MIDDLETOWN – The Manalapan and Colts Neck high school track programs are known for their standout distance runners and that speed stole the show at the Monmouth County Relays Manalapan’s boys blazed to victory in the 4x100 and 4x200 The surprising performances were made possible by superb execution of a sometimes-elusive technical feat – superb handoffs “It’s the most important part of the race,” Manalapan anchor Kevin Zieba said Here’s how they scorched the track at Middletown High School North Manalapan laid down the gauntlet in the 4x200 as Crue Brown Ethan Fogelstrom and Zieba broke the tape in a program-record time of 1:30.21 Fogelstrom and Zieba were joined by Michael Friscia for a 43.22 triumph in the 4x100 “With all the hard work we’ve been putting in I think this was just bound to happen,” Brown said Though the 4x100 quartet was racing together for the first time they’d worked on baton exchanges extensively in practice and then during warmups at the meet “I thought we were ready for this,” Zieba said “We’re putting our sprint team on the map.” Colts Neck’s girls broke the Freehold Regional School District record – that’s seven high schools – in the 4x200 as Julia Maldonado Makayla Currie and Natalie O’Connor clocked 1:43.05 That won the event by a whopping four seconds “We’ve known our potential this whole time,” Reucroft said “We came in here with big expectations and we delivered.” The same quartet triumphed in the sprint medley with Reucroft (58.1 400 split) and O’Connor (2:20 800 split) doing the heaviest lifting Currie and Avery Wallace won the 4x100 in 50.42 with Reucroft breaking away from Long Branch and Red Bank on the anchor The performances stamp Colts Neck as a contender to once again rule Central Group III later this month The Bulldogs withheld superstars Clemmie Lilley and Reese Reynolds Malone – and still defended their team title and senior Cassedy Stypul rallied the unit from fourth to first with a 58.2 anchor Hannah Nitka and Allie Rude ran the first three legs on the 4:09.24 effort Those 10 points gave Rumson-Fair Haven 58 for the meet enough to edge runner-up Colts Neck (50.33) “I knew my team could do it – I was just super happy to bring it home for them,” Stypul said Christian Brothers won big as expected with 85 points The Colts punctuated the performance by winning the 4x400 in 3:27.17 with Gavin Brunelli (51.87) Finn Sheehan (51.62) and Liam Wheeler (52.24) They also prevailed in the distance medley with an extreme rarity: Three brothers on the same relay Liam and Ryan Schmitt were joined by Alex Mastroly for an 11:08 victory An additional nice touch: All four came up the ranks together as classmates and teammates at St The senior posted the meet’s best throws in the shot put (63-0.5) and discus (169-7) The junior recorded the meet’s top distances in the long jump (21-6) and triple jump (43-6) The junior anchored the Braves to victories in the 4x100 (43.22) and 4x200 (1:30.21) The senior notched the meet’s top time in the 400 hurdles (a personal-best 57.86) The senior anchored the sprint medley to a swift 3:34 victory with a 1:57.1 800 The junior earned gold medals with the 4x100 splitting 58.1 on the sprint medley’s 400 leg Rumson-Fair HavenThe senior brought home three gold medals posting the meet’s top 400 hurdles time (1:05.82) and contributing to wins in the shuttle hurdles (1:09.28) and 4x400 (4:09) The senior posted the meet’s top throw in the shot put (36-5) and second-best heave in the discus (118-11) eight feet farther than the rest of the field The junior tied for the meet’s top pole vault clearance (9-6) and best triple jump distance (34-0.5) Jerry Carino has covered the New Jersey sports scene since 1996. Contact him at jcarino@gannettnj.com 2025 at 12:02 pm ET.css-79elbk{position:relative;}The cause of the fire is currently under investigation NJ — A barn on Willowbrook Road was destroyed after a fire broke out Monday afternoon to Colts Neck Police and quickly engulfed the barn leaving it destroyed and no longer standing Emergency services responded quickly to the fire Emergency services were cleared from the scene around 6:30 p.m., and Willowbrook Road was reopened to the public after being closed between Route 34 and Cross Road The barn was vacant at the time of the fire "Thank you to all the emergency services who assisted in a safe and efficient operation," Colts Neck Police said The cause of the fire is currently under investigation Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts. Brynn Mahoney (20) of Colts Neck looks on during the girls lacrosse game against Howell at Colts Neck HS in Colts Neck .st1{fill-rule:evenodd;clip-rule:evenodd;fill:#2a2a2a}By Jack McKenna | For NJ Advance MediaBrynn Mahoney found the back of the net five times for Colts Neck as it scored nine first-half goals en route to a 15-8 victory over Brick Township in Colts Neck who secured a team-high eight ground balls was one of two Colts Neck players to record five points in the game as Hannah Perlman tallied four goals and an assist to match Mahoney Jordyn Hansel assisted on three goals while Olivia Barwicki scored a pair for Colts Neck (4-6) Madison Lacerda starred in the defeat for Brick Township Riley O’Brien scored the remaining goal for Brick Township (4-5) Jack McKenna can be reached at hssports@njadvancemedia.com The N.J. High School Sports newsletter is now appearing in mailboxes 5 days a week. Sign up now! 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All rights reserved (About Us) The material on this site may not be reproduced except with the prior written permission of Advance Local Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site YouTube's privacy policy is available here and YouTube's terms of service is available here Ad Choices An official website of the United States government man told officials that he did not know he had a loaded gun in his backpack when Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers at Newark Liberty International Airport intercepted the gun which was packed in the man’s carry-on bag on Monday they contacted Port Authority Police and moved all of the other passengers who were in the security lane to another lane “When someone shows up with a gun at our checkpoint it inconveniences other travelers who are waiting to be screened,” explained Thomas Carter TSA’s Federal Security Director for New Jersey and he’ll now face a stiff financial civil penalty what is often forgotten is that a firearm at a checkpoint inconveniences other travelers in the line which has a ripple effect at our checkpoint by increasing the amount of time travelers need to wait in line to be screened while the incident is resolved.” Firearms caught at Newark Liberty International Airport checkpoints “Travelers always need to know the contents of their carry-on bag prior to coming to the security checkpoint and know that there is nothing illegal or prohibited inside,” Carter added If a traveler with a firearm is a member of TSA PreCheck® that individual will lose their TSA PreCheck privileges Guns can be transported on a flight if they are unloaded hard-sided case and declared to the airline The airline will be sure that the gun travels with checked baggage in the belly of the plane TSA has multiple resources available to help determine whether an item is permitted in carry-on baggage, checked baggage, either or neither. Travelers can use the “Can I Bring?” feature on the TSA website or on the free downloadable myTSA app Travelers can also tweet to @AskTSA or send a text message (275-872) if they have a travel question or are unsure if an item is allowed through security in a carry-on bag Just snap a picture or send a question and get real-time assistance will open a new ice cream store in Colts Neck this summer the start of an expansion plan to add more ice cream locations and attract franchisees The new Jersey Freeze shop will open in a former ice cream shop at The Orchards at Colts Neck a shopping center at the corner of Routes 34 and 537 who has partnered with Jersey Freeze owners Matt Cangialosi and Katie DiNonno "I wanted to bring something positive and awesome to the neighborhood," said Borowski co-owner of 618 restaurant in Freehold and owner of Mezcal in Old Bridge The new Colts Neck shop will be Jersey Freeze's third location after it opened at Bell Works in Holmdel in 2020 Jersey Freeze: How a teen worker became the owner of the Freehold landmark It's another step forward for Jersey Freeze a Monmouth County favorite which was founded by the Blackmore family in 1952 who worked at the restaurant since she was in her teens purchased Jersey Freeze from Bruce Blackmore the second generation family owner in 2014 Jersey Freeze is rooted in Shore lore. It's a favorite of rocker Bruce Springsteen who typically orders a soft vanilla cone dipped in chocolate Jersey rockers at Jersey Freeze: Bruce Springsteen, Jon Bon Jovi visit Jersey Freeze in Freehold, order two cones Now the pair has partnered with Borowski to fuel Jersey Freeze's next steps "We're all young entrepreneurs looking to grow and expand what we think to be a nationwide brand," Borowski said "It's probably the most famous ice cream shop in the tri-state area." Borowski said Jersey Freeze in Bell Works will go through a "light remodel to showcase the newly refreshed design for what Jersey Freeze is going to look like." The new stores will focus on ice cream Jersey Freeze's home base in Freehold includes a full restaurant "We're probably going to open anywhere between five to 10 ice cream shops then we're just going to franchise," Borowski said they are looking for locations in Monmouth we're actively looking for more places and we've actually been asking a lot of our audience where they would like to see a Jersey Freeze," Borowski said "We want to make Jersey Freeze not just a Jersey known name 618 owner steps in: How a Freehold restaurant and others helped save Neptune couple from wedding disaster The possibilities include bringing Jersey Freeze to Florida or the Carolinas "Anywhere one of our partners wants to grow the franchise Other ideas include a Jersey Freeze ice cream truck and ice cream carts for private parties "We want to keep Jersey Freeze a family-owned business." Borowski said "We want to keep it relevant with the times and grow with the generations." David P. Willis, an award-winning business writer, has covered business, retail, real estate and consumer news at the Asbury Park Press for 27 years. He writes APP.com's What's Going There column and can be reached at dwillis@gannettnj.com. Please sign up for his weekly newsletter and join his What's Going There page on Facebook for updates 2025 at 4:06 pm ET.css-79elbk{position:relative;}Jersey Freeze’s Freehold location on 120 Manalapan Avenue community members will be able to cool off with Jersey Freeze ice cream when the restaurant opens its newest location in Monmouth County the restaurant will be Jersey Freeze’s third location Their other two locations are inside Bell Works in Holmdel and on 120 Manalapan Ave “BIG NEWS! Jersey Freeze is expanding once again — and this time, we’re heading to Colts Neck, New Jersey,” the restaurant recently announced on social media “Get ready for the best soft serve in the world While a specific opening date wasn’t included in the announcement the restaurant told customers to stay tuned for more information “This is just the beginning — stay tuned for even more big news and exciting opportunities,” the restaurant said “Thank you to our incredible community for all the love and support.” Known for their soft serve ice cream and expansive menu, Jersey Freeze was founded in 1952 by the Blackmore family before becoming a local go-to spot for fast food and ice cream in the 1970s, according to their website purchased Jersey Freeze from Bruce Blackmore in 2014 and have been managing the restaurant ever since the pair opened their second location at Bell Works in Holmdel To learn more about Jersey Freeze, you can visit their website or Instagram page Jersey Freeze’s Colts Neck location will be located at 340 NJ-34 Nick Hayden (6) of Colts Neck pitches during the Shore Conference Tournament Round of 16 baseball game between Colts Neck and Donovsn Catholic at Colts Neck High School in Colts Neck NJ on 5/13/24.Scott Faytok | NJ Advance Media .st1{fill-rule:evenodd;clip-rule:evenodd;fill:#2a2a2a}By Mak Ojutiku | NJ Advance Media for NJ.comNick Hayden tossed a five-inning shutout while Joe Pingnatelli went 2-for-3 with a homer and four RBI to lead third-seeded Colts Neck in an 11-0 win over sixth-seeded Manasquan in the quarterfinals of the Monmouth County Tournament Colts Neck (8-3) will play in the semifinals on Saturday Ronan Kiely went 2-for-2 with two RBI and two runs while Dan Annunziata went 2-for-3 with an RBI Matt Antonucci