The Buckley Rankings  

He Baaaaaaaaack!....... for the 5th straight year

Main Rankings Page

Pre-Season
Sep 19
Sep 26
Oct 3
Oct 10

 

 
                                          The Buckley Rankings (week ending Oct.10)
 
1.Chaminade...return to the top spot after fine win in the "F" race at Manhattan; Coach Carriero, an upstanding Italian-American, (this time it's not Donodeo), celebrates Columbus Day weekend by having four "Micks" (Mc's) as top four scorers: I was signing "Soldier Song, " the Irish National Anthem, as they approached the finish; as Greg Hoffman, the fifth man, crossed the line, the strains of "Deutschland Uber Alles" rang in my ears; good job Flyers
2.Monsignor Farrell...although 2nd to a strong Lockport team, the islanders were expecting more and drop a notch in the rankings
3.St.Anthony's...stayed local to capture Sunken Meadow Meet (like being the smartest girl in Bensonhurst); times put them a legit #3
4.Fordham Prep...solid 6th at Manhattan; McQuaid field was tougher than I thought
5.St.Francis Prep...7th ahead of Kellenberg; need more potential scorers;in big trouble when pitted against a large field
6.Kellenberg Memorial...9th; held out three probable scorers; this sounds like Nixon's or Kerry's secret plan; when will the plan or the athletes be revealed?
7.St.Joseph by the Sea...did not run full team at Manhattan; I will not penalize this time
8.Xavier...very close with fellow Jesuits at Regis; need to get someone in the 13's
9.Regis...mentioned Donodeo already
10.St.John the Baptist...nice sophomore contingent on the rise; another arduous bus ride from West Islip; we will have to give the Cougar drivers a personal guide ,who knows all the alternate routes
11ff. too much confusion this week to make a further delineation
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The Buckley Rankings (week ending Oct. 3)

 
1.Monsignor Farrell...Lewis leads solid effort at Great American over State #3 Warwick; 5 man comparative average now slightly better than Chaminade; unseat the Flyers for top spot; (this is not a quid pro quo for Cuffe's ranking Kellenberg over St.Anthony's on State List; Cuffe did not have result of dual meet)
2.Chaminade...needed to beat Guilford (Ct.) at St.Anthony's Invite to keep top spot; lost by measly 2 pts.; McDermott race winner
3.St.Anthony's...topped Kellenberg in dual meet by 26-29 tally; undistinguished 3rd behind the New Milford Jai-a-lais and the East Lyme Diseases at their own meet (hopefully, the Connecticut schools don't read this)
4.St.Francis Prep...3rd to #6 Shen and #11 Shaker at Grout; "my kingdom for a fifth scorer"
5.Kellenberg Memorial...loss to St.Anthony's caused Coach Buckley to reach double-digits in broken clipboards; return of Schmidt a godsend; top sophs were great on Saturday at Sunken Meadow
6.Fordham Prep...6th to Burnt-Hills at McQuaid didn't get the job done
7.St. Joseph by the Sea...3rd in Championship race at Mayor's Cup; solid, but not threatening
8.Xavier...captured 1st at McQuaid in unseeded class race over Pittsford-Sutherland & Chiitenengo (household names)
9.Regis...1st in non-championship at Mayor's Cup
10.St.John the Baptist...coach Wood showed similar pique as Buckley at dual meet fiasco; they could combine as a fine tag team in WWE; team coming on
11.Iona Prep...jet lag at Brewster Bear
12.Holy Trinity...signs of life in Hicksville
13.Archbishop Molloy...beat Mount for placing after tie in Mayor's Cup
14.Mt.St.Michael...tied Molloy
15.tie...St.Peter's...need to improve
           McClancy...showed improved performances in Friday afternoon meet

   

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The Buckley Rankings (week of 9/26)

1. Chaminade...passed the weekend for back loops at VCP; remain on top until definitively beaten, not resting

2. Monsignor Farrell...fine victory in Pennsylvania over coal miners sons and grandsons

3. Fordham Prep...also rested; began the trip by van to McQuaid nine days ago; hopefully, they will get there by race time

