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Murray and Burkert brothers complete high school wrestling careers

The high school careers of three of the greatest wrestlers ever produced by the Cranford youth programs came to an end this past weekend in the state finals in Atlantic City and while none of the trio accomplished their ultimate goal of finishing first, the final mat stories of Gavin Murray of Cranford and Ryan Burkert and Connor Burkert of St. Peter’s (Jersey City) Prep are far from being written. The stark contrast between the ending of their 2015 and 2014 seasons pinpoint the ebb and flow of emotions and the miniscule differences between success and disappointments in the highly competitive environment of top flight high school wrestlers. Murray, who finished fifth at 152 was joined on the podium by Cranford’s next great wrestler, junior Niko Cappello, who completed a 35-5 season by finishing seventh at 182. It was the first time since 1998 (Nik Fekete, Pat Ekstrom) that Cranford had placed two wrestlers in the top eight. The finals were contested from Friday night March 6 through Sunday March 8.

A year ago when all three were region champions, Murray defeated Connor Burkert 9-5 in the “Battle of Cranford” semifinals in the 138 pound weight class and narrowly lost in the finals to Ronnie Gentile of Paulsboro 7-6. Before his win over Connor Burkert, Murray had nearly been eliminated in the quarterfinals earlier in the day, facing a three-point deficit with less than a minute remaining in the third period when he reversed Paramus' Joe Travato and pinned him at the 5:03 mark to advance. This year it was Connor Burkert, who escaped twice from the verge of elimination. The first came Friday night in the pre-quarterfinals when Burkert rallied, flipped and pinned second seed Mark McCormick of Camden Catholic in the second overtime period. Burkert then added his second overtime victory in as many days with a 6-5 quarterfinals decision over Bergen Catholic's Laurien Anghelina in a tiebreaker. Burkert left no doubt about his semifinal match winning by major decision over Alex Sebahie of Paramus 17-5. Burkert was pleased to have enacted revenge on McCormick and Anghelina, who had each beaten him earlier in the year,

“Both had been very tough competitors. I know going into these matches I would have to wrestle the whole match without making any errors to cause me to get out of the match.  I have had a lot of help from my private coach Damion Logan from APEX and my school coaches to win these matches. I had to push the pace and just have fun. The key to winning these matches is just to treat them like another match and never give up. I came out on top for both these matches and I owe a lot of credit to my brother Ryan and my mom and dad for believing in me when only of few people did,” said Burkert, who came to Atlantic City without the cachet normally allotted to a fourth place state finisher, but Burkert was upset in his region 4 semifinal and had to wrestle back to gain the third slot.

            Burkert, who also finished seventh as a sophomore knew that short memories are a must in achieving success and he was able to quickly put the previous weekend behind him.

“The past is the past and leave it were it’s supposed to be. A loss does not define the person or wrestler you can be. You have to go to a dark place to achieve greatness and that's exactly where I was. I have had only had one region title and four district titles prior to this tournament but in the end it doesn't matter where you start, it’s how you finish the battles,” added Burkert, who lost in the finals to Kyle Bierdumpfel of Don Bosco Prep 8-2.

Burkert had an emotional Saturday, watching his twin brother Ryan, a state finalist in 2014 at 145, and a top contender and region champion at the same weight, lose 5-2 in the quarterfinals to Stephan Glasgow of Bound Brook. Less than an hour later, Ryan Burkert had his season ended by getting pinned  by Thomas Poklikuha  of Pinelands in 1:45 in a wrestle back.  Although he had an all winning Saturday, Connor was distraught over seeing his twin brother have his dreams dashed in such rapid fire manner.

“It is extremely hard to lose a quarterfinal match and have to come back and beat a really good wrestler to keep your season going. Ryan had every reason to believe he was going to be back in the finals with a good chance to win his weight class and he was not as focused in the wrestle back as he needed to be,” said Connor Burkert.