and RT Runge each recorded a hit for Manasquan (9-3) FREEHOLD - When a fire marshal responded to a house fire on Tilton Drive in Ocean Township in the early morning of Nov one of the first things he did was locate the homeowner and ask him some routine questions told Ocean Township Fire Marshal Craig Flannigan his home's fire alarm awakened him about 5 a.m. so he got his wife and two daughters out of the house and then moved his car from the garage Caneiro told the fire marshal he had been home all night having gone to sleep in the spare bedroom at 6 p.m and awakening twice - once to take some medicine and a second time to work on his computer before going back to bed Flannigan said at a hearing before Superior Court Judge Marc C But footage from surveillance cameras at neighboring homes showed what appeared to be Caneiro's sport-utility vehicle leaving his driveway shortly after 2 a.m Detective Ryan Mahoney told Lemieux at the same hearing And footage from a security system in Caneiro's garage showed the homeowner walking up to the camera at 1:29 a.m. with the power to the camera cutting out immediately afterward The testimony provided a glimpse of what to expect when Caneiro goes on trial later this year in the murders in Colts Neck of his brother and sister-in-law and the couple's two children Authorities allege Caneiro left his home in Ocean Township in the early morning of Nov drove to his brother's mansion on Willow Brook Road in Colts Neck and committed the murders before setting a slow-smoldering fire there and returning to his house where he set another fire to make it look like his entire family was being targeted by thugs Firefighters and investigators who responded to the blaze on Tilton Drive around 5 a.m wouldn't become aware of the other fire burning 13 miles away at Keith Caneiro's mansion until more than seven hours later after it erupted into an inferno and led to the discovery of the bodies of Keith Keith Caneiro had been shot four times in the head and once in the back Jennifer Caneiro and the two children were repeatedly stabbed and badly burned Jennifer Caneiro also had been shot in the head Prosecutors allege Paul Caneiro committed the murders after his brother discovered he was stealing from the businesses they co-owned At last week's hearings in advance of Caneiro's trial prosecutors called witnesses to testify about statements the defendant made to emergency personnel when they responded to the fire on Tilton Drive Also called to testify were police witnesses who reviewed surveillance footage from the vicinities of the defendant's home in Ocean Township and his brother's mansion in Colts Neck during the time frames in question Prosecutors played the surveillance footage garnered from various locations and different camera angles Detectives who testified at the hearing said the footage shows Paul Caneiro's sport-utility vehicle leaving his property about 2:07 a.m. arriving to Willow Brook Road in Colts Neck about 2:24 a.m. and returning to Tilton Drive in Ocean Township at 4:08 a.m The surveillance video shows flames coming from Paul Caneiro's home on Tilton Drive at 4:47 a.m Mahoney testified that he researched on Google how long it would take to drive between Tilton Drive in Ocean Township and Willow Brook Road in Colts Neck and learned there were three possible routes all with drive times between 18 and 20 minutes Lemieux will decide how much detectives will be allowed to narrate what they believe to be on the grainy surveillance videos when the case goes before a jury Defense attorney Monika Mastellone asked the judge to place limits on the testimony of detectives and to leave it to the jury to decipher what is on the footage rather than allowing detectives to assert it is Caneiro's vehicle on all of the videos Lemieux also will rule on the admissibility of statements the defendant made to emergency personnel who responded to the fire at his home did not make any admissions to them and ultimately declined to give a formal statement to detectives later that day at Ocean Township police headquarters Some of the police officers who responded to the Ocean Township fire had body-camera video of their encounters with Caneiro outside his home showed Caneiro out in the street in shorts and shoeless after escaping the fire Much of the dialogue on the police body-camera videos was difficult to decipher and mostly consisted of officers collecting pedigree information from the fire victims Flannigan was tasked with speaking to the occupants of the home to try to determine how the fire started Caneiro told him he didn't know how the fire started With nothing at that point to make Flannigan think the fire was suspicious Caneiro offered some unsolicited information Caneiro mentioned that he didn't have any enemies and I didn't ask that question,'' the fire marshal said But after some police officers found a gas can on the side of Caneiro's garage where another small fire was burning in addition to the larger fire on the opposite side of the house Ocean Township Officer David Marino testified the lead detective on the case for Ocean Township said Caneiro consented to police looking at his home's surveillance system Brian Weisbrot of the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office testified Caneiro told them he was having "connectivity issues'' regarding the security system He told Weisbrot he couldn't remember whether or not he had turned the system off testified he saw Caneiro on the surveillance footage in the garage walking up to the camera That was a little more than a half hour before a vehicle is captured on a neighbor's surveillance camera leaving Caneiro's driveway An affidavit of probable cause charging Caneiro with the murders said he told investigators he may have turned off his security camera because it was interfering with his wifi connection but detectives later learned the surveillance system was hard-wired With Paul Caneiro and his family at Ocean Township police headquarters that afternoon to give statements about the fire police learned about the fire in Colts Neck police were concerned there was something "large-scale happening with this family,'' Brady said Paul Caneiro still wasn't suspected of any crimes When Paul Caneiro was made aware of what happened to his brother's family in Colts Neck he asked Brady to have police check on the welfare of his parents in Staten Island "He asked us to make sure that they were not aware of the fire - both fires,'' Brady testified Brady said he called police in New York and asked them to check on Caneiro's parents "They said they were fine,'' Brady testified Upon learning of the unfolding scene in Colts Neck Paul Caneiro said he received four text messages from Keith in succession overnight and was upset because he had not seen them at the time they were sent surveillance footage at Keith Caneiro's garage in Colts Neck shows a person walking back and forth outside the garage That footage also was played in court last week deputy first assistant Monmouth County prosecutor said he plans to argue to the jury at trial that Keith Caneiro sent those text messages to his brother just after the power to Keith Caneiro's home was cut Decker said he will argue that the person seen on the surveillance video outside the garage door is Paul Caneiro Jury selection for Paul Caneiro's trial was scheduled to begin next month But Lemieux last week granted a request from the defense for a postponement Caneiro has been in the Monmouth County Jail awaiting trial since his arrest on Nov Kathleen Hopkins, a reporter in New Jersey since 1985, covers crime, court cases, legal issues and just about every major murder trial to hit Monmouth and Ocean counties. Contact her at khopkins@app.com 2025 at 1:17 pm ET.css-79elbk{position:relative;}A hearing on the incident occurred during a special township committee meeting at Colts Neck Town Hall on April 1 NJ — A heated argument between Colts Neck’s deputy mayor and the vice chair of its Planning Board at a November League of Municipalities event has led to an effort to oust the vice chair from the planning board in what he says is an effort to halt his criticisms of the town’s affordable housing efforts Details of the dispute that began in November were aired on April 1 during a special township committee meeting held to determine whether Kris Lukowitz Lukowitz and Deputy Mayor Michael Viola got into an argument in Atlantic City on Nov during the annual League of Municipalities event which stemmed from existing tensions between the two men with both men ending up with their hands on each other Mayor Tara Torchia Buss and former Committeeman JP Bartolomeo who were standing nearby when the argument happened Viola said the incident began when he and Lukowitz made eye contact “What are you looking at?” in a tone Viola characterized as “aggressive.” He accused Lukowitz of “violently grabbing” both sides of his lapel saying Viola stared down Lukowitz and “rushed him” after Lukowitz told him not to and then told Lukowitz he “better not mess with affordable housing issues.” Viola said he put his hands on Lukowitz’s only after Lukowitz had grabbed him who did not testify at the April 1 hearing said in an emailed statement that the effort to remove him is a response to his stance on affordable housing issues “I was asked to serve on the Planning Board by members of the Township Committee and then nominated by my peers to serve as Vice Chairman I have consistently challenged the Township Committee’s decisions on overdevelopment and building of high-density complexes,” Lukowitz said the committee has taken extraordinary steps of hiring two law firms and spending tens of thousands of taxpayer dollars all to remove me a citizen volunteer serving on the board.” “This all stems from a verbal altercation about the town’s affordable housing plan incited by Deputy Mayor Michael Viola,” Lukowitz wrote I offered to settle the matter over a cup of coffee but Viola hired a law firm at the township taxpayers’ expense instead.” “He has insisted on pursuing what I consider to be a childish vendetta that has embarrassed Colts Neck and the entire Township Committee,” Lukowitz wrote “It’s silly and a waste of time and money.” in combination with the Township Committee’s disastrous decisions on affordable housing illustrate a complete failure of leadership by the Township Committee which I hope voters will take into account later this year,” Lukowitz said “I’m happy to remain in service on the Planning Board but that decision appears to have been taken out of the hands of myself and the people of Colts Neck at this time all because someone spoke up and challenged these people Neither man spoke with Atlantic City police at the time Lukowitz brought it up at a planning board meeting Viola then filed a complaint in Atlantic City Municipal Court and Lukowitz filed a counter-complaint against Viola The incident was investigated after Township Administrator Kathleen Capristo learned of the fight leading to the April 1 hearing to determine whether or not Lukowitz violated township policies and should be removed from the board Township Attorney Andrea Wyatt argued that Lukowitz “inappropriately and aggressively” put his hands on Viola during the fight and said the town’s request to remove Lukowitz is because of those actions and because they violate the town’s Workplace Violence Policy Blaney contended that Lukowitz wasn’t at the event in his capacity as a township official and wasn’t doing anything township-related Blaney said that the incident has been spun due to “political undercover issues” and that it’s really “all about affordable housing.” Viola rejected Lukowitz’s accusations during his testimony at the April 1 hearing “False claims were made of conspiracy [at the planning board meeting],” Viola said “and my concern was I didn’t hear anything from Mr and what I’m hearing at this meeting is some fantasy of collusion between the land use attorney and the labor attorney — that there was some collusion that this was all about affordable housing Lukowitz and then trying to get him removed.” Viola declined to comment further in a statement emailed to Patch saying that because the process is still ongoing any comment at this time would be inappropriate The hearing concluded without a decision on Lukowitz’s status said he will write a recommendation to the governing body on what action should be taken and the committee will make a final decision some residents expressed frustration with the committee and how the situation was being handled have a difference of opinion … get over it,” resident Kevin O’Brien said that is not cause to have this man [Lukowitz] removed from office or the spending of $10,000 in legal fees for a private testosterone battle.” “The burden of proof is on