Dean McDonald of West Essex was the surprise winner of the day after heavily favored Craig Hunter of Robbinsville didn’t clear a height in the pole vault, Braheme Days Jr. of Bridgeton broke his second meet record after a rough start, and Matawan ended a 55-year drought by winning the boys’ Group 2 title at the NJSIAA group championships yesterday at Frank Jost Field in South Plainfield. Hunter, a senior who came into the season with a personal best of 16-6, No. 2 in state history, came into the competition with the bar at 14-0, but failed to clear it on three tries. That opened the door for McDonald, a junior at West Essex, who cleared a personal-best 14-0 on his final attempt to win the gold medal. “I feel so bad for Craig,’’ McDonald said. “It was very unfortunate for him. I was just honored to be in the same meet as him. I was just as surprised as anyone else when he didn’t make 14-0. Before my last attempt at 14-0, I saw Craig miss his second attempt and started thinking that if I made 14-0 maybe I could have a chance. “It’s just pretty unbelievable how things worked out. I totally wasn’t expecting this. To be a state champion and get a school record is just an amazing feeling.’’ more
