Bill Rieger (Pictured)
Medford
The Medford Indians 120-pound football team, under the direction of head coach Rieger, captured the Olympic Conference championship in the South Jersey Elite Football League with a perfect 9-0 record. Rieger, who also serves as offensive coordinator, has been coaching in the organization for 11 years and is joined by John Johnson, defensive coordinator; Sean Malady, line and conditioning coach; Bob Simons, linebackers and receivers coach; Marty Dunleavy, defensive backs and receivers coach; and assistants Don Papa, Jim Peterson and Andy Ellis.
Jeff Rafferty
Cinnaminson
Rafferty led the NJ Patriots U-13 baseball team to the title at the South Jersey Classic, capping a successful year. The Patriots also won the Cal Ripken Tournament last spring in Aberdeen, Md., and made five championship appearances in six tournaments this year.
Megan Ruttler
Deptford
Ruttler guided the Gloucester County College women’s soccer team to the NJCAA Region XIX championship for the second year in a row, as the Roadrunners edged Ocean County College, 1-0, in the final. The victory sent GCC to the NJCAA National Tournament in Dryden, N.Y., where their season ended with a heartbreaking loss in a penalty kick shootout. The Roadrunners finished the year with a sterling 15-2-1 record.
P.J. Mehigan
Marlton
Mehigan, the head football coach at Cherokee High School, recently reached the 100-win milestone with a 48-15 victory over Pennsauken. The win improved his career record to 100-28 in 12 seasons at his alma mater. Mehigan has also led the Chiefs to three sectional titles.
Kevin Meder
Mount Laurel
Another year, another title for the Lenape High School girls soccer team. Meder guided the Indians to their seventh straight South Jersey Soccer Coaches Association Tournament championship with a 2-0 victory over rival Eastern. Meder has helped turn the program into a dynasty, as Lenape entered this season with five Group IV state championships and six South Jersey titles since 2007.
Jim Dugan, Glenn Gess and Buzz Miller
Haddonfield
Dugan, Gess and Miller led the Haddonfield Blackdawgs U-14 boys soccer team to the final in the New Jersey State Cup as they defeated the state’s top-ranked team, Princeton Black, 2-0. Haddonfield went on to give the Den of Lions a tough match in the final before dropping a 1-0 game.
Jackie McGarrigle
Moorestown
McGarrigle took over head field hockey coaching responsibilities for the rest of the season after usual head coach Ali Collins gave birth to a baby girl in October. McGarrigle led the Quakers to another appearance in the Central Jersey Group III championship game, as they shut out Toms River South, 3-0, in the semifinals.
Christian Lynch
Woolwich
The veteran coach of the Kingsway High School boys cross country team directed the Dragons to team titles at the South Jersey Open and the Gloucester County Championships. At the S.J. Open, Kingsway finished first in Division 3, placing four runners in the top 20. The Dragons had five runners in the top 20 at the county meet, led by Noah Culbreath in first.
Mark vonBerg
Marlton
A Marlton resident, vonBerg recently founded the Marlton Recreation Council’s Sport Unity Program for athletes with special needs. The program offers soccer, basketball, cheerleading, track and baseball for disabled kids ages 5-18, and partners them with teenage and young adult volunteers who serve as buddies. The program already has more than 300 participants and vonBerg expects more than 1,200 after expansions.
Stacey Tosadori
Voorhees
Tosadori led the Voorhees Middle School girls soccer team to a perfect 10-0 record in the regular season this fall, the first time in at least 15 years the school went undefeated. The girls went on to reach the championship game before losing for the first time, but the loss could not put a damper on a terrific season.
Mark Moore
Washington Township
After his student Jake Mueller suffered a debilitating seizure and stroke this past summer, coach Mark Moore of Underground Martial Arts in Washington Township organized a martial arts tournament at the school to raise money for Mueller’s medical bills. Moore has also helped Mueller with his own kata, a choreographed movement replicating fighting technique, to show his progression with his motor skills and physical therapy. Moore continues to train regularly with Mueller to aid in his recovery.
Brian Wright
Cherry Hill
There’s been a lot of excitement at Cherry Hill West this month, as coach Wright led the football team to its first-ever playoff berth, making it to the South Jersey Group IV tournament. With a 4-4 record, West had been the only team in South Jersey to never make it to the playoffs in the past 40 years. The Lions were seeded No. 8 going into the games.
Published (and copyrighted) in Suburban Family Magazine, Volume 4, Issue 9 (November, 2013).
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