Caroline Heins and Jesse Rigby were announced as winners at the Monmouth County Girls Tennis Tournament on September 21 and 22.

A major first place finish for the girls’ cross country team this past weekend, and a recent doubles victory in the Monmouth County Girls’ Tennis Tournament, brought home the glory to the girls’ athletics program at Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High School.

Senior Carolyn Heins and junior Jesse Rigby, who play as number two doubles on the Varsity Tennis Team at Rumson Fair Haven Regional High School, prevailed in the semifinals over Manasquan High School, at the Tournament held September 21 and 22 at Tindall Park in Middletown. Heins and Rigby were down 8-3 in the 10-point tiebreaker of the third set, and came back to win with a score of 10-8.

Also making it into the semifinals of the tournament were freshman Katie Foos and junior Phoebe Short at number one doubles; junior Sophie Pavluk at number two singles; sophomore Katie Kane at number three singles; and Abbey Weis and Tara Sulak at number three doubles. Freshman Camryn Short, a number one singles player, made the quarterfinals.

The RFH tennis team also made an impact with a 3-2 victory over Marlboro in the Shore Conference Girls Tennis Tournament on September 26, which included a first singles victory by Short over Marlboro’s Hayley Barnett with scores of 6-3 and 6-4. The number-five seeded RFH team prevailed over the fourth-seeded Marlboro team to earn a trip to the semifinals, where they faced the top-seeded team from Holmdel High School. Holmdel prevailed in that match where, according to RFH Tennis Coach Maria Manley, “Our girls played tough and I think we gave Holmdel a scare.”

“As the season progresses, I only see us getting better as a team,” said Manley. “Our net game is improving with every match, and that is what will make the difference.”

On Saturday, October 12, the girls cross country team from RFH took first place at the 41^st Reebok Manhattan Invitational in Van Cortlandt Park, New York, one of the largest and most competitive cross country meets on the east coast. In the Varsity C Championship race, the RFH girls scored 74 points to hold off Padua (113 points), Monroe Woodbury (126 points), West Morris Mendham (131 points) and Mount St. Dominic (148 points).

There were 202 runners in the Varsity C, 2.5 mile race. Senior Megan Hellman led her team, finishing third in 15:29.3. Senior Jacqueline Gottuso followed, finishing in sixth place in 15:43.3. Junior Rachel Lehnert was next, finishing in ninth place in 15:52.6.  Junior Fini Satzke was in 23^rd place with a time of 16:27.1 and freshman Charlotte Miller finished in 33^rd place with a time of 16:46.  Sophomore Morgan Steinhacker  (17:07) and junior Sophie Rosa  (17:09) finished in 52^nd and 55^th places respectively. The team finished for a combined average time of 16:03.7, an RFH school record.

“I’m really proud of our girls,” said Coach Tim McLoone.  “Van Cortlandt Park is not an easy place to run.  Its topography is devilish, with a series of seemingly non-ending climbs that exhaust even the most fit hill runners, followed by a tumbling descent to a flat sprint to the finish. Not only did our girls handily win their race, but they were the best of the 22 NJ teams that competed there that day.”

The RFH girls and boys will next compete at the Monmouth County Championships on October 17 in Holmdel Park, and then at the Shore Conference Championships on October 24 at Ocean County Park in Lakewood.

From press materials furnished by Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High School