BRIDGETON — The Ocean City High School relay teams had an impressive day May 22 at the Cape-Atlantic League Track and Field Championships. The boys and girls 4×800 relays and the girls 4×100 and 4×400 relays all took home gold medals as other Raiders had successful outings.
The boys relay, featuring Michael Romano, Nathan Aschmann, Zach Hutchinson and Robert Cesari, trailed Oakcrest for much of the 3200-meter distance but came on late to win in a time of 8:30.71, holding off a Falcon runner down the stretch. Oakcrest was second in 8:32.73.
The Raider girls followed that off by winning their 4×800 relay easily, finishing in 9:42.22 — more than a half-minute ahead of Mainland Regional, which took second place in 10:18.26.
Maeve Smith got things started for Ocean City, building up a big lead as teammates Chloe Care, Frankie Ritzel and anchor Carly Godfrey just kept increasing the distance, lapping some of the other runners along the way.
Smith said she likes to give her teammates a lead upon which to build.
“I just wanted to make sure I got out quick and didn’t get stuck on the inside or too far outside. I wanted to get out fast and try to hold it. We don’t run that many relays so it was fun to switch it up a little bit,” Smith said.
A junior, Smith said she is looking forward to the meets ahead, including sectionals, which are May 31 and June 1 at Delsea Regional High School. “We should do well there, and then groups and Meet of Champs and Nationals. Lots to look forward to.”
Smith said she expects to run the 1600 and 3200 meter races. She favors the two-mile race. “Cross country is my favorite out of all of them. I just like the longer races.” (Smith finished third in the state Group III cross country race in the fall.)
In the 4×400, it was Godfrey, Kai Linthicum and Grace Tedesco, anchored by senior Sophia Curtis, winning in 4:01.66, ahead of second-place Pleasantville High School (4:04.22) and third-place Mainland Regional (4:08.15).
Curtis was the anchor for the 4×100 relay as well, which beat Mainland for first by just more than a half-second and set a school record in the process. Curtis ran with Ella Miller, Alana Clevenger and Naomi Nnewihe for a time of 49.93 seconds, the first sub-50-second relay in school history. Mainland finished in 50.64, just ahead of Millville (50.66).
Nnewihe also finished second in the 200-meter dash in 26.18 seconds, behind Atlantic City’s Brianna Growalt (25.60). Miller was fourth in 26.77. Miller also finished fifth in the 100 meters in 13.07 seconds. Absegami’s Jaidah Garrett won in 12.44 seconds.
Ocean City high jumpers Callie Duff and Jaida Dooley finished second and third, respectively, both clearing 5’0. Hammonton’s Juliana Dogostino won at 5’2”.
Sophia Whelan finished fifth in the discus with her throw of 92’8”. Millville’s Aniya McNeil won with a throw of 110’07.
Halbruner, Hoffman,
Buck lead Raiders
In addition to the 4×800 relay team, Raider Luke Halbruner won the 400 meter race and teammate Matt Hoffman won the 800 meters. Fellow Raider Ethan Buck took the 3200 meters.
Halbruner’s winning time was 50.37 seconds. Pleasantville’s Jermain Nelson was second in 50.6.
Hoffman outraced Pleasantville’s Melvin Lewis to the finish, winning in 1:56.15. Lewis finished in 1:57.7. Raiders Erik Preisner (2:01.24) and Kal Heyman (2:03.14) were fourth and sixth.
Buck won going away in the 3200, finishing in 10:00.29. St. Augustine Prep’s Peter Tampellini was second in 10:16.97.
In the 1600, Keenan Neuman was third in 4:39.16. Cedar Creeks’ Matthew Winterbottom won in 4:32.47.
Anthony DeRose was third in the javelin with a throw of 145’6”. Mainland’s Matt Muits won at 154’5”.
Ocean City’s Anthony Gasparovic was fourth in the discus with a throw of 148’5”. Hammonton’s Anthony Liakhnovich won at 162’8”.
Raider John Paul Forster was sixth in the triple jump, going 42’5.25”. Mainland’s Josiah Williams won with a distance of 45’1.5”.
– PHOTOS and STORY by DAVID NAHAN/Sentinel staff