the prosecutor in a criminal case Each is presumed innocent until the matter is adjudicated by a judge,” O’Brien continued “If one fails to prove their case or the prosecutor elects not to hear the matter .st1{fill-rule:evenodd;clip-rule:evenodd;fill:#2a2a2a}By Jack McKenna | For NJ Advance MediaKammi Haeusser found the back of the net four times for Marlboro to help it dig out of a halftime hole and pull away to the tune of a 9-6 win against Colts Neck in Marlboro Colts Neck held a 5-4 lead at the half before Marlboro took control of the action in the third quarter Elizabeth Stellato notched a hat trick and assisted on one goal for Marlboro to tie Haeusser for a team-high four points in the game Hayden Paling and Dani Kapp each scored once to round out the scoring for Marlboro (6-2) Brynn Mahoney recorded a hat trick and Katie Dichter tallied a goal and an assist for Colts Neck (4-7) COLTS NECK -- Sometime between Wednesday night and Thursday morning as Township Committeewoman Sue Fitzpatrick and her family were sleeping a person left two identical letters in front of her garage and in her mailbox instructing her to drop her Republican primary bid for the committee or the letter writer was going to “ruin my life,” she said Fitzpatrick is the incumbent in Colts Neck a township known for its mansions and farmland She is running for her third and last term Colts Neck has yearly elections for municipal office only Republicans have won seats on the Township Committee “You feel almost violated that someone could walk up your driveway put something at your garage door and you find something at your mailbox.” Colts Neck crime: 'Hatred and vitriol' against Paul Caneiro requires venue change for murder trial, lawyer says she has filed a police report with the Colts Neck police department and she intends to file a report with the state Attorney General’s Office and the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office for “campaign interference Fitzpatrick said her top priorities include farmland and open space preservation the improving the township’s forestry plan to protect against forest fires and planning events for America’s 250th anniversary which is currently under construction across from the township’s high school Colts Neck: Construction starts on 360 apartments after years of fights, water worries The 360-unit apartment complex by the developer Kushner Cos prospective renters have to have a source of income no more than $27,311 for a single person and $171,671 for an eight-person or larger family If a municipality chooses to fight New Jersey’s affordable housing law and loses in court it could open the municipality up to builder’s remedy lawsuits that would allow developers to build dense projects regardless of township zoning Municipalities can argue for adjustments to that number in two ways Some municipalities are completely built out and others do not have the infrastructure to support dense apartments “I want to be clear: It’s NOT easy navigating affordable housing mandates Before there was a shovel in the ground on Rt this Township Committee REFUSED to push back and negotiate for better deals or solutions They rolled over and voted “yes,” afraid to fight.” it’s a law; it’s enforced by our courts system Colts Neck news: See inside the modern mansion added to this 1750 estate “Colts Neck has always abided by what has been handed to us You’re not going to see our name on 159 lawsuits by the builders or 60 lawsuits by the Fair Share (Housing Center).” teachers and young people often have incomes that qualify them for affordable housing “We’re concerned about overdevelopment,” She said Early voting for the primary will begin Tuesday Election Day for the primary is on Tuesday In-person voting is located at Colts Neck Public Library at 2 Veterans Way Olivia Liu is a reporter covering transportation MIDDLETOWN -- When Colts Neck and Middletown North meet on the softball diamond there's little doubt that the outcome will be a low-scoring affair And the team that prevails always does so by the slimmest of margins those margins were firmly on the home side of the box score as the No 4 Lions got a burst of offense from the top of the lineup and left no loose ends on defense in a 2-0 victory over the No especially with our schedule," Middletown North coach Chris Hoffman said "Last year we beat Colts Neck 2-1 (at home) In addition to sound execution and great defense there's no secret what the underlying factor is behind the close results The divisional matchup was highlighted by yet another duel of aces in the circle as Seton Hall signee Madi Boyce pitched a shutout to beat Angela Sasso More: VOTE: Who will be the Shore's top junior softball player this spring? but Boyce left no room for a comeback as she posted 12 strikeouts in the shutout victory including two punch outs that ended the game But definitely getting started cold is a little troubling but definitely now with the weather warming up and I'm finally pitching more consistently and I'm getting back to my normal." Boyce's "normal" is as good as any pitcher in the state The senior's career ERA sits at 1.23 over 459 innings and her final strikeout against Colts Neck brought her total to 900 The Cougars came perilously close to squeaking out the runs they needed stranding runners in scoring position several times But things only get harder in the clutch as Boyce consistently brings her best blend of stuff in scoring situations She also helped secure her own victory with an RBI single that brought the Midd North lead to 2-0 in the bottom of the third it really gets me in a good spot," Boyce said "It's good knowing that my team has my back and I'm gonna be able to go on the mound and pitch and then my team is gonna go up to bat and hit for me The newfound consistency on offense has been a welcome addition to a team that has always been a lingering contender even as the run production ebbed more than it flowed The team's bats have broken through against even the Shore's toughest pitchers thus far the key element in the team's 5-1 start with victories against three teams that were ranked in the top 10 within the Shore Lead-off hitter Hailey Keiser has embodied the team's offensive growth going 9-for-21 to start the season while tying for the team lead with five RBIs "You need to go up there confident," Keiser said "You need to know that you can hit the ball The Lions should be feeling confident after their strong start against the best competition in the Shore which could lead to more success as Middletown North prepares to compete beyond the conference They have upcoming games against reigning Non-Public B state champion Morris Catholic and Non-Public A runner-up Mount St Dominic in addition to a divisional battle with Non-Public A champion St all of those tests are in support of the team's effort to make a run at winning the Group 3 state championship for the first time since 2019 This senior-heavy group knows the standard they must reach to achieve that goal "They've had so much pressure on them because when they were freshmen they came in and played right away," Hoffman said "They're a little more hungry now just because they're disappointed Because their expectations were — yes they got to two (section) finals were one out away from another one — so they're hungry but for some of them it might be their last chance." With a little more warmth as the clouds broke open shortly after the first pitch both pitchers were humming immediately in the circle as seven of the first 12 outs in the game were strikeouts That rhythm of defensive efficiency was broken in the bottom of the third by Middletown North The inning opened with a single by Keiser that was followed immediately by senior Adrianna Lisotto's line drive into left-center for an RBI double Lisotto was promptly driven in by Boyce's RBI single the Lions were on the verge of breaking the game open with runners on first and second But Sasso flexed her talent on the mound for Colts Neck as she navigated the jam with ease and did not concede another run It was the first of multiple instances when Sasso got out of considerable danger without allowing a score She got out of a bases loaded jam in the fifth and overcame a lead off double in the sixth without letting the runner advance The stellar junior did everything she could to give the Cougars a chance at the comeback But there was simply no openings against Boyce as she brought her best stuff A lead-off double by Jillian Heyser provided a glimmer of hope in the top of the seventh for Colts Neck but Boyce promptly snuffed it out with her final two strikeouts to end the game What's next for Colts Neck and Middletown NorthColts Neck drops to 2-3 after the close loss but those records are graded on a curve in the ultra-competitive A-North division All of the Cougars' five games have come against divisional foes with the other two losses coming to powerhouse Non-Publics Red Bank Catholic and St The Cougars will try to bounce back on Wednesday as they aim to complete a season sweep of Marlboro after beating the Mustangs in the season opener as Colts Neck will play two straight games against last year's two Non-Public A finalists in Mount St the tests only get tougher for Middletown North after the Lions' strong 5-1 start The good news is the challengers will all come at home as they prepare to face Red Bank Catholic on Wednesday and Morris Catholic on Saturday to end the week They'll continue to be home the following week when they face Marlboro PISCATAWAY -- The forces of destiny that permeated the Colts Neck boys basketball team were as omnipresent as the external doubt But on the grand stage at Jersey Mike's Arena for the Group 3 state championship Saturday night the Cougars faced the same chorus of sports soothsayers that had said the team would lose to Ewing and Ocean City The silence of the doubters was as deafening as the booming student section as Colts Neck outmaneuvered the bigger and talented Raiders to win 54-46 for the first state championship in program history With leading scorer fouling out, Colts Neck boys basketball comes back, reaches state final Coach Steve Jannarone couldn't ignore the fate that always seemed to surround his team dating back to innocuous trip to see his son They went out to dinner at an upscale restaurant that required a suit jacket and Jannarone bought an elegant green piece for the occasion "I bought this jacket and I kid to my wife it'll be something I can wear in the state finals," Jannarone said "I had been rocking a 20-year-old polo for the whole tournament So there's definitely something going on." Whether it was the fashion gods or the basketball gods there was always something good going on about this year's most unlikely state champ The Cougars scrapped their way through the first two quarters while Lukas Sloane kept the team afloat with 13 of the team's 15 points at halftime the Cougars could do no wrong as they surged in the next 16 minutes They made eight of their nine field goal attempts in the third quarter and shrunk the Ramapo lead to 38-37 heading into the fourth Fresh of his late-game heroics against Ocean City junior Dillon Younger had nine points in the third quarter The results laid bare that Colts Neck was built for these moments we play a lot of teams that are bigger and more physical," said Sloane "We just have that hustle that I don't think any team in the state has The defensive hand placement was immaculate as they ruined the Raiders' rhythm with blocks and steals The ball movement was a work of art as scoring opportunities flowed to seniors Dan Buoncore who made back-to-back shots to give Colts Neck the defining 43-41 lead midway through the fourth as they rode that momentum to the finish line "We just believe in ourselves," Younger said Lukas believed in us to hit all these shots Colts Neck embodied team basketball in a way that it galvanized the community beyond just the student-athletes on the team The vocal coalition of community members and alumni roared at each turning point just as they had all through the team's incredible playoff run "It's really great for the whole community to come out," Belcher said "The Den has been supporting us all year and it has been truly amazing for us to just perform in front of them The Cougars were a team that faced an unfathomable climb to the top They embraced each fateful twist and turn of their journey Jannarone didn't shy away from reminding his team of the stakes of the moment and what it would mean if his players could deliver the first boys basketball state championship in school history "We talked about how they matched a legacy by winning a sectional By winning the next one (in the state semifinal against Ocean City) "The talk today was: win this and you can never be surpassed." The