            Ryan Burkert, who lost to two time state champion David McFadden of DePaul in last year’s 145 pound final 4-3 had a tremendous senior season and was top ranked at 145 after beating previous number one Travis Vasquez of Delbarton in a state tournament team match. The twins finish their high school careers as two of the most accomplished wrestlers in the storied history of St Peter’s Prep. Earlier in the season, while competing in a tournament in Minnesota, they both reached the career 100-win milestone on the very same day. Ryan finished this season at 35-5 with 128 career victories and Connor was 35-8 with 125 wins against a difficult national schedule. The two will be teammates for the next four years at Hofstra University on Hempstead, NY.

Like Ryan Burkert, Murray had his state title dreams ended by another member of the Glasgow family of Bound Brook when Stephan’s older brother Sean edged Murray 8-6 in the 152 pound semifinal.  Glasgow struck quickly with a first period takedown and was able to fend off numerous challenges by Murray.  After being defeated 6-4 in the region 3 finals by eventual state champion Joe Tavoso of Delbarton, Murray defeated Andrew Meyers of Toms River East 3-0, Shane Sosinsky of Northern. Highlands 4-2 and Brandon Kui of DePaul 3-0 to reach the semifinals. Murray lost his first wrestle back to third place finisher Matt Wilhelm of Southern Regional 10-6 but took his fifth place match 2-1 against
Jake Maxwell of Buena 2-1 to finish his senior season 38-4.

 Murray graduates as one of the all-time greats setting the school record for wins 144, pins 77, wins in a season 40, consecutive wins 40, most pins as a freshmen 19 and won 12 of 17 tournament finals. He was clearly the team leader for Coach Pat Gorman’s talented young team that should be a force to be reckoned with over the next few seasons. Murray’s challenges only increase next season as he begins a college career at Purdue University in East Lafayette, IN. The Big Ten is clearly recognized as the nation’s top wrestling conference with five of the top ten teams in the country and an up and coming Rutgers team.

Not to be overshadowed was Cappello, who was Cranford’s busiest wrestler over the weekend finishing an impressive 4-2 and gaining the top eight podium with three straight wrestle back victories. Cappello began Friday night with an extremely difficult first round match against undefeated Chris Morgan of West Orange who won 7-4.

“I think he was getting better as his tournament went on, he was closing the gaps on his shots and creating better angles. He stayed busy and worked his way back into the mix,” said Gorman.

Faced with elimination, Cappello came back strong by defeating Rohan Phillip of Plainfield for the fourth time by a 5-1 score. Cappello had to go overtime to defeat Region 5 champion Eti-ini Udott of Piscataway 3-1.

“Niko's tough in overtime. He was in on a few shots but the finishes were not easy, the opponent had
good defense, in the end it was Niko’s persistence and gas tank that got him that win,” noted Gorman.

Cappello’s biggest victory came in the fourth round of wrestle backs when decisioned Region 7 champion Jason Martinak of  Haddon Twp. 5-3 to clinch a state placing.

“Certainly a meaningful one since that clinched the podium I am proud of his season
and where he ended up, He and I both know there’s more to accomplish more
points to score come next year,” added Gorman.

Cappello was finally defeated by third place finisher Nick DePalma of DePaul 7-0. Cappello won his 7th Place Match by forfeit over Joe Salvato of Toms River South.

Wrestling in his second state championship sophomore Tom DiGiovanni (Cranford) 31-9 won by major decision over Devin Garrido of North Bergen 11-0, before falling to three time state champion Nick Suriano of Bergen Catholic. It was the second straight week that DiGiovanni had faced a defending state champion, losing to Ty Agaisse of Delbarton in the regions. DiGiovanni finished his season at 31-9 with a wrestle back loss to Dylan Luciano of West Morris Central.

In his first state championship sophomore Chris Scorese lost an overtime match 7-5 to Avery Shay of Don Bosco. Scorese bounced back to defeat Region 8 champion Pedro Hernandez (Rancocas Valley) 8-2 before losing to Kareem Askew (Clifton. Scorese finished his impressive season 34-6.

“I think we all learned that Chris is a contender and a killer on the mat. He is quiet and overlooked by many but he is a winner and this year he was certainly a pinning machine for us,” said Gorman, who can now look back on a stepping stone season.

