ERC SCHOLARSHIP IN MEMORY OF Doug Williams

 

2026 ERC SCHOLARSHIP IN MEMORY OF Doug Williams

We are very pleased to announce this year’s winners of the ERC Scholarship In Memory Of Doug Williams who each received a check for $1,000 at the Montclair High School Senior Awards Ceremony held on Thursday, June 11.

  • Ilan Baird

  • Sol Demefack

We would like to thank everyone who supported the scholarship run on May 3 or who made a donation with a special thank you to Fleet Feet Montclair for their continued support of the scholarship. It is presented each year in memory of Doug who was a graduate of Montclair High School and a beloved member of the Essex Running Club when he was killed by a hit and run driver on Upper Mountain Ave in October 2011.

Recipients of the scholarship are selected from the graduating class at Montclair High School based on the following criteria:

  • Outstanding participation in track and field / cross country

  • Academic excellence

  • Leadership and community service

  • Expected participation in track and field / cross country at college

Ilan and Sol have been outstanding athletes at Montclair High School competing in indoor track and outdoor track. Ilan also competed on the Cross Country Team while Sol played on the Soccer Team. They will both be continuing their athletic careers on the University level.

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Montclair High School Coach Washington and his staff prepared the following comments:

Ilan Baird (Princeton):

"Ilan joined the cross country and track teams his junior year. During his first year he earned first team all conference and second team all county. He was also a vital part of the team as an upperclassman who helped a number of underclassmen and the team in general which is why he was a captain for all three seasons this year.

During his senior year Ilan became a volunteer EMT and even with working overnight shifts was fully committed to the team and getting better. This year he earned first team all conference, second team North I Group IV and helped the boys team qualify for the Group IV State Championship during the cross country season.

Ilan will be taking this work ethic to Princeton where we know he will continue to not only grow but thrive."

Sol Demefack (Princeton):

"Throughout his time at MHS Sol has been a part of the Boys Soccer & Winter/ Spring Track & Field teams. During this time he's made a great impact on both the athletic and school community. This year he was the captain of all three teams, the president of CGI and the 2026 senior class president. Sol's athletic tenure has been filled with ups and downs but these have all helped build the great character he continues to display and this year he has excelled.

During his junior season he was a part of the boys 4x400 team that qualified for Nike Nationals. This experience helped him guide a young team this year back to Nike Nationals, qualifying for the 4x400 and Sprint Medley Relays. Both relays finished outside of All-American they did finish in the top 20 in the nation with the 4x400 team running the number 4 time in school history and the SMR 800 running the number 3 time in school history. During the winter season he was ranked 24th in the state in the 600m with a time of 1:26; this time is also number two in school history.

He closed out the spring season with a time of 2:00 in the 800 and helped push the same underclassmen team to the Group IV state championships in the 4x400. Needless to say, Sol has been a vital part of these relays, not just as a leg but as a leader.

Sol will be taking this work ethic to Princeton in the fall where we know he will continue to not only grow but thrive."

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Congratulations to both Ilan and Sol on this very well-deserved award! We wish them all the best in their college careers. This is the 15th year we have awarded these scholarships and they join the past winners listed below with the colleges they attended.

2025 - Darriel Whiting (Lincoln University) and Corinne Stewart (Tufts University)

2024 - Avery McAdams (Emory University) and Sean Overton (McGill University)

2023 - Ava Butler (Ithaca College) and Richard Fortune (New Haven University) 

2022 - Reuven Frye (Bates College) and Kiya Lawson (Howard University)

2021 - Stephanie Webb (Lehigh University) and Jessie Legister (Northeastern University)

2020 - Evelyn Battleson-Gunkel (University of Chicago) and Aidan Ward (Wesleyan University)

2019 - Matilda Ferguson (Swarthmore College), Eleanor Keating (Haverford College) and Stefan Urquidi (Jefferson University)

2018 – Elizabeth Cummings (Towson University) and Dale Ross (Wesleyan)

2017 - Amelia Lufrano (Dickinson College) and Benjamin Cahill (Wesleyan)

2016 - Lia Schattner (Washington University) and Grant Van Inwegen (Wesleyan)

2015 – Stephani Hayes (Lehigh University) and Connor O’Brien (Rutgers)

2014 – Eliana Tyler (Vassar College) and Henry Whipple (Hamilton College)

2013 – India Hill (Widner University) and Jackson Brietzke (West Point)

2012 – Carole Johnson and Henzley Meghie