LEAD GROUP: Princeton High boys’ cross country runner Alex Roth, left, races with the frontrunners in a recent meet. Last Saturday, junior star Roth took sixth individually at the Group 4 state championship meet at Holmdel, covering the 5-kilometer course in a time of 16:11. Roth’s heroics helped PHS finish fifth in the team standings and earn a wild card spot in the Meet of Champions (MOC), slated for November 21 at Holmdel. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

As the Princeton High boys’ cross country team hit the track to sharpen up for the Group 4 state championship meet with its final speed session, it was met with a drenching rain.

Undeterred by the miserable conditions, the runners zipped through their 400 intervals, laughing and flying through the rain drops.

PHS head coach Mark Shelley was not surprised by how his runners approached the workout.

“The guys really, really love each other, they pull for each other, ” said Shelley.

“They love running, they love what they do. It is a good blend of personalities and leadership. There is some goofing off but it keeps them loose.”

The team’s passion and upbeat approach translated into a stirring performance at the group meet at Holmdel last Saturday as PHS took fifth and ended up earning a wild card spot in the upcoming Meet of Champions (MOC). Junior star Alex Roth set the pace for the Little Tigers, taking sixth individually as he covered the 5-kilometer course in 16:11. The team’s top five runners averaged 16:56 in the competition, which was won by Old Bridge.

“They felt like they won a state title yesterday, they were so excited,” said Shelley, noting that it was the first time that the PHS boys’ team had qualified for the MOC since 1986.

“This is an historic season. PHS has never done anything close to this, averaging 16:56. I think it is the first PHS team to have ever averaged under 17:00 there. It has been a special season and yesterday was as excited as I have been athletically in a long time.”

Shelley sensed that his runners were primed to come through and achieve their goal of earning a spot at the MOC.

“They were appropriately focused,” said Shelley. “I don’t sit there and say we have to do this to win a state title. We give them a little guidance about the teams we are looking for, teams that can be a benchmark for us. We try not to over coach it. They felt ready to run yesterday, that is all you can ask.”

Roth was clearly ready for a big effort. “The course is really made for him, he is very strong and he can attack that hill well,” said Shelley of Roth.

“The race itself was faster, which certainly benefitted him. Last week he was eighth in the sectional and this week, he was sixth in the whole state. He beat a number of guys, who had beaten him last week. We think this is an all-time PHS school record on that course, the previous one was Zaid Smart at the MOC when he ran 16:24 five or six years ago.”

The rest of the PHS guys worked well together as sophomore Will Hare was 28th in 16:51 with sophomore Alex Ackerman coming in 59th in 17:11, senior Jeremy Taylor taking 62nd in 17:12, and junior Cy Watsky finishing 70th in 17:19.

“Part of what we preached is the pack mentality and we probably had the second best pack, besides Westfield, who just barely beat us,” said Shelley, noting that the 1986 PHS squad, which won the Group 2 title, averaged in the 17:30s. “We had four guys right together.”

Senior Taylor and junior Watsky brought experience to the PHS pack.

“Jeremy is a veteran, he has not had two bad races in a row,” said Shelley.

“The trend continues and he really had a good one on Saturday. Cy has been the most banged up of anybody, just wear and tear on the legs. This past week, he was there for the 400s and he did our 25-minute run on Friday, other than that he was on the bike every day.”

In Shelley’s view, the team’s depth and balance make it hard for anybody to beat.

“I think we are very consistent,” said Shelley. “What has made the difference, certainly with Alex and Will, nobody is going to go one-two on us. They might have a one and then you see Alex come in or have a two and then Will would come in. The back half of our group is better than the back half of their group.”

In addition, the Little Tigers have not backed down as the stakes have gotten higher.

“We improved from last week more than anyone else in the field,” said Shelley, whose team had placed third at the Central Jersey Group 4 sectional on November 7 at Thompson Park.

“We improved 10 seconds from Shore Coaches to today. I told them you have to keep that in perspective, you have continued on an upward trajectory where some teams have not.”

Noting that PHS was ranked 10th overall in the merged results from the group meets this weekend, Shelley is hoping his team can finish 10th or better at the MOC, which is taking place this Saturday at Holmdel. But no matter how it goes, it will be another important step for a program on the right track.

“It is all part of that process to get them to believe in what you do; to have confidence in the system, whatever the system is,” said Shelley, noting that PHS will also be competing in the Nike Regionals after Thanksgiving.

“They buy into it and it is only going to grow as you get more kids into the program. We are encouraged.”