“I am excited where Cranford has gotten to and where we are headed, in the past as a team we strived to win a county title a district title, a conference title. Now we are expected to win these and the boys know it. Our focus has shifted to bigger things, section title, and group title, breaking into the top 20 and placing multiple wrestlers at the state level. We are right there and we are still a young team with a lot of good
wrestlers coming through the program that will be making an impact at the high school level in years to come. Each year we have done a little bit better than the year before, next year will be no different, never look back and always stay hungry. “

Four Cranford wrestlers heading to state finals in Atlantic City

                Nothing came easily for the Cranford Wrestling team at the Region 3 tournament held at Union High School the final two days of February but when the dust had settled the Cougars had four qualifiers who will continue their seasons into March at the state finals in Atlantic City March 6-7.  Of the four Cougars who advanced, senior Gavin Murray second at 152, sophomore Tom DiGiovanni third at 120 and junior Niko Cappello first at 182 qualified last year while sophomore Chris Scorese, second at 126 is making his first trip. After dominating their District 11 tournament last week, Cranford faced the added competition of district nine powers Delbarton, Hanover Park and Parsippany as well as South Plainfield which knocked them out of the state team tournament. 

                Cranford began the week with ten qualifiers, including six who had byes into Friday night’s quarterfinals but by the time Saturday morning dawned, they were down to four semi finalists. DiGiovanni had his hands full with defending state champion Ty Agaisse of Delbarton who scored a second round pin. Murray, Cappello and Scorese rolled through their matches while sophomore Anthony Capece (106), sophomore Vince Concina (132), junior David Bush (138) and sophomore Brian McGovern (145) all kept their hopes alive by winning first round wrestle backs. All four would lose their next match while DiGiovanni won two rounds of wrestle backs to qualify for a winner take all third place match against Phillip Angelo of Summit. DiGiovanni also qualified third as a freshman last year after also losing in the semi finals and winning two wrestle backs. For the second straight year, he defeated Angelo of Summit by one point to book his trip. DiGiovanni is now 6-0 over the past two seasons in the regions when facing a possible season ending loss. While he won 1-0 last year, DiGiovanni had a 3-1 lead in the third period when he was penalized a point for stalling but held on to win 3-2.

When Cappello took the mat for his 182 pound final against Rohan Phillip of Plainfield, the Cougars had already lost two final matches and while Cappello had guaranteed a spot in the state tournament, he to feel confident having previously defeated Phillip twice this season including a 9-3 victory in the Union County Finals in January. But Cappello faced immediate adversity as Phillip reversed him for a 2-0 lead in the first period. A second reversal in the second period left the score 4-2 heading into the third, with Cappello’s only scoring coming from two escapes. In danger of losing Cappello was able to execute a Merkle to nearly pin his opponent, gaining a 5-4 lead on the near fall. Cappello was unable to hold the lead as his quick opponent was able to escape tying the match. Cappello came very close to ending the match in regulation with a takedown, but the match went into overtime where Cappello took his opponent down for a 7-5 win and a huge of expression of joy and relief for Cappello and Coach Pat Gorman.

“We really needed that win after the type of day it had been,” said Gorman.

“He wrestled much better than he had in previous matches. As long as I had time left, I thought I would win,” said Cappello, who will next wrestle in Friday night’s pre-quarterfinal round against undefeated Region 4 champion Chris Morgan of West Orange.

                Although not ranked in the state’s top eight at 182, Cappello is not swayed.

“Rankings are just numbers next to people’s names. I just give it my best for six minutes no matter who the opponent is,” said Cappello.

                Murray ranked second in the state at 152 faced top ranked Joe Tavoso of Delbarton in a battle for top ranking in the state finals. Murray fell behind early, getting taken down once in each period. He fought back and nearly evened the match in the third period but was unable to turn his bulky opponent. Afterward, wearing a Purdue University hooded sweat shirt, Murray took an upbeat look at the defeat, his second this year.

“I would have liked to have won this match but next week is what it is really about. We are looking to win a state championship and we will have to work hard in practice to correct what went wrong,” said Murray.