start of the game could not have been uglier for fans hoping to see high-flying offensive basketball Ramapo got the first points of the game on free throw and added the game's first field goal with 4:20 left in the first quarter Ramapo never seemed to fully recover from that opening offensive funk while Sloane kept Colts Neck afloat by scoring all of his team's six first quarter points but that seemed to foreshadow the Cougars mucky path to victory All the while Sloane buoyed his team and reached double figures before another Colts Neck player could put the ball through the net Ramapo inched forward to an 18-12 lead before the Raiders found themselves stuck in the mud again going scoreless for four minutes before scoring the final bucket of the second to hold a 20-15 lead at halftime The foundation of bricks in the first half only augmented Colts Neck's gritty style of play in the third The Cougars surged immediately to keep pace with Ramapo's best offensive stretch of the game steadily shrinking the lead largely thanks to their hot hand from beyond the arc Colts Neck was only 5-for-15 from three-point range in the game but all five makes came in the third quarter None of them were bigger than Younger's two makes the first of which tied the game at 33-33 and the second of which was a four-point play that gave Colts Neck a 37-35 lead Ramapo answered to hold a 38-37 lead heading into the fourth quarter but the Raiders were running out of answers They relinquished the lead for good after Belcher's back-to-back scores that put Colts Neck up 43-41 with 3:52 left in the game The Cougars played an astute game of keep away to bleed off more than a minute of game time Clutch scores by Bouncore and Freid in quick success gave the team a two-possession lead and put Ramapo into intentional foul territory The final minutes were as much of a slog as the first minutes all signifying that Colts Neck had executed their strategy to perfection Sloane finished with game-high 20 points in addition to 12 rebounds Freid was the other Cougar in double figures with 11 Younger was the do-it-all point guard as he finished a well-rounded performance with nine points Belcher and Bouncore each finished with seven points Colts Neck became the first high school in the Freehold Regional School District to win a boys basketball state championship It's one more stunning factual element to an unlikely story The Cougars didn't have a shred of momentum heading into the playoffs They lost by 30 points to Manasquan in their exit from the Shore Conference Tournament and ended the regular season with a loss to Sayreville that brought their record to 14-9 fate intervened for a team that can sparsely be explained in any other way Lukas Sloane himself emerged as a star and doubled his scoring output as a senior Younger and Belcher were what got the team to Rutgers to play for a state title In a Shore Conference basketball season that been repeatedly denigrated as a down year for the league Colts Neck was battle-hardened enough to seize a state crown then things are certainly looking up for basketball at the Shore 2025 at 12:47 pm ET.css-79elbk{position:relative;}The Colts Neck branch of the Monmouth County Library is located at 2 Veterans Way (formerly 1 Winthrop Drive) NJ — Community members can find their next read at the Colts Neck branch of the Monmouth County Library's spring book sale this Saturday and Sunday The sale will be hosted by The Friends of the Colts Neck Library a volunteer organization dedicated to aiding and enhancing the library's development and dedicated to sponsoring social and educational programs for the Colts Neck community the library will offer a preview hour for book sale attendees with $5 admission Teachers with their school ID will be able to purchase a $5 bag of books after 10 a.m Those who buy a Reusable Friends bag for $5 will get $1 off of $5 books one time at the sale There is a $25 minimum for checks and a $5 scanner fee for phone apps The book sale will take place in the large room and foyer of the lower level of the library The Colts Neck branch of the Monmouth County Library is located at 2 Veterans Way (formerly 1 Winthrop Drive) To learn more, you can visit the Friends of the Colts Neck Library Facebook page or email them at cnfriendslibrary@gmail.com Editor's Note: This article has been updated to correct that there's a $25 minimum for checks .st1{fill-rule:evenodd;clip-rule:evenodd;fill:#2a2a2a}By Jason Bernstein | NJ Advance Media for NJ.comJoe Pignatelli went 2-for-3 with a home run and four RBI to power third-seeded Colts Neck to an 11-0 victory over sixth-seeded Manasquan in the Monmouth County Tournament quarterfinals in Colts Neck RJ Conover was 3-for-3 with three runs and a stolen base for Colts Neck (8-3) which jumped out to a 4-0 first inning lead and never looked back Will Perski scored two runs and Dan Annunziata went 2-for-3 with a run and a RBI Winning pitcher Nick Hayden tossed a four-hit shutout Colts Neck played the Red Bank Catholic-Ocean Township winner in the semifinals next Saturday Connor Voelkson and Matt Antonucci both went 1-for-2 with a walk for Manasquan (9-3) The N.J. High School Sports newsletter is now appearing in mailboxes 5 days a week. Sign up now! Follow us on social: Facebook | Instagram | X (formerly Twitter) The letters were left at Fitzpatrick’s home sometime between Wednesday night and Thursday morning Fitzpatrick is currently running for re-election on the Colts Neck Township Committee against John Tobia Fitzpatrick has served on the committee for five years Fitzpatrick told the Asbury Park Press that she filed a report with the Colts Neck Police Department and plans to file a report with the NJ Attorney General’s Office and Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office for campaign interference and intimidation Patch has reached out to Fitzpatrick and the Colts Neck Township Police Department for more information In a statement posted on Saturday Tobia condemned the anonymous letters sent to Fitzpatrick labeling the attempts to intimidate and threaten her as “beyond unacceptable.” He went on to say that these attempts must be called out and that threats have “no place in any campaign “Let’s be clear: no matter how angry we are or how passionate we get about our beliefs and perspectives threats and intimidation have no place in our community,” Tobia said “We must draw that line and stand together to make sure it’s never crossed 2025 Primary Election Day will take place on Tuesday, June 10. To learn more about the election in Colts Neck, you can click here To read the full report from the Asbury Park Press, you can click here there has been the lingering question of which quality Shore squad outside of the elite tier of teams would break through to cement itself as an additional serious title contender On their home court in front of a rollicking crowd that was evenly split between supporters of the two local rivals in the Freehold Regional School District the Cougars battled tightly against Freehold Borough in the Central Group 3 section semifinal before seizing control in the final 10 minutes The Cougars withstood a galvanizing fourth quarter effort by Freehold Boro's Brian Tassey and toppled the reigning section champion in a 59-47 victory Matching Tassey's performance was Colts Neck senior Lukas Sloane who turned in a star effort with 27 points in the victory we could toughen it out and just make it this far," said Sloane and it was kind of hard to block it all out for me it was just surreal how everyone on the team can come together and get this win." The Cougars needed a five-man effort to compete with the superb athleticism and rare size of Freehold Boro Their relentless ball pressure paid dividends down the stretch as a series of turnovers doomed the Colonials and the team was clearly out of sync offensively Matching Freehold's size on the interior was Bryce Belcher the guard who is capable of running the point but has had to play in the front court for this iteration of Colts Neck we don't got a guy that's like 6-foot-7," said Belcher The senior did exactly that with 12 points and 10 rebounds paving the way for teammates to follow suit as Colts Neck did not concede a massive advantage on the boards despite facing the size of Tassey and Aidan Hamlin-Woolfolk for Freehold That defensive grit hit a tipping point in the third as the Cougars seized control after holding the Colonials to single digits in the quarter we held them to seven points in the third quarter," said Belcher which had to navigate the loss of two top scorers that now play college basketball in Volodymyr Trotsko and Bryce's older brother Mike Belcher they've raised their game to another level thanks largely to the revelatory development of Sloane who has gone from averaging 8 points per game as a junior to 17 as a senior "It's hard to be consistent in high school against different teams "But as a senior this year with all the work that I put in during the offseason It's just so easy to play a game where you trust each other and you just work hard and you get success out of that." The work had a direct correlation to closing out the victory down the stretch as the Cougars did not falter at the free throw line and essentially closed out the win with a minute remaining thanks to the efficiency at the charity strike I don't know how many of those I shot in the offseason "It's just crazy to know how that work can payoff." The electricity on the court matched the energy in the crowd from the opening tip as both teams came ready to prevail in the win-or-go-home rivalry duel the difference was Colts Neck's immaculate execution of well-crafted game plan by coach Steve Jannarone The Cougars energized their raucous student section with a strong start as they won the tip and scored on the opening possession en route to an early 9-4 lead after Sloane drilled a pull-up three answering to cut the deficit to just one point after an explosive dunk by Aidan Hamlin-Woolfolk But the momentum of that play was stifled by a questionable technical foul call Colts Neck clung to an 18-16 lead after the opening quarter The teams continued to trade buckets in the second quarter with the largest lead being a mere four points But Colts Neck pivotally sped up its pace and wore out the smaller rotation of Freehold Boro that relies heavily on the starting five That tactical choice paid dividends in the long term as the wear and tear was evident in the fourth when the Colonials' legs failed them on a series of outside shots the Cougars lead was just 30-26 at halftime thanks to 16 first half points by Sloane the Cougars' found a rhythm as their defense tightened the screws Colts Neck built a lead that peaked at the end of the third quarter at nine points the game might've been decided much sooner as Colts Neck was firmly in control Several outside shots resulted in air balls for the Colonials and they were plagued by errant passes that could be attributed both to the passer and the recipient Tassey almost single-handedly cut that lead to 44-40 midway through the fourth He produced another bit of magic down 48-40 stealing a pass and scoring through a foul to cut it to 48-43 Tassey scored 12 of his team's 14 fourth quarter points but his singular effort simply wasn't enough as Colts Neck bled out the clock with ball movement and scored 10 of their 16 points on free throws to seal the 59-47 victory it would appear the four-seed Cougars (17-9) caught a break as six-seed Ewing (22-7) upset two-seed Burlington Township in the other section semifinal on Tuesday But Colts Neck will face their biggest challenge of the season in a Ewing team that has impressed throughout the season The Blue Devils beat Donovan Catholic by 16 whereas the Cougars only beat Donovan by two By contrast Colts Neck toppled Hopewell Valley in the playoffs a team that beat Ewing comfortable early in the season Both teams share a common loss to Hightstown but they'll have to piece together another near-flawless showing to finish their incredible season-long journey as section champions NEWARK — A Colts Neck man has been charged with aiming a laser beam at an aircraft during the height of the drone panic in December who now faces up to five years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine Magistrate Judge Leda Dunn Wettre in Newark on Thursday Pedone also lied to police when local officers went to his home to investigate the incident according to the statement from the U.S Attorney’s Office More: NJ drone mystery exposes ‘vulnerability’ in modern police work: Ocean County sheriff a manned aircraft described as being “operated by federal law enforcement personnel” was flying over Colts Neck at an altitude of 2,500 feet when federal agents in the cockpit observed a green