BCC cross country team looking to improve

Geoff Harrison promised to deliver a national-caliber cross country program to Brookdale Community College, and he’s delivering.

The former Red Bank Regional High School track and field coach begins his second year at BCC noting that “things are fantastic.”

In the program’s inaugural season in 2009, the Jersey Blues men took third in Region XIX and 11th at the National Junior College Athletic Association’s Division III national championships.

This fall, Harrison expects to contend for the region title and finish in the top 10 at the national championships.

“The goal is to do better than last year,” said Harrison, whose team is preseason ranked No. 10.

To help the Blues meet that goal, they have a very strong incoming group of freshmen led by RBR grad John Arnone, Mater Dei grad Peter O’Boyle, and James Dalton (St. Rose High School of Belmar via Long Branch).

Also included in the class are Gary

Brown (Matawan High School), Ali Fakhrvadek (East Brunswick), Mathew Foulks (Middletown North), Joe Friscia (Red Bank Regional), Josh Korman (Colts Neck) and Jeff Leury (Matawan).

This incoming class makes the team that finished 11th in the country deeper and more talented up and down the lineup.

Returning to the Blues are their top two runners from last year, sophomores Ryan Lundy (Mater Dei) and Alex Moran (Shore Regional).

Lundy was the team’s top runner throughout the season and took eighth at the region championships.

Moran is quite a story. He never ran cross country or track. At Shore Regional he played soccer. He gave cross country a try last fall and realized he may have gotten his sports wrong in his school. He was 11th at the region race and the team’s top runner at the national championships.

Sophomores Will Alston (Matawan) and Mat Manglona (Matawan) were part of that first BCC team and are back.

When the Region XIX Championships run on Oct. 30, BCC will have the home course edge. Brookdale is hosting the meet at Thompson Park. Harrison has etched out 8K (men) and 5K (women) courses in the park. The courses are flat (some running in the woods) and fast. General knowledge of the course could give the BCC harries an edge.

Brookdale will begin its cross country season on Saturday (Sept. 11) in a tri-meet at Holmdel Park against West Point Prep and Ocean County College.

Other meets include a trip to Carlisle. Pa., for the Dickinson Long/Short Invitational on Sept. 18, the Osprey Open in Pomona at Stockton College, and the Gettysburg Invitational on Oct. 16, which will be the Blues’ final tune-up before hosting Region XIX.

This year, the Division III national championships are at Sunken Meadow State Park on Long Island, N.Y., home course of Suffolk County College.

Brookdale’s women’s program is still developing, and anyone who is interested in competing for the Jersey Blues is welcome to join the team.