                Tavoso had the size and strength that Murray rarely faced at 138 last year, but he would not second guess his decision to bypass 145 and move up two weight classes.

“It would not have been healthy for me to wrestle at 145. I would be cutting too much weight. I am never going to be the strongest wrestler at my weight class. It’s the way I am built,” added Murray, who will open as second seed and faces Joe Rocca of Queen of Peace in the preliminary round.

                For Scorese, who fell one point short of going to the state finals last year, winning his semi final match 11-6 against highly touted Anthony Fajardo of Boonton was a big relief and allowed him to enter his final match against two time state champ Anthony Cefolo of Hanover Park with a nothing to lose attitude. Cefolo quickly showed why he is one of the greatest wrestlers in recent state history by taking Scorese down six times before pinning him in the second round.

“I knew he was going to be tough to handle. He is so strong for his weight and is very quick. He is the best wrestler I have ever faced,’ said Scorese after the match.

“I accomplished my goal of making it to Atlantic City and my goal now is to win as many matches as possible. It will be a great experience and I plan to make the most of it.”

“He’s a very good wrestler. He has a bright future the next two years,” said Cefolo.

                Scorese has a very difficult opening match against Avery Shay of Don Bosco and if he wins would face second seed Ryan Pomrinca of North Hunterdon. For Gorman, the Region 3 co-coach of the year, the improved performance continues Cranford’s gradual climb into the state’s elite.

“I am proud of the way each of the ten wrestlers competed this weekend, even though some fell short of their goals they all played a pivotal part in helping Cranford reach new levels this season. I hope to our fans in the stands at Boardwalk Hall, Cranford has a reputation of traveling well, and there will be 100 plus shirts printed up for our fans.”

               

Cranford Wrestling Team takes District 11 Wrestling Title

                After finishing agonizingly short of their goal of winning the section title in a one point loss at South Plainfield on February 13, the Cranford Wrestling Team bounced back in the final team competition of the season by rolling to their second consecutive District 11 wrestling title contested at Westfield on Feb 20-21. With nine of their 14 wrestlers qualifying for the finals, there was not a great deal of suspense in the team battle as Cranford scored 203 points to easily outdistance Scotch Plains Fanwood which finished with 169. The districts begin the individual portion of the wrestling schedule leading to the state finals in Atlantic City the first week of March. For Cranford’s six champions, which broke the school record of five set numerous times, it meant immediate entry into the region quarterfinals Friday night February 27 at Union, while the three runner ups plus third place finisher heavyweight Kevin Doran will face a first round match on Wednesday night February 25.

                Two Cranford wrestlers junior Niko Cappello (182) and senior Gavin Murray (152) won their third career titles while sophomores Tom DiGiovanni, Chris Scorese and Vince Concina all won their second titles at 120, 126 and 132 pounds, respectively. Sophomore Anthony Capece also won at 106, while junior Dave Bush (138), sophomore Brian McGovern (145) and Andrew Tompkins (160) finished second. Starting with DiGiovanni at 120, Cranford wrestlers competed in seven straight finals, winning four. Capece, Cappello and Murray all earned top seeds in their weight classes, while Scorese is a second seed, DiGiovanni is fourth at 120 and Concina is seventh in a loaded 132 class.

Murray won at 138 last year and 132 in 2013. Cappello prevailed at 160 last season and at 145 in 2013.   DiGiovanni,   Scorese and Concina won at 113, 120 and 132, respectively, last season. Concina’s other title came at District 19 while competing for Bishop Ahr.

                Murray, second in the state last year at 138, spent less than six minutes on the mat in his two wins, pinning Majid Abdur Rahman Rahway in 2:53.  Murray, a virtual unknown in state circles at this time last year, does not approach the state tournament differently from his rung as the second ranked wrestler at 152.

“Last year I did not look past the next match and it worked out. In the regions, the top rated wrestler (Travis Vasquez of Delbarton) was upset in the previous round and I faced Alex Murray instead,” said Murray, who did ten wind sprints after his match “to keep in shape”.