laser beam strike the aircraft After the agents turned the aircraft around in an attempt to locate the source of the laser the aircraft was struck again with a green laser beam More: NJ drones 'were authorized to be flown by FAA for research,' Donald Trump says the agents were able to visually identify a residential property where the beam had come from and used camera equipment aboard to record the home as the laser beam struck the aircraft for a third time The camera also captured an individual wearing dark-colored clothes standing near the house and another person nearby wearing light-colored clothes which utilizes a computer system that operates in conjunction with the aircraft’s onboard global positioning system provided the agents with the address of the home The pilot notified air traffic controllers of the three laser beam strikes and the Colts Neck Police Department was contacted with township officers paying a visit to the house about a half hour later Through a large unobstructed window adjacent to the front door of the home could be seen in dark clothes with a woman — who was not identified — in light clothes Pedone denied that he nor his companion had pointed a laser at an aircraft Pedone confessed to federal agents during an interview that he had indeed pointed a laser at an aircraft “once or twice” from the deck of his home believing the aircraft circling his property was a drone Lying to federal agents is in itself a crime He also admitted that after speaking with police that night The complaint did not disclose the reason federal law enforcement agents were flying over the region that night federal law enforcement personnel were active in the state during an investigation into the mystery drones two months ago Shortly after taking office last month, President Donald Trump said in a statement that the thousands of reported drone sightings over New Jersey in December were not from foreign adversaries but were instead authorized by the Federal Aviation Administration lasers are a serious threat to aviation safety as they can incapacitate pilots who reported 13,304 laser strikes to the FAA in 2023 The investigation into the Colts Neck incident was led by special agents and officers with the FBI Newark Joint Terrorism Task Force under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Terence G Attorney’s Office also credited the Colts Neck Police Department under the direction of Chief Daniel DeVito Attorney’s Office’s National Security Unit in Newark is in charge of the criminal case against Pedone Criminal defense attorney Michael Thomas represents Pedone in the matter Contact Asbury Park Press reporter Erik Larsen at elarsen@gannettnj.com Christian Brothers Academy and Colts Neck High School are just eight miles apart but their footprint in track & field could soon stretch the continent The neighborly rivals own the top two seeds in the boys distance medley at the Penn Relays and if those seeds hold Friday in Philadelphia it will mark the first 1-2 finish for Shore Conference relays in the 130 years of this venerable meet “It’s really crazy when you think about the fact that there are teams coming from Jamaica and all across the country and the top two (distance medleys) are pretty much right next to each other in Monmouth County New Jersey,” Colts Neck anchor Hunter Celkupa said Watch Penn Relays live on FloTrack having captured a coveted winner’s “wheel” last April with a time of 10:01 – a Shore Conference record No Shore program ever has won consecutive wheels at Penn and winning back-to-back would set this team as one of the best in New Jersey history and in the U.S.,” said senior Joe Barrett who returns as anchor after bringing the Colts home in 4:12 last year Colts Neck’s top finish was second in 2007 thanks to a 4:04 anchor 1600 by Craig Forys “This is one of the only things our coach has yet to win so I think it means a lot,” Celkupa said of longtime Cougars distance coach Jim Schlentz “If we want to prove that we have a national-level DMR draws bigger crowds than any other track meet in the U.S “You never race in anything like that – 20,000 people in the stands screaming,” Barrett said “You have to look at that pressure as a privilege.” winners of this event have hailed from Ireland Jamaica and nine different states – including California "Seeing that the top two teams are from Monmouth County “I like racing against CBA because they always push it,” Celkupa said “They’re not afraid to take the lead and they’re not afraid to go for a fast time and that’s what we’re always trying to do.” “we know something huge is going to have to go down.” Here are four more Shore Conference story lines at the carnival: The Bulldogs return all four legs of the girls 4x800 that placed eighth last year in 9:07 their best times add up to a mid-8:40s clocking which is good enough to win this race most years The Mariners’ boys are looking to make the championship races in the 4x800 4x400 and 4x100 for the second straight year which could be good enough for a top five finish (earning a medal) Keep an eye on the Shore Conference record of 3:14.07 Manalapan’s medal chaseThe Braves finished seventh in the distance medley last spring with a time of 12:07 and return the three principals plus the addition of transfer Jessica Abbott who is already under 5:00 for the 1600 this season The Shore will send four throwers with top-10 seeds to Franklin Field: St Rose’s Joe Seib and CBA’s Marcus Blasucci in the boys shot put Toms River South’s Julia Santos in the girls shot put and Toms River North’s Riley Brazier in the girls javelin the conference has produced the overall winner in the girls shot and the top American finishers in the boys shot and boys discus SouthernThe senior won the 100 dash (10.69) and 400 (50.03) at Fast Times at Southern High The senior placed second in the high jump (6-2) second in the 400 hurdles (56.80) and fourth in the 110 hurdles (14.72) at Fast Times at Southern High The junior won the shot put (52-11.25) and placed second in the discus (152-3) at the Colts Neck Spring Invitational The senior won the 110 hurdles at Fast Times at Southern High in 14.09 The junior won the 800 at the Colts Neck Spring Invitational in 1:55.08 The senior won the 100 dash (12.49) and long jump (17-9) at the B South divisional championships Rumson-Fair HavenThe senior won the 400 at the Colts Neck Spring Invitational in 55.73 The junior won the 1600 at the Colts Neck Spring Invitational in 4:58.90 The senior won the triple jump at Fast Times at Southern High with a leap of 39-9.25 The senior won the discus (125-9) and shot put (35-3.25) at the Georgian Court High School Challenge She received her Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree from Adelphi University and held a variety of fulfilling positions over the years taking care of others She particularly relished her time at De La Salle Hall in Lincroft where she championed a gift drive for Christian Brothers Academy students to help brighten the Christmas season for residents and generosity were evident both throughout her career as a nurse as well as in the many volunteer activities she participated in over the years she enjoyed serving as a Girl Scout troop leader and religious education teacher at The Parish of St She was also passionate about supporting people with disabilities She had a great talent and love for gardening and took great pride in watching her yard come alive each spring Anne built a warm and welcoming home and enjoyed hosting friends and family for social gatherings including each summer’s annual “Bean Bash” Anne was extremely proud of her children’s many accomplishments none of which would have been possible without her support and guidance She loved her grandchildren and enjoyed watching them learn and grow She was proud of her Polish heritage and cherished family traditions including taking an annual Christmas morning photograph of her children on the stairs in her home and her children and grandchildren: Thomas Bean and Charlotte Bean; Stephanie (Bean) Allen and her husband William Allen of New York NY and their children William and Matthew Allen; Andrew Bean and his wife Kris Bean of Titusville NJ and their daughter Esméralda (Esmé); and Matthew Bean and his wife Amanda Bean of Brooklyn Family and friends are invited to pay their respects to Anne and visit with her family on Wednesday Entombment will be at Holmdel Cemetery Mausoleum In lieu of flowers, Anne’s family kindly asks that any charitable donations in her memory be made to Family Resource Associates (https://www.frainc.org/) or the Tunnel to Towers Foundation (https://t2t.org/) To leave messages of condolence or to share a favorite memory of Anne please visit her tribute page at www.HolmdelFuneralHome.com Your name will appear next to the candle you light.Your condolence may need to be approved before it appears on this page It may not appear immediately once submitted Upload attachment (Allowed file types: jpg and website in this browser for the next time I comment Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value" It looks as though you’ve already said that!' + ' Your condolence may need to be approved before it appears on this page Thank you for leaving a condolence..Your comment has been submitted for moderation Anne Jurgielewicz Bean, age 69, of Colts Neck, NJ, passed away peacefully on Saturday, March 29, 2025 at CentraState Medical Center, in Freehold, NJ. She was born in Port Jefferson, NY and raised in Moriches on Long Island. She received her Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree from Adelphi University and held a variety of … Read More Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_2" ).setAttribute( "value" Designed and produced by ©document.write(new Date().getFullYear()); MKJ Marketing|Privacy Policy|Sitemap at a public meeting on where to build 101 affordable housing units The first response to a series of questions on poster boards was an all-caps reply of "NO MORE!" The planning board held a public meeting Tuesday night to gather residents' feedback on what type of affordable housing should be built in the township and where it should be allowed to be built home to sprawling farms and celebrities like Bruce Springsteen has an average home value of $871,400 according to the Census The township approved its first apartment complex in late 2021 in the face of fierce residential opposition Colts Neck: See inside the modern mansion added to this 1750 estate Livana Colts Neck, formerly known as Colts Neck Manor, is now under construction across from Colts Neck High School on Route 537 77 would be set aside for affordable housing Residents spoke out against the project at township and county public meetings and wrote letters to state agencies to oppose its approval That project's unpopularity was echoed at Tuesday night's meeting The meeting also exposed a rift between the Township Committee which has to decide whether or not to comply with the next round of affordable housing obligations which appeared reluctant to be hosting Tuesday night's public session it is the Township Committee who hires the professionals who hires the attorneys to defend affordable housing who makes the agreements with the potential developers and (determines) the location,” Planning Board Chair John Tobia said “It is a very emotional subject; it can change the character of this township.” Tobia was one of two planning board members who had voted against plans for Livana Colts Neck he asked that all future affordable housing forums and discussions be held by the Township Committee Running through Colts Neck: Route 537 is a time machine, traveling through marvelous NJ history Another planning board member who has been outspoken about overdevelopment Vice Chair Kris Lukowitz argued that the Township Committee had tried to “silence” him by hiring an attorney to investigate him Colts Neck has an obligation to provide 101 units of affordable housing Affordable housing in New Jersey is targeted for people making less than 80% of a region’s medium income a three-person household could make up to $93,000 and still qualify for affordable housing “I think often time there’s a misperception that (affordable housing) is no income or very in order to qualify for the affordable housing units,” McManus said “households need to qualify with their income in order to rent the unit (It is) actually a much more burdensome process than you or I might go through in order to enter a lease for a housing unit.” She pointed out that the average salary for a retail clerk or a home health aide is about $32,000 to $37,000 per year Colts Neck Inn Steakhouse: 'Everything's new' at this decades-old restaurant By going through with the affordable housing process and adopting a Housing Element and Fair Share plan