A South Preview

Before I we delve into A South, I'd like to apologize to everyone I missed in Saturday's preview issue. The Shore coaches did a great job of getting their team information to me and I planned to run it all. Of course, there is only so much paper to print the names on, so a significant amount of names were left off, and some of the exclusions had no rhyme or reason. Luckily, there are another two-plus months to sort out the madness.

Moving onto A South, where the two top dogs - Southern and Toms River North - will be reloading in hopes of separating themselves from the pack. Meanwhile, Jackson and Toms River East return a wave of key contributors and will likely catch up to the Rams and Mariners.

We'll start with the M's, and being a Seattle M's fan, it gives me warm and fuzzy feeling to see a team named the Mariners with some competence (even with a starting rotation comprised of four No. 5 starters, I'm still pumped about baseball season). TR North has won at least a share of A South for the past three years, but a fourth could be hard to come by. Still, the APP picked them fourth in A South last year for similar reasons and coach Matt Jelley's club isn't fooling me this time (I'm picking them second).

Unlike these Mariners, Toms River North should recover from heavy losses.

Jackson has the most impressive squad as far as experience goes and second year head coach Stephen Theobald has made his prescence felt in a short period of time. They have the best distance crop in the division with Kris Carle, Monroe Kearns, Austin Santillo, Anthony Meleo, and Ryan Fenimore. Eric Brown, Tracy Joshue, Ahmad Stokes, and Tito Nurundeen (speed demon on the soccer pitch) will hold down the fort in the sprints and, to a certain degree, the jumps. The Jags have style and horsepower to blow by the A South competition this year, although with their stength in the distance events, they will do so slowly and steadily.

Somewhere between losing so many seniors to graduation and sprinter Chris Cox heading North to Monmouth Regional, Southern had to feel as if the walls were falling down around it. The winning tradition carries weight during the dual meet season and can make for productive practice time, but with so many new faces that will have to come up with the same old points, that winning tradition may have to be re-installed over the course of the season. Coach Terry Miller admits that '07 will be a "rebuilding year of sorts," but the Rams still have the strength in numbers to be tough.

East is seems to be the trendy pick by the division coaches. No coach went into detail as to who exactly would win the division, but all of them singled out the TR East Raiders as a team to beat (unlike Oakland's gridiron version). East has its share of flaws, mainly in its depth at the throws and inexperience in the jumps. Kyle Perrone should be a strong No. 1 weight-thrower, and the talent in the jumps is there to offset some of coach Rob Roma's concerns. Paul Cordasco and Tyler Groves are capable sprinters, and Chris Rutherford is ready to break out in the hurdles in his junior season.

Lacey will be an interesting addition to A South after trying to keep its head above water in B South last season. The Lions had a pretty deep roster in B South, but their strength in numbers won't mean as much in a division packed with Group IV schools. Vinnie Elardo and John Provaznik will shine in the throws and jumps, respectively, and hope their teammates will shine along with him.

Toms River South has a weight-master of its own in Patrick Park, and like Elardo, will hope the depth around him comes together. The Indians have a strong junior class and senior Kyle Goodman is coming off a strong winter throwing the discus and shot put. Coach Mark O'Leary appears correct when he says his team will fair better in the big meets than it will in the duals.

Brick and Brick Memorial will battle with Lacey to stay out of the basement. Andrew Broduer has been banged up during the three track seasons, but coach Brian Decker says he's healthy, meaning he will be among the Shore's best distance runners. In his second season, Dragons coach Jim Calabro is still looking to establish a foundation for the Brick program. Basketball standout Mike Gawronski will bring some credibility to the program within the school, and Calabro hopes more top-notch athletes follow.

Potential Group/State Champions: Elardo (Lacey) - discus; Carle (Jackson) 3200; Park (TRS) - shot put; Goodman (TRS) - shot put; A.J. Gillman (TRN) - 100/110 hurdles; Kearns (Jackson) - 800; Meleo (Jackson) - 800; Broduer (Brick Mem.) - 1600; Fenimore (Jackson) - 1600; Provaznik (Lacey) - high jump.

Ocean County always has a lot to offer during the track season, and A South is only half the story. Stay tuned for the B South preview soon to follow.