“There are very good wrestlers out there who may not be ranked but are looking for their chance to make a big splash in the state tournament. Everybody at this level is dangerous and looking ahead too far will end your season quick,” added Murray, who insists that nobody will outwork him in practice.

 “Coach Bones (Cranford Assistant Coach Justin Bonitatis, a College All American at TCNJ), pushes me hard every day in the wrestling room and gives me the challenges I will be facing in the states.”

                Scorese, who was Outstanding Wrestler in the district last year at 120, was dominant in defending his title without relinquishing a point. He blanked Jashmar Phillippe of SPF 10-0 in the finals after pinning in 56 seconds in the semi-finals.

“I am much stronger than I was last year. I came so close to Atlantic City last year,” said Scorese, who had a big confidence booster when he recently defeated Atlantic City qualifier Ryan Walsh of South Plainfield in the state section final.

Concina scored four takedowns in a dominant 8-2 win over Devin Jefferson of Rahway. After the match, Concina pumped his fast and high fived his coaches and teammates in a showing of happiness and relief.

“It feels good to win again. I had lost a bunch of close matches in a row. I have not had the season I thought I had but the states are a new chance to finish up strong,” said Concina, who enjoys the daily competition Cranford’s talented middleweight wrestlers afford him.

“We have so many good wrestlers. Every day practice is like a war but it prepares you for the matches,” added Concina.

                Cappello, who has worn off the rigors of an intense football season, won his 19^th straight match and is now 29-3 for the season. His 9-3 victory over Jaylen Bryant of SPF exhibited his brute strength and impressive mobility. Several times, Cappello allowed his opponent a one point escape only to take him down again. Cappello, who qualified for Atlantic City last year as a third place finisher is hoping to get there as a region winner.

“I let him up so I could take him down again. I was able to get my shots in and control the match. Having gone there once, I am aware of what I have to do at the regions. I have a good focus and am ready to win,” said Cappello.

                DiGiovanni blanked Jack Cannon of SPF 9-0 in the 120 finals, but now faces an incredibly challenging region that includes defending 106 pound state champion Ty Agaisse of Delbarton and two other highly ranked wrestlers; Lou Ramio of Hanover Park and Phillip Angelo of Summit.

“It is not going to be easy but I am confident I can get back to AC again this year. Except for Agaisse, it’s the same group as last year” said DiGiovanni, who lost to eventual region champion Ramio in the semifinals but bounced back to win his wrestle back semifinal and defeated Angelo 1-0 in the third place match at 113.

               

                Capece started the final round by winning by major decision over Sabri Murray of Rahway 12-3. Capece also scored a flurry of takedowns in his 14-2 semifinal match.

“I am much strong this year. Last year I was very light for 106. Moving up to 113 was good practice for me. I am ready for anything,” said Capece.

                Just missing the group of ten was senior Nick Ballas, a region qualifier last year, who completed an excellent career with a heartbreaking 8-7 loss in the third place match.

“I wish I could have gone another week, but I will be there cheering everybody on. Coach Gorman has built a great program and Cranford is here to stay.”

               

“

Cranford swimming and wrestling teams excel

It was nearly a doubly lucky Friday the 13^th for Cranford’s two powerful Winter sports teams but

The wrestlers fell one point short of matching the girls swimming team as first time sectional champions when they dropped a heartbreaking 25-24 match at perennial power South Plainfield. Thirty miles to the south at Neptune Aquatic Center on Friday night, the girls, swimming with heavy hearts and the memory of deceased team member Justin Juzefyk, swam one of their best meets and clobbered top seed Summit 105-65.

“Friday night was an exciting time for Cranford Athletics having both swimming and wrestling competing for sectional titles at the same time.  We are very proud of both programs for their success so far this season.  Last Friday was the result of many hours and years of preparation by these athletes and coaches,” said Athletic Director Darren Torsone.

            As she has for four brilliant years, senior Julie Byrne led the swimming team by winning two individual events and swam on two winning relays. Byrne took first in her specialties, the 200-yard individual medley in 2:06.66 and the 100 butterfly in 57.29. She was joined in the quadruple winners’ circle by spectacular freshman Emily Wilson who swept the freestyle sprints, winning the 50 free in 24.75 and the 100 free in 54.23 and also swam on the winning 200 yard medley and 200 yard freestyle relays. Byrne is happy to pass the torch to such a talented freshman.