municipalities can receive protection from builder’s remedy lawsuits a builder that convinces a judge that a town has not satisfied its obligation to make affordable housing available can get the judge to order the town to rezone the property to allow for affordable housing Such lawsuits often end with bigger and denser developments than would have been approved by municipalities if they had engaged in the affordable housing process having that protection means that municipalities are better able to conduct zoning to maintain their zoning and make choices for themselves about land use,” she said NJ affordable housing: Judge rejects towns' bid to stop new law. Advocates cheer ruling Deputy Mayor Michael Viola said that before the township entered into a settlement agreement in 2020 to build affordable housing “The choice to maintain our immunity was to limit the damage on the west side of town on (Route) 537 or that could go on all over town,” he said about plans to build a subdivision of 25 single-family homes — the alternative was 148 townhouses New housing plan needed for Colts NeckBy the end of January the Township Committee has to pass a resolution determining its affordable housing obligation and It can argue that 101 new affordable units is too high McManus said there are two ways to argue that Colts Neck: Horse farm sold at auction to mystery buyer after 55 years in one family The first is called a “Vacant Land Adjustment,” where a municipality has adequate sewer and water but not enough vacant and developable land The second is called a “Durational Adjustment,” where a municipality has adequate vacant and developable land McManus said Colts Neck could fall under the second category and reduce the number of affordable units in its obligation if a developer is able to come up with plans for a sewer and water system on a developable piece of land the municipality could be on the hook for the full number of affordable units There are different types of affordable housing and different ways to achieve “bonus credits.” For example Livana Colts Neck’s 77 rental units counted as 144 credits Only 30% of the affordable housing can be used for senior housing and at least half needs to be for families which McManus said was a term used to describe households that do not fall under special populations such as seniors There are multiple ways municipalities can build affordable housing Livana Colts Neck would be considered inclusionary housing where 15% to 20% of all units are considered affordable Municipalities can also approve the building of 100% affordable apartments but McManus warned that such housing would require more municipal responsibility and developers often ask for a PILOT in which a developer agrees to pay a set fee for a certain number of years Municipalities can also buy a market-rate home and sell it as an affordable unit but McManus said such programs can be "notoriously expensive." Another option could be to extend affordability controls on property deeds A few residents wrote in suggestions about where the township should allow affordable housing or close to existing sewer and water lines Colts Neck crime: Upcoming trial in Caneiro family murders to spotlight alleged web of betrayal and greed Residents were also instructed to place stickers on the type of housing that should be allowed Seniors and veteran housing received the most support “The fact that we have a military base in this township a portion of that should be geared toward veterans,” referring to Naval Weapons Station Earle Olivia Liu is a reporter covering transportation FREEHOLD -- Monmouth County's top judge has rejected Paul Caneiro's bid to keep critical evidence out of his quadruple murder trial ruling late last week that DNA evidence generated by cutting-edge but controversial computer software can be introduced to a jury deciding the case Attorneys from the state Public Defender's Office challenged the results generated from the software at a weeks-long hearing late last year Defense attorneys argued the technology — which utilizes a method of analysis known as probabilistic genotyping — did not undergo adequate independent testing in the scientific community to prove its reliability for use in criminal trials rejected that argument in a 212-page ruling that is likely to have statewide implications for the STRmix software which had never before been subject to a court challenge in New Jersey More on the case: Caneiro's quadruple murder trial pushed back to May as new attorney joins his defense "STRmix has been tested,'' Lemieux wrote in his decision Its performance across a vast range of samples has been extensively charted the discussion and spirited debate between forensic experts as to (probabilistic genotyping's) role in their industry and the thoughtful and thorough judicial opinions from other jurisdictions all lead to the same conclusion: probabilistic genotyping is reliable While the DNA evidence generated by STRmix will be admissible at Caneiro's trial the defendant can raise issues about what impact related contributors to DNA mixtures have on the results whether laboratories processing the results adhered to standard operating procedures and general criticisms of probabilistic genotyping and the STRmix software STRmix and other probabilistic genotyping programs are used to analyze small amounts and complicated mixtures of DNA that often can't be analyzed by the traditional method of DNA analysis in use for decades generates a statistic on the probability a match to a DNA profile can be found in the general population Probabilistic genotyping generates a "likelihood ratio" that a person of interest can either be included or excluded as a contributor to a DNA mixture Jury selection for Caneiro's trial is scheduled to begin May 19 He is charged with the murders of his brother as well as other crimes that speak to the motive for the killings and attempts to cover them up Emergency workers responding to a slow-burning fire at Keith Caneiro's mansion on Willow Brook Road in Colts Neck discovered the bodies of the victims on Nov Caneiro family murders: Upcoming trial to spotlight alleged web of betrayal and greed Jennifer Caneiro also was shot in the head Prosecutors allege Paul Caneiro committed the murders after his brother found out he was stealing from businesses they co-owned They allege the defendant then set fire to the mansion before setting his Ocean Township home ablaze to make it look like the entire family was being targeted by violent thugs DNA that the STRmix program determined to be a mixture from Paul and Sophia Caneiro and another mixture to which Jesse was deemed to be a contributor was later found on clothing recovered from the defendant's basement Prosecutors have said they also have additional DNA evidence analyzed by the traditional method that implicates Paul Caneiro in the crimes The Public Defender's Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Lemiuex's ruling on the STRmix DNA evidence "While we certainly appreciate and respect the exhaustive analysis conducted by the Court in this matter given the close proximity to the anticipated start of the trial we must respectfully decline further comment,'' Monmouth County Prosecutor Raymond S Both sides have indicated in the past that the ruling would most likely be subject to an appeal Lemeiux also will be tasked with ruling on a defense motion to move Caneiro's trial out of Monmouth County due to pretrial publicity He has scheduled a hearing on that motion for April 2 DEPTFORD -- With 2:37 left in the boys basketball Group 3 state semifinal between Ocean City and Colts Neck on Tuesday it appeared that a valiant comeback would come up short The Cougars' star senior Lukas Sloane had single-handedly cut Ocean City's five point lead to just one point and he added to that heroic effort with yet another score to give his team a 44-43 lead Sloane fouled out with a team-high 17 points What seemed like an unfortunate ending was just the start of another chapter in the most miraculous story of the Shore basketball season After Ocean City swiftly regained the lead Colts Neck shut out the Red Raiders in the final two minutes It set the stage for senior Dillon Younger as he drove into the paint with a clunky and gritty move that was finished off with a 10-foot jumper through contact to give the Cougars a 46-45 lead So I just knew it was my time to get that basket." the Cardiac Cats capped off the comeback victory with two defensive stands Colts Neck beat Ocean City 47-45 and secured its place in the state championship at Rutgers on Saturday And it was the perfect finish for a team that has been defined by a willingness to win by any means necessary "We all knew we had it in us," said Younger Colts Neck travels well: The DenThe love extended to the devoted student section that provided home court advantage throughout the team's run to a sectional championship and traveled to give the Cougars a home court advantage even while being 70 miles from home The Den stormed the court in the aftermath of the momentous victory "The Den didn't travel an hour and 30 minutes to watch us lose," Sloane said The constant for the Cougars was their defense and senior Dan Buoncore set the standard with multiple steals including a steal-and-score in the closing minutes of the fourth we've been playing together for four years we've been staying ready for this moment," said Buoncore The Cougars overcame a 10-point deficit late in the third quarter to topple an impressive Ocean City that came into the game with a 22-6 record The Red Raiders were beset by a devastating injury just 18 seconds into the game when the team's lone senior and leading scorer exited the game with an apparent ankle injury But that loss seemed to galvanized the talented group as they seized control in the second quarter and extended their lead in the third Luke Tjoumakaris had a game-high 21 points for Ocean And no matter how much the Cougars had struggled in various aspects they found ways to turn those shortcomings into strengths They were an abysmal 10 of 20 at the free throw line and struggled on the glass but the turning point of the game came when Sloane crafted a three-point play He made his first free throw and grabbed his own offensive rebound on the second and put it back in for a score to cut Ocean City's lead to 41-40 midway through the fourth quarter I've gotta give it all that I got," Sloane said "I don't think we crashed the boards one time He came out with the ball on his hip and I just took it and scored." Colts Neck coach Steve Jannarone admitted he wasn't thrilled with the principle behind the play but praised the execution from the star senior he did it against Ewing and I was ready to strangle him," the coach said "So the fact he ignored me and got it was to his credit because he knows what can and can't do." That level of confidence is a theme for Colts Neck as they've made fools out of naysayers and established themselves as the Shore Conference's unsung elite team This run is particularly impressive given the recurring state-wide narrative that this winter was a "down year" for boys basketball at the Shore "I think the Shore speaks for itself," Jannarone said "Anybody that thinks we have to prove anything hasn't been watching." They'll face reigning state champion Ramapo in the Group 3 final giving the Cougars one more chance to stun the entire state with another upset But it's difficult to imagine how any moment could top the theatrics of Tuesday night's semifinal "All my friends here - it's just an amazing experience You have successfully subscribed to the newsletter There was an error while trying to send your request The Colts Neck boys took over the national lead in the distance medley relay on Friday when they dropped a US No 1 time of 10:17.27 at the Penn Relays Winter Showcase at the Ott Center on the campus of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia the only team in the nation under 10:20 at the moment won the race by more than four seconds over Lower Merion of Pa. .st1{fill-rule:evenodd;clip-rule:evenodd;fill:#2a2a2a}By Anthony Gabbianelli | NJ Advance Media for NJ.comLuke Tortorici tallied five goals and three assists for Barnegat in its 12-5 win over Colts Neck in Colts Neck Keegan Dunn recorded a hat trick with an assist for Barnegat (8-1) Jakob Jason scored a goal with three assists for Barnegat while Leonardo Chamorro had a goal Anthony Gabbianelli can be reached at agabbianellli@njadvancemedia.com The N.J. High School Sports newsletter is now appearing in mailboxes 5 days a week. Sign up now! Follow us on social: Facebook | Instagram | X (formerly Twitter) COLTS NECK -- The legacy of Nick Russo at the Shore goes back decades from his time as a player to winning titles as a head coach and