Livingston Senior Sarah Cullen Honored for Excellence in Athletics, Academics and More – TAPinto.net

LIVINGSTON, NJ — Sarah Cullen, a three-sport athlete at Livingston High School (LHS) who will be attending Rutgers University in the fall, was recently recognized by both the Essex County Board of Chosen Freeholders and the Big “L” Club for her outstanding accomplishments in athletics, academics and contributions to the community.

District 4 Freeholder Leonard Luciano, a fellow LHS alumnus, personally sponsored a board commendation honoring Cullen as part of the Essex County Celebrates Youth Program, which annually recognizes local kids and teenagers who have accomplished and contributed so much at a young age.

Although this and many other Freeholder-sponsored programs were canceled this year due to the pandemic, Luciano had informed Cullen long before the mandatory stay-at-home orders were imposed that she would be his honoree for this annual event. A man of his word, Luciano felt a need to still recognize the senior “before her exodus to the next phase of her life,” according to the board.

The board’s commendation chronicles Sarah’s high school career as a three-sport standout scholar athlete, playing volleyball, basketball and lacrosse for the Lancers while also excelling in the classroom.

In addition to being recognized by NJ 12 News/NJEA as the Scholar Athlete of the Week earlier this school year, Cullen was also inducted into the National Honor Society with close to a 4.0 Grade Point Average.

Just this week, the Big “L” Club named her the winner of the Cherenson Award, a scholarship awarded in the memory of former LHS student Steven Cherenson, who played football and lacrosse at LHS and began training for the Iron Man Competition after graduation. According to the criteria, the selected individual (male or female) should have played at least three sports and exhibited the “Iron Man” image while at LHS.

In volleyball, Cullen was a two-time captain and three-year varsity player and was also named All Conference-Super Essex.

She was also a two-time captain for the girls basketball team, serving as a Lancer for three years on the varsity level and being named All Conference-Super Essex for back-to-back Super Essex Conference Championships. Cullen was a standout during two 18-win seasons in 2019 and 2020, which has not happened at LHS in nearly 25 years.

Finally, as a two-year varsity lacrosse player, Cullen assisted her team in becoming the 2019 Conference Champions and was also recognized as part of Super Essex Conference Leadership Day in 2018.

From 2016 to 2020, Cullen further distinguished herself as a worthy Essex County Celebrates Youth honoree by serving as a coach, instructor and referee for Livingston’s Youth Basketball League. Under her leadership, the basketball team received Livingston UNICO chapter’s “Team of the Year” award in 2019 for working with special needs children.

As seen in the photos above, Cullen also worked with members of the Livingston Shining Stars Program’s volleyball team and participated in the township’s Cops vs. Kids volleyball game in 2019.

Cullen is the sister of Joe Cullen, who was also a standout athlete during his time at LHS and recently completed his freshman year playing football at Franklin & Marshall College. Her parents, Joseph and Marianne, live in Livingston along with her other two siblings, Becca and Danny, who are currently finishing their junior and freshman years, respectively, at LHS.