“Emily Wilson is a terrific swimmer. She is having a fantastic season as a freshman and I know she will continue to grow and improve over the next three years. She has a lot of talent and potential and I know the team will continue to succeed with her contributions, “said Byrne.

            In addition to Wilson, sophomores Isabella DeSimone, and Amelia Templeton, have helped the team dominate the 50 and 100 yard freestyle events. Junior Sarah Turkavage joined Wilson and Byrne as double winners by taking first in the 200 yard freestyle (2:02.90) and the 500 yard freestyle (5:17.21). Cranford won the first seven events of the day as it built an early lead in a rematch of its 96-74 win over Summit on Dec. 4. After three years of swimming coed meets, Byrne was thrilled to cap her senior year with a championship.

“Winning a sectional title my senior year was so exciting. Our team has worked hard for this and I'm so proud of our accomplishment. Our success has to be credited to our two coaches, Coach Kolesa and Coach Donnelly. They have put a lot of hard work into our season and have supported us through everything,” said Byrne.

            Veteran Coach Barb Kolesa saw the focus of her season change tragically Juzefy, a member of the Cranford boys swimming team, was killed in a car accident on Feb. 3.

“We were just getting ready for the State Team Competition when we received the

news that Justin had died.  Many of our swimmers took it hard,” said Kolesa, who tried to help the team through its ordeal.

“We met at the pool the day he passed and talked, cried and did our best to cope with the news.  The team attended his memorial service together and being together through the whole ordeal helped the team cope with the tragedy. The team decided that all swims, and swim meets would be dedicated to the memory of Justin Juzefyk.”

In the first year that Cranford, separated from a co-ed into two separate programs, the sectional title fulfilled and even surpassed Kolesa’s hopes.

“I always believed that the team was capable of winning a sectional title.  We have a very talented group of swimmers and a lot of depth.  In regards to our sectional win, my prediction was that we were going to win by a close margin of around ten points.  The girls surpassed my expectations when they defeated Summit by over30 points.  I thought the meet was going to be determined by the last relay, however,

the girls already had the meet won after the backstroke event, two events before the end,” said Kolesa.

  "The other three years have been really exciting and we’ve gotten really close with the boys team. But, being able to be a girls team and win a sectional title has been really special for us,” said Byrne.

            Coach Patrick Gorman has gradually built the Cranford Wrestling program into the best in Union County and has held its own with some of the state’s renown powers. That fact was again made apparent in the final week of dual matches when the Cougars turned back perennial power Long Branch, the 18^th ranked team in the state, 34-28 on Wednesday February 11 before a raucous crowd at sold out Martin Gym in Cranford.

“It was a big stepping stone victory for us and the fans were great,” said Gorman.

Sophomore Tom DiGiovanni, opened things with an exciting 8-6 victory at 120 followed by another pin from Sophomore Chris Scorese at 126. Junior Dave Busch scored a late take down to win at 138 and sophomore Brian McGovern won 6-3 at 145. Senior Captain Gavin Murray wasted no time in securing a pin at 152 to extend the early lead 21-3. Junior Niko Cappello added a pin at 182 to push the lead to 27-10 and senior captain Nick Ballas added four big points with a 9-1 major decision. With a 31-24 lead sophomore Anthony Capece clinched the match with an 8-3 victory at 106. As the clock ticked down the final seconds in the third period the Cranford fans were all on their feet cheering on, knowing the team effort had advanced Cranford to the state sectional finals.

Against a seasoned South Plainfield team playing in one of the toughest home venues, the Cougars fought SPF even, splitting the 14 matches. DiGiovanni won by pin, Scorese took a close decision, McGovern took another impressive win, Murray won by major decision, Cappello and Ballas won tough matches and heavyweight Kevin Doran took an impressive 1-0 victory.