it may have helped him this season as the Colts Neck girls basketball head coach More: Shore Conference Tournament girls basketball seeds and predictions: Who made the cut? More: A postseason preview? Red Bank Catholic girls basketball beats rival St. John Vianney Colts Neck won its Shore Conference Tournament preliminary round match against Freehold Borough on Tuesday afternoon The Cougars will travel down to Manasquan to face the top-seeded Warriors on Thursday The win was backed by his talented freshman duo in Julianna Jasina (10 points Those two have been the leading scorers all season they want to play all day so that's the difference," Russo said about his freshmen he finished and still is a top 50 Shore Conference scorer of all-time with 1,664 points for Keyport in the 1970's He averaged 25.7 points per game his senior year John Vianney in the 1990's to help the program become the powerhouse it now is and led the Lancers to nine state titles and five Tournament of Champions crowns Russo will also be the assistant coach at the McDonald's All-American Game in April alongside current SJV head coach Dawn Karpell -- who'll also be the head coach of the all-star game "I felt really really really blessed that Dawn would ask me to do it so I appreciate that," Russo said In an era when players go to powerhouse programs to capitalize on exposure and playing high-level competition more regularly getting kids to stay at local public schools has gotten tougher Colts Neck (12-7) may be able to break that mold starting with the roster he has now Russo expressed that it's tough to keep players home "I feel like it's such a privilege to have him as a coach The first half of the game against Freehold Boro (16-5) was close Colts Neck went into halftime leading 23-20 The third quarter is when the Cougars turned up the heat and began pulling away The Colonials turned the ball over eight times in the third quarter Their on-ball pressure and double teams wore down Freehold over time An 8-0 run to start the third quarter gave Colts Neck the cushion they needed "I just felt like we were smarter in the second half," Russo said "We had a plan going in to limit their best players and I feel like we did a good job in the first half we did on the point guard (Christina Sikaras) but not on the other kid (Sayuri Penaranda) and we gave them too many layups and free throws." and Olivia Batchelor had six for the Colonials eight players were able to find the score sheet Lone senior Katie Dichter finished the game with 12 points She's the main ball handler for Colts Neck and was a big factor in limiting turnovers in the second half She's happy for the contribution the younger girls have brought to the team "This is probably my favorite year out of the four we have a bunch of young people that actually work hard," Dichter said "She's got to be a leader on the court for the young team put everybody in their spots and every thing in that nature," Russo said "Second half I felt like she got under control a little more and got us going." COLTS NECK – As the Colts Neck players celebrated with family and friends on the court in the immediate aftermath of a 52-43 win over Ewing in the NJSIAA Central Group 3 championship game head coach Steve Jannarone had plenty of reasons to be emotional as he stood nearby There was the team that had overcome the odds as a No 4 seed to win the program’s second sectional title “These kids are unbelievable kids,” Jannarone said who he went to work for at Manalapan in 1986 More: NJ Shore boys basketball state tournament tracker: Schedule, times, results “I am more emotional about the fact that my father went to four or five sectional finals and never got one,” he said Colts Neck (19-9) advances to the Group 3 semifinals against Ocean City (23-6) a 66-53 winner over Timber Creek in the South Group 3 final next Tuesday (7 p.m.) at Deptford High School A year ago it was upstart Freehold Borough storming through the NJSIAA Central Group 3 bracket as the No Now the Cougars are travelling the same path who scored eight points in the first quarter as the Cougars jumped out to a 14-10 lead It’s a stirring run by a team that started the season 6-5 Now the Cougars have won seven of their last nine games with the two losses to Manasquan and Greater Middlesex Conference power Sayreville “We’ve had some growing pains,” said senior forward Bryce Belcher who keyed the defensive effort on Ewing big man Joel Cineus But as we get healthy you see how dangerous we can be as a team.” It was the Cougars first trip to a sectional final since 2018 when they lost to Trenton in the Central Group 4 final “A good team always goes through adversity and I think that is our story here,” Sloane said “We made corrections early in the year and now we are reaping the benefits Colts Neck has never been to a state Group final Coming off the bench at the start of the second quarter Duddy promptly made a steal and then sank his first 3-pointer at the other end to push the Cougars lead to 17-10 before doing it again a few minutes later to give his team a 20-14 edge after Ewing had made it a one-possession game “There is a kid who is a senior and playing time hasn’t there but he stuck with it and when his number was called and he got the opportunity he delivered,” Jannarone said “And in this day and age it is so unusual for a kid to have that kind of character and stay with it and be ready when he needed to be ready.” Colts Neck had a 37-25 lead heading into the final quarter but Ewing cut it to five points on several occasions before the Cougars put the game away at the free throw line Now they had into a clash with one of South Jersey’s best feeling good about themselves after rolling through the bracket “I don’t have to worry about confidence with this group,” said Jannarone in his third season as the Cougars' head coach having been a long-time assistant and head girls' basketball coach at the school they just play how they are going to play no matter who the opponent is We have talked early in the year about walking into the gym with our chests out and a swagger and they do it They just come in and we’ll work on it and we’ll fix it “I started with Denny in 1986 and since then we’ve had maybe three teams that have had that kind of mentality and character.” 2025 at 4:33 pm ET.css-79elbk{position:relative;}The Colts Neck Library is located at 2 Veterans Way NJ — The Colts Neck Library is celebrating its 25th anniversary with a party on Saturday the library will host their 25th anniversary party The Colts Neck Library is a branch of the Monmouth County Public Library system which hosts branches throughout the county At the Colts Neck branch, the Friends of the Colts Neck Library aim to aid and enhance the library’s development cultural and educational programs for the benefit and enjoyment of township residents according to their organization description On Saturday, community members, the Children’s Learning Garden and more will come together to celebrate 25 years of the Colts Neck Library To learn more, you can visit the Colts Neck Township website The Colts Neck Library is located at 2 Veterans Way The game plan had to be scrapped in the first seconds of the contest The Red Raiders lost in heart-breaking fashion in an NJSIAA Group 3 boys basketball semifinal senior Ben McGonigle crumpled to the floor with an apparent leg injury He would return to the bench — on crutches "It's never a good sign when our best player goes down on a no-call in the first minute of the game," junior Luke Tjoumakris said McGonigle led the team this season with a 13.8 scoring average from his point guard position junior Dean Lappin shares the ball-handling duties "It just makes you realize how much of a burden our point guards have on their shoulders," Tjoumakaris said "Dean is one of the best ball handlers we have on the team I'm really proud of him for the way he took on that role." "It definitely switched our gameplay — how we play as a team Having him out really wasn't really what we were aiming for We knew guys had to step up and play to win the game." Ocean City led 37-27 with 2:15 to play in the third quarter Colts Neck regained the lead for the first time with 3:10 left to play Ocean City held a 45-44 lead with 1:50 to go The Red Raiders could have used him more in some moments that others was a real punch in the gut," Ocean City coach John Bruno said I can't take anything away from our effort when you when you lose your best player You can hang with the team that has a very good player and a good team that's in the state semifinal Hats off to our guys for battling as long as we did It just goes to show you that every play in a game is important whether it's in the first quarter or the fourth quarter." "I could look back and look at many different things," Bruno said "All I'm going to remember is the heart that they played with all the way through that game without Ben." Tom Rimback grew up reading the Burlington County Times and Courier Post sports sections and began writing for the BCT in 1996 He has covered everything from Super Bowls and Final Fours to Tri-County Swimming but he’s happiest on a sideline interviewing South Jersey scholastic athletes Email him with story ideas at tomrimback@gmail.com and support local journalism with a subscription to the Courier-Post which was the birthplace of the Graded stakes-winning racehorse Irish War Cry Max Spann, president and owner of Max Spann Real Estate & Auction Co., said he can’t disclose any information about the buyer, but that the 235-acre farm drew “over 15 qualified bidders with funds” and “over 100 preregistrations for the auction.” The farm, which has been in the Bailey family for over 55 years has served as a breeding and training farm with a half-mile racetrack on the property Colts Neck news: Cops seek help after crash leaves one dead on Route 537 Overbrook found the spotlight in 2017 when one of its own, Irish War Cry, chalked up a win in the Wood Memorial and finished second in the Belmont Stakes. The colt was owned by Isabelle de Tomaso, the daughter of Monmouth Park founder Amory Haskell While many farms have been turned into suburban neighborhoods mixed-use apartment buildings or warehouse complexes Overbrook Farm was chosen for preservation due to its proximity to Naval Weapons Station Earle Under the federal Readiness and Environmental Protection Integration (REPI) program the farm would be preserved for farmland use to “avoid land-use conflicts near military installations address environmental restrictions that limit military activities and increase resilience to climate change,” according to the Department of Defense website “We do sell a lot of preserved farms with this type of restriction … There’s a strong market for preserved farms It doesn’t completely mitigate the value of the farm by preserving it and there’s a lot of people that really appreciate a farm and the beauty that it has by itself.” Spann said many farm owners choose to put their properties up for auction because “it gives them price discovery; they get to see the true market value of their farm.” He said auctions also allow owners to control the timing and the terms and conditions of the sale Colts Neck murders: Technology used in Caneiro murders produces 'overblown' DNA results, expert testifies 2025 at 5:25 pm ETOne meeting attendee writes “No More!” in response to a question about where new development is most appropriate in Colts Neck (Sara Winick / Patch)Residents weigh in on what populations the town should include in their affordable housing plans (Sara Winick / Patch)Residents give their thoughts on a proposal to expand mixed-use zoning along Route 34 as part of the town’s housing plans (Sara Winick / Patch)An open space for residents to share their thoughts on affordable housing in Colts Neck NJ — Colts Neck residents shared their concerns about traffic open space and more at a recent planning board meeting regarding the town’s upcoming requirements for affordable housing 14 meeting to gather community input on where Colts Neck should build affordable housing units for the town’s upcoming fourth-round requirements Requirements for affordable housing in Colts Neck (and other NJ municipalities) are generated from calculations by the Department of Community Affairs which determine how many units municipalities must provide over the next decade Under the Mount Laurel Doctrine all municipalities are constitutionally mandated to provide their “fair share” of affordable housing for the region 31 to approve their numbers or provide their own calculations consistent with state law In Colts Neck, the present housing need (existing housing units deemed substandard/deficient and in need of repair) is 0, and the prospective housing need (the number of new units that