March Madness: Boys Track & Field
March 27, 2023
It was a great month of March for the boys’ track and field team here at Union Catholic! The team recently competed at the NJSIAA Meet of Champions in Ocean Breeze, Staten Island, NY, on March 5th, and the highly anticipated New Balance Nationals in Boston, Massachusetts from March 9th-March 12th where they brought home a few awards and personal bests including a national title in the 4×1 Mile race.
Jimmy Wischusen ’24, Ryan Cichocki ’23, Caudell Cajuste ’23, and Sean Wilson ’24 led the race finishing with an astonishing time of 17:34.17. Also, sophomore Avery Axetide ’25 had a personal best in his 400m race finishing at 49.36! Earlier in the season, Atexide ’25 also ran a New Jersey No. 4 with a time of 35.43 to place fifth in the 300-meter run, breaking UC’s sophomore record of 35.66 set in 2013 by the legendary Taylor McLaughlin ’15.
Previously, the UC boys team also competed at the Meet of Champions. Jimmy Wischusen ’24 came out with a win in the boys’ 3200-meter run with a winning time of 9:05.80. Also, the UC boys’ 4×400-meter relay team ranked #7 overall at this meet with strong legs from Marcus McCoy ’24, Emerson McKindra ’23, Sean Wilson ’24, and Avery Atexide ’25. Right behind them, the UC boys’ 4×800-meter relay team was also phenomenal, placing #7 overall at the meet. It was an amazing display of transition from (in order) Leo Wisnefki ’23 to Caudell Cajuste ’23, Gavin Devine ’24, and Evan Weber ’25.
This past month of March was filled with success, and we hope for more accomplishments as the UC boys head into their spring season!
Interview Time!
I was blessed with the opportunity to interview some of our boys’ track and field members and head coach Michael McCabe. Here is how it went:
- What were your goals going into Nationals?
Caudell Cajuste – “To come out of nationals with a podium finish (top 6).”
Ryan Cichoki & Sean Wilson – “My goal was to win the DMR.”
- Do you think it was a successful last season for you two as seniors?
Caudell Cajuste & Ryan Cichoki- “I would say it was successful because we won a national championship.”
- What would you say your biggest challenge was during the indoor season?
Caudell Cajuste- “I would say my biggest challenge was staying focused when things went wrong…also being patient.”
Ryan Cichoki- “I’d say keeping my confidence high after bad races was a challenge.”
Sean Wilson- “I’d say staying calm and patient during races.”
- Where could you guys have improved?
Caudell- “I think we could’ve improved on our team chemistry, especially in the beginning of the year.”
Coach McCabe-
What would you say your biggest challenge was during the indoor season?
“I think one of the challenges is navigating the training and practices with poor weather…also making sure we can train at a high level while also trying to stay injury free.”
What were your goals going into Nationals?
“The goals were to one, have everyone compete and perform their best (personal bests) and also have our relays run the fastest they had all season and get some all-Americans (podium finishes).”
Do you think the team had a successful indoor season? Where can we improve?
“I think we had a very strong season. There’s always room for improvement, but I feel like achieving a lot of our goals, and hopefully, we build off of it and carry it on into the spring.”
