On October 25th, 2025, the South Brunswick High School Cross Country team participated in the Greater Middlesex Conference (GMC) Championships at Thompson Park, Jamesburg. Both boys and girls teams won 1st place overall, making this the 7th GMC title in school history for the boys, and the 14th GMC title in school history for the girls. Several members of each team set new personal records for their time. Cross country GMC’s typically consist of a 5 Kilometer (around 3.1 miles) race on natural terrain.
However, this year, the GMC’s weren’t just seen locally. During the boys race, SBHS Senior Vishnu Maharaj, who finished in sixth place last year at GMCs, and Monroe Senior James Giordano, who placed fourth last year, were neck and neck for a first place finish. Unexpectedly, Maharaj was pushed by Giordano as he was about to pass him but recovered quickly and stayed ahead of Giordano in the end, securing first place while Giordano was disqualified. This finish was posted on Instagram by Sports Journalist Corey Annan, and has over 500,000 likes, many people commenting about the situation. One comment said, “instant karma”, and another quotes the exclamation made at the end of the video, “and you still lost.” Maharaj won with a time of 16:13, and he is the fourth boy to ever win a title for South Brunswick.
Maharaj says, “Finishing first at the GMCs was great and I could not have done it without the great team and coaches.” The coach of the team, Mr. Rivera, said that the finish was reflective of Maharaj’s character.
Mr. Rivera also talks about an important thing to keep in mind while you are involved in such a close finish. “And if the positions were reversed, we are very adamant that one is not to look behind them, because you have to focus on what’s in front of you, not what’s behind.”
The South Brunswick Boys team finished ahead of second-place East Brunswick with a score of 58-86. The Top 30 placers of the race are awarded medals. The other four runners in SB’s Top five, Ishaan Patel, Mariano Johnson, Alexander Sencic, and Abel Gebremedhin, placed 6, 12, 19, and 22, respectively.
The girls team also had immense success. They placed 1st overall with a lead of 74-41 against their main competitor, Metuchen High School. The Top Five runners, Ovi Telavane, Natasha Kenny, Malak Oweida, Sruhasi Muthyala, and Ananya Mandrekar, were all awarded medals and placed 3, 5, 10, 15, and 17, respectively, averaging a time of 19:57.
Junior Ovi Telavane says, “This is the first time I’ve ever experienced a win with the girl’s XC team during my high school running career, so just being announced as GMC team champions, receiving our plaque, and actually getting to hold it was a once-in-a-lifetime feeling.” Telavane also adds that the team spirit is what really helps her get through the game, which can be seen from the girls’ close bond.
Mr. Rivera says, “it might be the 14th win in school history, but it’s the first one with these group of kids.”
Due to the win, on November 15th, South Brunswick’s top scorers at the GMCs competed at the NJSIAA Meet of Champions at Holmdel Park, the state championships. The meet consisted of the best athletes from 400 high schools across New Jersey. Maharaj and Johnson, from the Boys team, placed 54th with a time of 16:42 and 129th with a time of 17:47, respectively. Telavane and Kenny, from the girls team, surpassed their previous personal records on this course, placing 60th with a time of 19:33, and 89th, with a time of 20:00, respectively.
Overall, the team has had tremendous success this season. With all but one of the girls runners and three of the top five boys returning for next year’s season, the future looks bright for both teams.
