COMING next week:
Part two of our
Fall High School Sports Preview www.southjerseysportsweekly.com
AUG. 28-SEPT. 3, 2019
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Title Town
Winning at Moorestown isn’t new, but after a banner year in 2018-19, when nine different programs raised trophies, what’s the secret behind the Quakers’ success? By RYAN LAWRENCE Sports Editor
Summer was still in session and the opening of school was three weeks away, but Moorestown High School was buzzing during the second full week of August. After back-to-back rainy mornings, the football team was taking advantage of the weather to run through its third practice of the preseason. Across the parking lot, 45 girls dotted the courts for the first week of tennis practice. The Quakers’ popular program had so many students come out that it will likely need to make cuts. On another field on campus, a group of a few dozen girls formed two separate lines to create a running lane for freshman soccer player Zoe Lam. When the ninth-grader completed the half field of suicide sprints in under 30 seconds (she did it in 28, to be exact) the girls soccer team broke out into claps and cheers. Lam’s run ended practice early, saving everyone extra running. The camaraderie across all of the fields and courts was palpable in the attitude and energy of the students. “I just think that the school as a whole is like a second family,” said senior soccer player Abby
RYAN LAWRENCE/South Jersey Sports Weekly
Moorestown established itself as the premier high school sports program in South Jersey last year when it won six state championship and nine sectional titles. From left to right are seniors Grace Leese (tennis), Grace Hurren (soccer), Joseph Delconte (soccer), Adam Robinson (football) and junior Margaret Lawler (field hockey). McNulty, who moved into town from Tennessee last year. “All of the sports teams come together. Basically it’s one big family and having people push you, even if they don’t play the same sport as you but push you to be your best self. … I think that’s what makes it great.” Dedication, determination, and drive, with some fun sprinkled in. Moorestown athletics are back in ses-
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sion. During the last 12 months, Moorestown High School took an already strong reputation and raised it with a remarkable run that saw six programs win state championships (boys basketball, girls and boys lacrosse, girls swimming, field hockey, and boys golf) and three other programs collect South Jersey titles (girls soccer, and both tennis teams).
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“It was awesome,” said athletic director Shawn Counard. “We need to get a couple more trophy cases, but it was absolutely awesome. The kids were great, the fans were great, the coaches were great. The school’s support for all of the teams was awesome. … Seeing that, I’m hoping we can continue to build upon that for this year.” please see QUAKERS, page 6