need to be built based on population trends) is 101 units, according to calculations from the DCA If the township committee approves their resolution to accept the DCA’s numbers on Wednesday the town will have until June 30 to adopt specific plans for how they will meet this need board members shared information with attendees about upcoming affordable housing deadlines and requirements an affordable housing planner from Kyle + McManus Associates hired by the township committee Though the planning board hosted the meeting said it wasn’t something the planning board typically does the township committee is normally the one to host information meetings on affordable housing as they’re the ones who hire professionals such as affordable housing planners (like McManus) and attorneys we are conducting this informational session so that it’s transparent and we have all the input," Tobia said "But please be advised that it’s ultimately the township committee that has the total responsibility of affordable housing in this township.” “It’s a very emotional subject," Tobia continued "It could change the character of this township.” Colts Neck Residents Weigh InDuring the meeting various residents took to the floor and to stations around the room to share their concerns about affordable housing in town One resident, Kevin O’Brien, voiced his concerns about various topics relating to development in Colts Neck, including water and sewer service management and traffic projections by Liviana Colts Neck (formerly Colts Neck Manor) a residential community across from Colts Neck High School that’s under construction each housing unit at Liviana is expected to produce nearly seven trips per day (either to or from the community) on average “The total buildout estimate is over 10,000 additional trips or traffic per day on Route 537 and Route 34 in Colts Neck,” O’Brien said added that the Liviana Colts Neck developer didn’t conduct proper testing of the community's wastewater treatment plant and that the town now has an obligation to make sure Liviana She, alongside other residents, questioned why Colts Neck wasn’t fighting the fourth-round housing requirements, pointing out a lawsuit that Holmdel (and other municipalities) joined in efforts to pause the mandate “Why didn’t we fight this thing in court?” Scotti said “...Can’t we leave it open for this township to either join the appeal that Holmdel is putting in on the Mount Laurel effort as a whole or do something else While the planning board said they’re not against fighting board members told attendees that they’re not going to fight a battle that will ultimately be lost “Everybody told us to join the legislation but the legislation just failed,” Mayor Tara Torchia Buss said ‘We just wasted $20,000 of our money in a failed lawsuit,’ which we already had professionals identify as what appears to be a failed lawsuit.” “I’m hearing that you guys want us to fight," Buss said "We’re not fighting a battle that’s going to be lost.” shared her story of why she moved to Colts Neck saying it’s “heartbreaking” that the life she imagined her children having years from now could soon be gone “I moved here two and a half years ago because I wanted to raise my family here,” Difazio said We moved to Colts Neck because it was a dream to move to Colts Neck.” “We moved to a couple of different towns until we were lucky enough to afford a life in Colts Neck,” Difazio continued that’s going to be pretty much destroyed with all of this affordable housing built in Colts Neck That’s not what everybody comes to Colts Neck for.” Difazio echoed Scotti’s question on fighting the mandate telling planning board members that there’s “got to be something.” “I understand you hear it from every end,” Difazio said They’re going to complain no matter what you do…but in Colts Neck we have the funds to raise between us.” “If we need the extra money in town to fight the battle don’t give up on us…What can we do to help you guys help us?” Editor's Note: This article has been updated to correct quote attribution Lily Hagan (27) of Red Bank Catholic pitches during the NJSIAA South Thomas Aquinas and Red Bank Catholic in Edison on Thursday .st1{fill-rule:evenodd;clip-rule:evenodd;fill:#2a2a2a}By Anthony Gabbianelli | NJ Advance Media for NJ.comLily Hagan struck out nine and allowed seven hits in a complete-game shutout for Red Bank Catholic in its 8-0 win against Colts Neck in Colts Neck Brianna Santangelo led Red Bank Catholic (12-1) with three RBI and a home run Red Bank Catholic scored two runs in the top of the first inning then added three runs in the top of the fourth and fifth to lead 8-0 a triple and two runs scored for Red Bank Catholic Mackenna Savage had an RBI and Nicole Knox was 2-for-4 with a pair of runs scored Gabriella Bryce and Gabriella Saveriano each had two hits for Colts Neck (4-7) View Box Score COLTS NECK - Growing up in Freehold and Brielle Lisa Laird (Dunn) was born into a family whose Monmouth County-based pre-Revolutionary War roots as producers of apple jack brandy and other spirits earned them the unique position of America’s oldest distiller Today, as president of the 10th-generation Laird & Company in the Scobeyville section of Colts Neck Laird couldn’t be prouder to carry on a family legacy that’s synonymous with outstanding apple spirits and three centuries of distilling tradition “Our family’s ancestors immigrated from Scotland to Monmouth County in 1698,” said Laird “Because apples were prevalent in New Jersey by the late 1600s and cider production was flourishing "Although we were distilling for close to 100 years prior we designated 1780 as the official start of our company in Monmouth County based on my fourth great-grandfather Robert Laird’s account book showing records of sale,” Laird said Route 537 is a time machine: Traveling through marvelous NJ history which was located right near the Colts Neck Inn at the corner of Routes 537 and 34 our product was hand-crushed and the stills were heated by wood fires,” Laird said at which point then-owner Samuel Laird’s son Robert rebuilt it a mile and a half down the Old Burlington stagecoach trail an apple brandy made from apples which are crushed it was called ‘Jersey Lightning,’ and New Jersey and Monmouth County in particular were well-known for the production of apple jack.” While apple jack has since become a much smaller category and is significantly more expensive to produce than other spirits like bourbon and vodka “our company’s heart and soul is apple jack and we offer eight expressions including our historic unaged apple brandy called ‘Jersey Lightning,’” Laird said we’ve diversified by producing other spirit brands such as vodka and providing contract packaging services for other companies.” “we no longer distill in New Jersey; it takes 7,000 pounds of apples to make one barrel of apple jack and apples aren’t as plentiful in New Jersey as they once were,” she said “we distill and barrel our products at our distillery in Virginia then ship them to our 155,000-square-foot bottling plant and barrel warehouse here in Scobeyville to age them for up to 12 years.” NJ breweries continue to close: Here's why it will keep happening, brewers say pricing for the company’s apple jack varies by product “Mixed with a neutral grain to lighten up the flavor profile for the consumer’s changing palate our Laird’s Blended Apple Jack (vodka with an apple brandy base) is our most widely distributed product and retails for $22 while our five-year-aged version commemorating our 10th generation “Our Laird’s Straight Apple Brandy Bottled in Bond ($30) is gaining popularity in the bartending community as is our Laird’s Straight Apple Jack 86 ($27) created in 1964 to commemorate New Jersey’s 300th anniversary which is aged for 12 years and presented in beautiful hand-bottled and hand-labeled packaging for $99.” the company also introduced its Laird’s Single Cask Apple Brandy which retails anywhere from $60 to $90 depending upon its age As the market’s largest producer of apple brandy “our sales are predominantly here in the U.S.,” Laird said “but we’re also available in 16 other markets worldwide.” Rediscovering the productThough she grew up an only child “my father never made me feel that it was expected of me to join the family business,” said Laird who originally wanted to be a veterinarian based on her love of animals But after graduating from Washington College in Maryland and working her way through most of the company’s functions she officially took over as president — the first woman to do so in Laird & Company’s history — in 2024 “My father Larrie was running the company until last year when he felt it was time to step back,” she explained “He remains active overseeing our production and teaching that process to my son Gerard My daughter Laird Emilie recently joined the company as well and is based in North Carolina where she helps oversee sales in our southern market.” History and dining: Happy Apple Inn started as a Cream Ridge stagecoach stop; owner has big plans Laird & Company has grappled with the consumer’s changing preferences “It’s been a difficult year for the industry as a whole over the past 12 to 18 months as the younger generation isn’t drinking as much alcohol as past generations partly influenced by the recent legalization of marijuana in many states,” Laird said the bartending community has been rediscovering and embracing our product," she said "Laird’s Apple Jack has been around since the invention of cocktails and many bartenders are recreating classic cocktails using fresh and original ingredients which has put Laird’s Apple Jack and Apple Brandy back into the forefront at metro-area bars and restaurants here and around the world "Trends are cyclical and many consumers preferred white spirits to brown ones during the 1980s and 1990s,” she said “Bartenders and consumers appreciate our history and authenticity and the recent rediscovery of our product has been an uplifting time for our company and brand.” “New Jersey is an expensive state to operate a business in and prices of raw materials and transportation continue to increase especially since the pandemic,” Laird said we also compete in other categories that are very competitive,” she added “We’re a small family business going up against large conglomerates with big pocketbooks and marketing budgets family-owned businesses like ours are being bought up but we’ve made concerted efforts to keep our business in the family because there’s simply too much pride “we’re always considering new product ideas,” Laird said “One of our more recent introductions is a new barrel-finished whiskey series — Irish and bourbon — that we finish aging in our apple brandy barrels and sell for about $40 a bottle.” we introduced ready-to-drink canned cocktails which sell for $14.99 for a four-pack,” she continued “Included in the series are Laird’s American Mule (comprised of Laird’s Apple Brandy Lisa’s Lemonade (comprised of apple jack and lemonade) and our Five O’Clock brand (comprised of orange crush and pink lemonade) We also offer our ready-to-serve Laird’s Old Fashioned Cocktail made with apple jack and retailing at $13.99 for 375 milliliters.” Oh honey! Colts Neck beekeeper places high in worldwide honey contest we’re considering introducing other low alcohol-by-volume products like apple cordials and liqueurs,” she said “We’re always developing and tasting new formulas.” In her role leading one of the nation’s oldest companies and its nearly 50 employees “I hope to be able to pass a financially stable business down to my children and for Laird & Company to continue to be a thread and part of New Jersey our community and its history,” said Laird who recently enjoyed serving as a guest judge on the Discovery Channel show “Moonshiners.” “Most New Jerseyans don’t know who we are or that America’s oldest spirit is headquartered right in their backyard," Laird said "We’re hoping to break ground this spring on a new cultural center/event space/museum on our premises to help showcase our company and our New Jersey history related to this industry.” “I love the opportunity to carry on my ancestors’ legacy,” Laird said “I’m sure our forefathers would never have believed that we’d still be in operation this many generations later and I take so much reward and pride in continuing this heritage.” Laird enjoys the new life being infused into her company’s classic product “It’s been so exciting and humbling to travel the world and have bartenders prepare me a Laird’s Apple Jack cocktail,” she said I love to see the creativity and appreciation for the brand using different flavors and ingredients Bartenders are happy to meet me and they always thank us for continuing to distill and offer this historic product.” Website: lairdandcompany.com