BRIDGETON – Slap a pair of spikes on the four Winslow Township sprinters, line them up and watch them spin to wins.
This winning formula, comprised of roughly 99 percent skill and a dash of remembering the baton, has worked in the past for speedsters Barry Cephas, Darin Washington, Reuben Johnson and Keith Robinson, but has never altered it.
But Saturday at the 65th annual Bridgeton Relays the 4x200 foursome took to the line a bit of knowledge, a goal that neither rain nor 65 years worth of competition could delay: setting a meet record at the state's oldest relay meet.
"Individually, we speak for ourselves," said coach Larry Hickman, speaking mainly of seniors Cephas and Washington, "but when we put the team together, they all win, they all elevate. That's what we stand for. This is something they can talk about for years to come."
In what Hickman calls "the godfather of relays," with he and his father having had competed in it, the Eagles ran a 1:27.9 to win the Group 4 race, snapping the Eagles' 2004 mark of 1:28.0 in which neither the seniors nor the second-year coach had a hand in.
Although given a 20 meter lead when receiving the handoff, Cephas needed to run a 20.4 split – the fastest of the meet and of his career – to seize the record.
"We knew what we had to do, we knew what the competition was so we ran against the clock," said Cephas, who also anchored his relay to a 42.9 victory in the 4x100 and was named the "Athlete of the Meet" by members of the press. "When I'm running, I always run against the clock."
They also ran against the rain. Rain pestered most of the meet, combining with lightning twice to halt the meet. After the second and last 30-minute stoppage, officials resumed action on the sleek track, but canceled all remaining field events, including the high jump, pole vault and shot put for the latter groups, and the 110 hurdles while counting all previous field scoring.
With the jumping pits soggy and pocked with puddles, scratching the events was the safe, if not sage, decision, but one that certainly left the end results in question.
Bridgeton defended home field for the second straight year, scoring 60 points mainly off of one win – a combined triple jump of 42-8.25 meters by Charles Allen and Michael Cisrow – and four silvers to hold off both Glassboro (57 points) and Holy Cross (51) to capture the Group 2 championship.
Also in Group 2, the Holy Cross relay of Rich Fisher, Matt Cusack, Terrance Osborne and Mike Sheehan, set the meet's other group record, winning the distance medley in a meet-best 10:43.8 – but that's not what it was shooting for.
The relay needed a time of 10:40 or faster to qualify for the Penn Relays but, knowing it could've ran faster if not for a slick track, will send it in for review anyway.
With the skies opening before the race, Sheehan, who split a 4:26 in the 1,600 leg, was just glad to get the race in.
"I was really happy," he said. "We could've had to wait and had to stay loose for another half hour."
Winslow may've gotten its glory in after a couple races, but Absegami left Bridgeton with the Group 4 championship after rallying back from third, thanks to clutch performances by Geoff Navarro, Ford Palmer, Kambui Little and Rasheed Grandy in the sprint medley and 4x400, to leapfrog Millville (43) and Washington Township (40) and starve off Vineland (45) and Egg Harbor Township (43).
A balanced effort by Highland (74 points) more than cancelled out the contributions by Kingsway senior RJ Page in Group 3, in which he nibbled at the Tartans' lead by bringing the Dragons (64) back to win the 4x100 and the sprint medley.
Highland's relay of Jamal Davis, Steve Tiss, Anthony Brown and Zaker Brown prevented Page from a third gold by taking the 4x400 in a meet-best 3:29.7.
Coach Bill Collins credits Jason Howitt, who joined Brown to win the 2x400 intermediate hurdles by nearly nine seconds in a meet-best 1:52.7, Brown and Davis for the win.
"They are the backbone of our all team. They do all the events," Collins said. "They were good last year and this year they got better yet. And Jamal is really starting to come into his own right now. He's probably the runner in South Jersey that nobody knows about."
Penns Grove led Metuchen in Group 1 before the last rain delay, but could breathe easier when Metuchen decided to start its two-hour commute early and left.
Before scoring a meet-high 86 points, thanks in part to Aaron Haywood's anchorage in the 4x100, 4x400 and the sprint medley, Penns Grove was reminded of its job by coach Tom Mason.
"There's no need to look over our shoulders, but we're just going to try to take care of business," he said.
What: The 65th annual Bridgeton Relays, the oldest in the state.
Group Champs: Bridgeton defended its Group 2 championship with 60 points, Highland won Group 3 with 74, Penns Grove took Group 1 with a meet-high 86 and Absegami rallied back to claim Group 4 with 53.
MVP: Winslow Township senior Barry Cephas was named the "Athlete of the Meet" for propelling the Eagles to a meet record in the 4x200.
By a Fraction: Given a small lead by teammates Alex Clemson, Ryan Tiernan and Greg Krause in the 4x400, Washington Township junior Xavier Fraction fended off Absegami closer Ford Palmer to narrowly win in a meet-best 8:07.
Quote: "You're put in that mode where you wonder 'Is he behind me? How far? How hard do I have to run? Did I lose him?'" Fraction said. "It's better to sit and kick and wait for him to make his move."
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