CBA Cross Country Team Takes 1st Place At State Meet at Holmdel

On Saturday the winningest boys running team in state history took home the NJSIAA Non Public A championship -- for the 24th time.

The celebrated Christian Brothers Academy Boys Cross Country team zipped through the backwoods and fields of Holmdel Park Saturday to win the NJSIAA Non Public A Championship.  Sportswriter Jim Lambert said in the Star-Ledger that CBA "cranked out the greatest performance in meet and course history to take down two monumental records."  The Colts set a new team average, with 16:03.2 for the Holmdel course. The Lincroft team dominated the finish line. While Red Bank Catholic's Rob Napolitano took first place in the the race with 15:59, beating CBA's Mike McClemens by one second, the next five runners were all from CBA. In a video interview with NJRunners.com, McClemens said due to Hurricane Sandy, some members of the team missed a day or …

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CBA Runners Racing to Beat 2011's Amazing Success

Four of Christian Brothers Academy's top seven cross-country team runner have returned from the 2011 National Championship Team. Already, they are showing improvement.

Coming off its first national title and 17th Meet of Champions title, the Christian Brothers Academy cross-country team has its eyes set on another potential historic season. “We just want to be the best that we can possibly be,” head coach Tom Heath said. “We need to get to where they can run.” Seniors Jack Boyle of Avon, Bill Bragg of Middletown, and Aaron Liberatore of Marlboro and junior Mike McClemens of Millstone are the four returners from last year’s top seven. “I don’t think any of us will be happy unless we return and win the national championship again,” Bragg said. The team already indicated signs of being better than the 2011 squad. Heath said that during their preseason time trial on Friday, they averaged a school record 9:29…

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CBA Dubbed ESPN Champs

A look into the cross country honor

National Champs: CBA Cross Country

Win in Oregon garners the top status

The Christian Brothers Academy cross country team has earned distinction as the best in the nation.  The parochial boys' high school in the Lincroft section of Middletown won the 8th Nike Cross Nationals (NXN) Finals Saturday in a dramatic finish against a Texas contender. It was the first time the team has won the honor. The race was held in Portland Meadows Race Track, Portland, Oregon. Accounts from the race describe the boys pulled off a heart-thumping late-race surge. Coach Tom Heath's team included standouts George Kelly, Billy Bragg, Mike McClemons, Conrad Lippert, Aaron Liberatore and Jack Boyle. Here are some links to coverage by sports journalists who witnessed the race.

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CBA Still a Stand-Out in Cross Country

Edward Cheserek, a junior from St. Benedict's Prep in Newark, awes the crowd at the Shore Coaches Invitational Oct. 1.

Exuberant crowds gathered along the finish line in Holmdel Park Saturday to watch cross country racer Edward Cheserek, of St. Benedict's Prep in Newark, break the 5K course record. Cheserek finished the race in muddy conditions with a time of 14:53 to cheers. According to MileSplit.us, Cheserek beat Joe Rosa's historic 14:56 record, set when Rosa was a junior at West Windsor-Plainsboro North in 2009. Following Cheserek, almost a full minute later, were the second through sixth place winnners — all from Christian Brothers Academy, in the Lincroft section of Middletown. Read the Star Ledger's interview with second place winner CBA's Tim Gorman with 15:54, one of six CBA'ers who set personal best records in the race. Here are the top 10 …

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CBA Cross Country Stars Set to Shine

Shore Coaches Invitational meet will feature the Lincroft-based school team and other area champs.

Christian Brothers Academy (CBA) Colts, the top-ranked boys' cross country team in the nation, will be the featured star vying to hold onto its stellar rank in the annual Shore Coaches Invitational meet on Saturday at Holmdel Park. The event features more than 100 teams, on both the boys' and girls' sides, from around the state squaring off on the 5,000-meter course. There are six varsity races for each gender, based on school enrollment, as well as a champions race on each side featuring the top teams and individuals in the state. The varsity races begin at 10:10 a.m., and the last race is scheduled to go off at 5:15 p.m. The girls' championship race is at 2:55 p.m., followed by the boys' at 3:15 p.m. Leading the way on the boys' side is …

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