For the wrestlers, it is now on to the individual state tournament phase of their schedule which begins this weekend with the District 11 tournament at Westfield. Cranford is heavily favored to defend its title. 

Julie Byrne

             If Julie Byrne had decided not to swim her senior year she still would have been remembered as one of Union County’s greatest swimmers and the Cranford record holder in nearly every event she ever tried. But Byrne, who will swim for Bucknell next year, has continued her upward ascent, breaking her own records and leading the Cranford Girls team to a historic season.

At the Union County Championships in January, the Cranford senior added to her legacy as she broke her own meet record and had a pair of individual victories at Rutgers University in Piscataway. Byrne won the 200-yard individual medley in 2:05.74, snapping her previous record of 2:06.00, set last season. She also won the 100 Butterfly for the fourth straight season in 56.76 to help Cranford finish third in the team standings with 259 points. In their first year as a girl’s team, Cranford has a 9-2 record and is hoping to win the 2015 NJSIAA Central, Group C title, which would be the first state championship in school history.

“Looking back at my county career I feel as if I can walk away from this experience with more than just individual wins. I learned how to race my competition and embrace the pressure that every swimmer feels before a race,” said Byrne.

“The individual wins were very exciting for me. Being able to win one event, 100 butterfly, all four years is something I was proud of and worked very hard for. Also being able to win the 200 IM two years in a row was very exciting. I wouldn't have changed anything over the past four years because I feel like I have grown through this experience. “

            Although choosing a college was a long process Byrne considered it enjoyable. Byrne had her choice of many fine schools but decided on Bucknell, in rustic Lewisburg, PA.

“I chose Bucknell over the other schools was because I felt that it was a perfect fit for me. I fell in love with the campus as soon as I saw it and meeting the coach and team confirmed my decision to attend,” said Byrne, who is not certain whether she will specialize in fewer events.

“I like to keep my options open and experiment in different events. Some of the events I like the most have been unexpected. “

For her first three years, Byrne competed primarily against boys in Cranford’s dual coed meets but this season, she has only faced girls, a development Byrne believes has helped the team..

“I think the girls on our team were able to focus and felt more confident racing other girls, and this is evident in our results. I think both the boys and girls team are doing a great job for our first year as a split team and I look forward to seeing how we finish out the season. “

http://highschoolsports.nj.com/news/article/-5970448319923884119/njcom-girls-swimming-athlete-of

-the-week-julie-byrne-of-cranford-week-7/

            Although a great individual talent, Byrne seems to be even more excited when her teammates are involved. Byrne joined junior Ashley Cave, sophomore Bella DeSimone and freshmen Emily Wilson to break school records in the 400 yard medley and 400 yard freestyle relays and finished second in the county in each.

“It was so exciting being on such a strong relay team. We were able to go into counties and compete. We were extremely pleased with our second place finishes and were happy to be able to start and end the day with such great races,” said Byrne, who was also a contributing member on cross country and track her first two years.

“I think the most memorable part of my high school swimming career would be my teammates. I met and became friends with amazing people. Our team became one huge family. Everyone has been supportive and always there for each other in every way possible,” said Byrne.

As a junior followed her impressive county performance with another quality showing at the NJSIAA Meet of Champions. She finished in fourth place in the 200 IM, recording a time of 2:06.35 in the final. She entered the final as the top seed after registering a time of 2:05.64 in the preliminaries. Byrne also finished in eighth place at M of C in the 100 fly with a time of 58.11.

"Going into the Meet of Champions was really exciting," Byrne said. "The competition there is very excellent. I got fourth in the IM, which was disappointing, but the girls who came that day and raced really deserved it for their outstanding race. I didn't have a great race that day, but those races help me train harder."

Although swimming take up much of her time Burke also enjoys a variety of activities like listening to music, going to the beach in the summer, baking, and going out with her friends.  

Unfortunately the season has been marred with the tragic death of junior Justin Juzefyk in an automobile accident on February 3.

“Justin was an amazing person and will be greatly missed. We have decided to dedicate the rest of our season to him. I am extremely thankful for my team and couldn't imagine my high school swimming career with any other teammates. “