SPORTS

There are times in high school sports when teams can lose touch with the balance of on and off-the-court elements. For Highland Park's fifth-year boys basketball head coach Derek Nobles, that's not the case.

"I feel that our best accomplishments last year were not in wins or losses, but in the maturing of our team and seeing younger guys taking leadership roles," Nobles said.

"I believe success has to come from the players learning responsibility and accountability for their actions and how to focus on making positive decisions on and off the court."

Highland Park High School posted that remarkable season this fall, and both coaches emphasized how the grassroots movement for soccer in the borough has strengthened.

The HPHS girls soccer team came into Monday's sectional semifinals with a home crowd, a GMC-Gold division crown, and playoff momentum.

Junior forward Dierra Doyle scored twice, but the New Egypt Warriors countered with four straight goals, en route to a 6-2 victory over the Owls at Jay Dakelman Field.

Despite the loss, the Owls finished a very strong 2011 campaign at 14-4-1 and tied with Wardlaw-Hartridge as co-champions of the Greater Middlesex Conference Gold Division.

The 2011 HPHS boys soccer team delivered a surprise package to the second-seeded South River Rams, in the quarterfinal round of the Central Jersey Group I playoff tournament.

For the first time in six years, the #7 seed Owls handed an upset to their GMC-Blue Division nemesis Friday, with a 3-1 victory. The win keyed off goals by senior midfielder Min-Sung Choi, freshman outside defender Tomas Sánchez and junior midfielder John Marin.

Some believe that power comes from numbers. In the case of the Highland Park High School cross country team, improvement derives solely from an unquestioned work ethic and respect for instruction.

Under first-year head coach Tim Stark, a 2002 graduate of HPHS, the cross country team is attempting to make strides despite offseason changes.

High expectations are the norm for Highland Park High School girls tennis. But with a first-year head coach and a new racket in the first singles slot, many could have chalked up 2011 as a rebuilding year.

Those people, along with the rest of the Greater Middlesex Conference community, are quite surprised right now.

To the casual observer, it’s just the prize for a high school football rivalry. Some might see simply a half-shaven structure with a wood base and gold-plated siding. It’s even possible to feel that it isn’t aesthetically pleasing.

But to anyone from Highland Park or Metuchen who has been involved with the 75-year football rivalry between the two towns, the annual Goal Post Trophy is a work of art.

To the Central Jersey high school football historian, 'Highland Park' is synonymous with state championships. The past decade has been filled with high-quality play on the HPHS gridiron, but various roadblocks have prevented the Owls from bringing home the section’s top prize.

Coming off a 4-6 campaign in 2010, which featured a seventh consecutive state playoff berth and a tournament loss to eventual champion Shore Regional, sixth-year head coach Rich McGlynn has high hopes for his squad.

Being aware of your health and fitness is a complex topic, and often one that encompasses many New Year’s resolutions. You might not expect to see it displayed by a group of 70 third through seventh graders, but that has been accomplished the efforts of Highland Park's Office of Recreation.