4. St.Anthony's...solid showing at Xavier; no killer individual, as yet, but plenty of depth

5. St.Francis Prep...four real good times at Xavier Meet; need a 5th and a few more for balance

6. Kellenberg Memorial...did same workout at VCP as Chaminade; great minds think alike; battle St.Anthony's in dual meet on 9/29 at Sunken Meadow; bragging rights to the winner for about three days

7. St. Joseph by the Sea...continued to look solid and balanced at Xavier

8. Xavier...have more up top than Jesuit counterpart, Regis

9. Regis...three Jesuits in top ten (where's the Berrigan Brothers when you need them;)

10.Iona Prep...any team that travels to Palo Alto (extra points for anyone who can remember the name of the observatory there) deserves to be in the top ten

11.St.Peter's...12,13,14,15...can't find other viable candidates at this juncture

 Donodeo runs 2:40 for 21 miles

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The Buckley Rankings (week ending 9/19)

1. Chaminade...McDermott bests Tschirhart (wow); quality 3rd to Council Rock & LaSalle

    at Briarwood; maybe not as invincible as previously held

2. Monsignor Farrell...easy win at Wagner and 13:27 five-man average at Regis/VCP;

    latter is "scary-good;" a real threat for the top spot

3. Fordham Prep...2nd to JFK Somers (where did they come from???); far away from top

    duo

4. St.Anthony's...on reputation only this week; rain out on Long Island; will make up as

    part of a day-night double-header (oops...wrong sport)

5. Kellenberg Memorial...wins at Washingtonville and Guilderland in weaker divisions; a

    win is a win

6. St.Francis Prep...yet to be seen

7. St.Joseph by the Sea...nice balance and depth displayed at Regis Meet

8. Xavier...OK at Regis; are they making the trek to McQuaid? that trip is

    harder than the Boers crossing the veldt

9. Regis...have a long way to go, but others have a longer way to go; Donodeo prepares

    for the NY Marathon

10Iona Prep...nice sophs, but you need more than that

*rankings will be expanded to 15 teams (when more teams are seen and perform)

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THE BUCKLEY RANKINGS (PRE-SEASON)

 ed. note: These were rankings were sent to me 2 weeks ago.  But I'm just getting around to posting....sorry.  Week ending Sep 19 coming soon!
 

1. Chaminade...a slew of McDermott's, a gaggle of  returning seniors, plus my buddy

    Hoffman return to defend last year's upset Cities win; it will be no upset this year as

    the Flyers are 1-10 favorites to repeat (in horse racing parlance that means you risk

    a bet of $2.00 to win 20 cents or, if you are a big spender, like Ed Bowes, $2,000 to

    win $200)

2. Monsignor Farrell...the tragic passing of leader, gentleman and sweetheart Rob Breen

    casts a giant cloud over the entire CHSAA; Cuffe's boys, who are now men, will have

    everyone in their corner

3. Fordham Prep...sans McCabe this year (they're also sans Sans); still have a solid

    returning core, depth of squad, and last year's soph half-milers

4. St.Anthonys...Friars ravaged by graduation; tradition + tradition + Toro + tradition gets

    them this ranking

5. St.Francis Prep...excellent Junior class; only lack of depth keeps the Terriers from the

    #3 spot

6. Kellenberg Memorial...top gun Schmidt out until October ("for want of a nail the

    kingdom was lost"-this is a historical/literary allusion to the Battle of Bosworth Field);

    the Firebirds have a lot more than people think and will be ready at the end (not like

    last year's crash & burn in November)

7. St.Joseph by the Sea...Big Blue has a history of not qualifying for "things" by one

    point or by hundredths of seconds; nice showing at the end of last year and some

    solid returnees

8. Xavier...Heavy D & the Boys had some good younger runners last year; State berth

    not out of the realm of possibility

9. St.Peter's...the Eagles show flashes of brilliance, but lack consistency and depth;

    may finish much higher.

10.Iona Prep...resurgence on the lower levels bodes well for the Gaels

 

Honorable (or not so honorable mention): Archbishop Molloy, Regis, St.John the Baptist,

    Holy Trinity