Cranford Girls 2004 Preview

For four years Mallory Harlin put her indelible stamp on the Cranford High School Girls Cross Country and Track teams leading them to the state section title last fall and almost always was the first Cougar runner to finish, usually near the front of the pack.

Now with Harlin off to run for Williams College in Massachusetts, sophomore Laura Gallo off a spectacular freshman season is poised to continue where Harlin left off. Gallo ended her outdoor track season with a bang and even surprised her coach Ray White with a tenth place finish at the meet of champions in a solid 11:15 for 3200 meters.

Gallo continued her momentum in the summer with a solid 27:38 effort for four miles at the Firecracker Four Mile in Cranford. She placed fourth in her age group behind a 17 year old and two 19 year olds.

“ Mal helped Gallo tremendously last year, showing her the ropes and giving Gallo someone to shoot for. Gallo will be the girl ahead for others to shoot for and Nicole Cabrera will help to keep the team on track ,” said assistant coach Timothy Styler a former Cougar star runner.

“Laura had a tremendous finish to her season. Her hard work really paid off in the end,” said White.

The veteran coach is starting his 27th season with the girls since initiating the program in 1978. He has coached the boys since 1969, usually solo which didn’t always give him enough time to work with each team member. Now with Styler to help handle the boys, White is able to work with more of the team. With Harlin and Shannon Kilelee gone from last year, White will have a young led by three sophomores and four juniors.

“When any team graduates a leader, they look for someone to step up and take their place. This year Nicole Cabrera has shown her ability to bond with all the girls and keep them oriented on the task at hand. ,” said Styler.

“Also with the success at the sections last year this group showed themselves that they can be like the boys in terms of success. And we hope to build on that given that this is a young team ,” Styler added.

White admits that he had an extra incentive to start a girls program in 1978. The father of four daughters (and eleven grandchildren) White thought his daughters and their friends needed athletic outlets. At the time, Cranford didn’t have its own running track but somehow he has continued to make it work all these years.



Pushing Gallo, a second team all county selection a year ago, will be junior Jennifer Hanke, whose brother Josh runs for the boys’ team. Following close behind are juniors Allison Stolte, Kristen Ford and Cabrera, sophomore Jennifer Stolte,Allison’s younger sister. and freshman Erin Hannon. As he does with the boys, White preaches the team aspect of running and his girls tend to stay packed together. After dominating their section, the team did not perform as well as hoped for in the group championships at Holmdel State Park, a situation that White has tried to remedy by having summer training sessions at Holmdel. He was pleased with solid attendance and the girls’ commitment.

“I think they learned from last year. They are working harder and are dedicated to succeed,” said White.

Styler said the situation is reminiscent of the year after he graduated in 1999.
” I remember that the year I left everyone said the boys would not recover, yet they were very successful, Group 3 Cross Country Champions.. So indeed there is life after Mal, but she paved the way for these girls to follow in her footsteps. She was what the program needed over the years, she led by example and the girls know what kind of time she put in. ,” said Styler.