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Ridgewood jumpers, vaulters set records
Friday, February 5, 2010
BY TIM LEONARD
The Record
STAFF WRITER
https://www.northjersey.com/sports/83616987_Ridgewood_duo_set_records.html#
TOMS RIVER — It was easy to find a Ridgewood athlete at the North 1, Group 4 indoor track championships. All you had to do was look up.
There were Maroons flying higher than anyone at the Bennett Center on Thursday. Ridgewood boys and girls took first place in both the pole vault and the high jump, setting or tying meet records in the process.
Those results helped lead the Maroons to a second-place finish in the girls’ competition and a third-place finish for the boys. The Ridgewood boys scored 47 points. West Orange was the boys champion with 80 points. The Ridgewood girls finished with 41 1/2 points, well behind Randolph, which won the title with 105 points. Passaic Tech (34) and Clifton (26 1/2) came in third and fourth, respectively.
The top six finishers in each event advanced to the State group finals on Feb. 14 at the Bennett Center.
“All of us are super-dedicated. We practice every day like it’s a meet,” Ridgewood junior pole vaulter Kayla Polcari said. “There’s a lot of internal support.”
Polcari was able to clear 11 feet 6 inches on her first attempt, breaking the group record that was shared by her sister, Ann. She scraped the bar as she went over it, but it bobbed up and down a few times before steadying as Polcari watched hopefully from the landing pad. Emily Urciuoli of Clifton, who also had a share of the record, finished second at 11-0, more than a foot below her Passaic County record.
John Wisener won the boys pole vault in a jump-off, clearing 13 feet in fewer attempts to decide the event. That broke a record that was shared by George Mena of Clifton, who cleared 12-6 in 2008.
Both high jump medals were going to the same house. Tommy DeVita won the boys event by clearing 6-6, tying the record set by Marcos McKenzie of Eastside in 2008. Sarah DeVita took the girls event with a jump of 5-0, tying a record equaled by Brittney Kilkeny of North Bergen in 2009. Their younger sister, Mimi, took sixth in the pole vault.
“We always come in knowing we’re one of the best teams and trying to compete at that level,” Tommy DeVita said. “It’s nice that we can have two people be among the elite in their events.”
Kennedy also swept an event, winning both of the 55 hurdles races. Keshon Brown edged Josh Major of West Orange to win the boys 55 hurdles in 7.56. Jaivairia Bacote won the girls race in 8.56.
Amber Allen of Passaic Tech had one of the top individual performances of the day. Allen won the 55-meter dash and the 400, coming back later to contribute to PCT’s first-place finish in the 1,600 relay. Allen doesn’t normally compete in the 55, but won the event in 7.53 seconds, edging Julisa Isom of Kennedy, who ran 7.54. Allen will run the 400 and the relay at the State Group 4 meet.
https://www.northjersey.com/sports/83616987_Ridgewood_duo_set_records.html#
