On Saturday, September 7, Newark Academy cross country hosted the 47th Annual Bill Blaskopf Invitational. On the boys’ side, schools in attendance included Rutgers Prep, Blair Academy, St. Benedict’s Prep, Gill St. Bernard’s and Morristown Beard. For the girls, competitors included Oak Knoll, Rutgers Prep, Blair Academy, Gill St. Bernard’s, Morristown Bear and Mount St. Mary.

Newark Academy junior Connor Polen, finished first overall for the boys with a time of 16:55. Nicholas Troiano ‘25 of Morristown Beard came in behind him at 17:26. Other top finishers for the Newark Academy Minutemen included Brody Linenberg ‘25, who finished fourth with a time of 18:25 and Ariel Gorbaty ‘27 who finished seventh with a time of 19:34. These strong finishes added up to a team score of 45, placing the Minutemen in second overall, just one point behind the first-place team, Rutgers Prep.

The girls’ team finished 6th overall, led by a seventh-place finish from Sophia Garguilo ‘25 (22:12).

The Minutemen hope to start the regular season strong when they head to Branch Brook Park next Tuesday, September 17 for their first regular season meet.