HILLTOPPERS ARE READY FOR SOME FOOTBALL…AND SOCCER.…AND FIELD HOCKEY AND MORE!

Your neighbors are still on vacation and families from all over Summit are enjoying their time at the beach. Downtown is so very, very quiet and you can finally find a parking space outside your favorite shop. Ah, summer! Well, your calendar tells you it’s still summer and it’s plenty hot outside, so why do you see Summit High School athletes all over town training like the pros? It’s preseason, and these young men and women are giving it their all!

The Summit High School Athletic Department has been in the press recently – for all the right reasons! SHS Athletics was recently named the winner of the prestigious NJSIAA 2014-2015 Group 3 Shop Rite Cup. This New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association award based on the performance of SHS teams during all three sports seasons.

The athletic programs at the high school were also ranked Number 1 in the Tri-State area, Number 1 in New Jersey and Number 3 in the nation in the 2015 Niche Rankings. Topping these rankings mean that athletics play a significant, positive role in student life, students actively participate in intervarsity sports, and the administration is invested in its student athletes. So, with so much Hilltopper pride, I suppose it’s not a surprise to see these young athletes stretching, running, and training while the rest of us enjoy the last dog days of summer!

One recent morning, a drive through Summit found the defending state championship men’s cross country team running through the streets of town and the women’s cross country team doing sprints up Druid Hill Road. A block away, the men’s soccer team, looking very professional in white and black, were dribbling balls all over upper Memorial Field and taking practice shots on goal. At the other end of Memorial Field, the women’s tennis team was out in full force working on lobs, volleys and drop shots. All this before 9:00 am! On the other side of town, the women’s field hockey team already looked like champs at the upper high school field, drilling and running plays. Summit’s field hockey team never disappoints and thse girls are on fire! Not to be outdone, the football team was using both the upper and lower fields at Tatlock Field to stretch and warm up before a preseason scrimmage with Bloomfield, Caldwell and Shore Regional.

Looks like Summit High School athletes are taking their number one ranking seriously. They’ve put the lazy days of summer behind them and are ready to begin the fall season!

To find athletic schedules for the fall, and to learn more about these teams, as well as all the other Summit High School fall sports teams, visit www.summit.k12.nj.us/~spsathletics.

Go Hilltoppers!