honor to be added to the list of fastest New Jersey times, and hopefully I can keep moving up as I continue to go through high school.”
The state’s top distance runner, Gess scored a big win early in the season, placing first in the girls championship division race with an official time of 18:40 at the Briarwood Invitational at Fairmount Park in Philadelphia.
Gess, who won the Meet of Champions as well as the outdoor Meet of Champions 1,600 as a freshman last year, stayed in the pack for the first mile at the Briarwood Invitational before blowing the field away in the second mile as she went on to win by 48 seconds.
Dominant wins have become a theme for Gess after last season’s Meet of Champions performance, which she won by 27 seconds. Gess, who was 15 at the time, tore up the hilly Holmdel Park 5K course in 17:45, the fifth-fastest time ever.
In an uncanny set of interwoven connections, Gess’ early stardom is reminiscent of what New Jersey’s Erin Donohue, a 2008 Olympian in the 1500m, achieved more than a decade ago. Where did Donohue go to school? Haddonfield. Who coached Gess in middle school? Donohue. And by the way, who is the current Haddonfield girls’ assistant cross-country coach? Gess’ mother, Pam, a former Penn State heptathlete who scored in the NCAA championships.
Girls’ cross-country has long been a source of pride for Haddonfield as the team has won the Colonial Conference every year since 2002 and the sectional title each season since 2010. The school’s eight state championships have all come under head coach Mike Busarello who has been at the helm since 1987.
“The community has a rich, long tradition of not only kids running, but just people running,” Busarello said. “To run is something that is normal here.”
