BERLIN- Stephen Decatur’s varsity track and field teams made a strong showing in the Bayside Conference championship meet last week, capturing two relay titles and seven individual titles, including a new conference record in the pole vault by three-time state champion Bradley Hollowell.
The Decatur boys finished first in the Bayside Conference meet with 130 total team points, just ahead of North Caroline, which finished with 124. The Seahawk girls finished second in the Bayside championships with 117 total points, just one-and-a-half points behind conference champion Kent Island, which finished with 118.5 points.
The Seahawks won nine events including two relays and seven individual titles. Perhaps the most significant individual title was Hollowell’s championship in the pole vault. Hollowell, who has won three straight state championships, vaulted 15’3” to set a new Bayside Conference record, topping the old mark of 14 feet set by Kent Island’s David Hinton back in 2000. Hollowell’s 15’3” vault also eclipsed the state record of 15 feet, but did not qualify for a new state record because it didn’t occur during a state meet. Hollowell will have a chance to set the new state record later this month.
The Seahawk track teams collected conference titles in several events throughout the meet. Decatur’s D.J. Johnson turned in one of the best performances in the state meet with three individual titles including the men’s 100-meter dash, the 200-meter dash and the long jump. The Seahawks also captured the title in the men’s 4×200 relay.
On the girls’ side, Isabella Iampieri took first in the 300-meter hurdles, Ravyn Saunders captured the 800 and Chloe Fauntleroy took first in the 3200. The Decatur girls also took first place in the 4×800 relay.
Other Top 10 finishes for the Decatur boys included Cordonte Ayres’ fourth-place finish in the 100 and fifth-place finish in the 200. Greg Peterson was second in the 110 hurdles, while Christopher Redden was fifth and Spenser Cardenas was seventh. Peterson finished third in the 300, while Cardenas was sixth and Hollowell was 10th. In the men’s 400, Dan Cericola was second and Chris Hurley was ninth.
Hurley also finished sixth in the 800, while Lance Ward was eighth. Garrett Mohammadioun finished fourth for Decatur in the 1,600, while Corey Zimmer was sixth, Mohammadioun was seventh and Ben Rakowski was ninth. The Decatur boys finished second in the 4×400, third in the 4×800 and fifth in the 4×100.
In the field events, Hollowell won the conference title in the pole vault, while Cericola was third and Justin Hommel was eighth. Peterson finished second in the high jump, while Ian Bresnahan was fourth. Peterson was third in the triple jump, while Cericola was sixth in the long jump. Markell Purnell was seventh in the shot put, while Ty Purnell was eighth. Markell Purnell was third in the discus, while Ty Purnell finished 5th.
In the girls’ conference meet, Rebecca Lederman was fifth in the 100, while Ariel DePaul was eighth. Lederman also finished third in the 200. In the girls’ 100 hurdles, Iampieri was second and Jessica Galuardi was eighth. Iampieri won the girls’ 300 hurdles, while Bianca Alvalardo was fifth and Shakeera Collick was seventh. Saunders finished second in the 400, and won the 800, while Fauntleroy was second and Carly Bodolus was fifth.
Fauntleroy won the girls’ 1,600, while Kelly Cosgriff finished 10th. In the girls’ 3,200, Elizabeth Davidson finished fifth and Anastasia Priest was eighth. The Decatur girls won the 4×800, finished second in the 4×200, third in the 4×400 and fourth in the 4×100.
Christine Timko was second in the pole vault, while Kate Blosveren was fifth and Ashely Hrebik was seventh. Lyvea Oliver finished sixth in the long jump, while DePaul was ninth. Oliver also finished fourth in the triple jump. Ameerah Lewis finished third in the shot put and seventh in the discus. Janet Davidson was second in the shot put and Erika Henry was eighth in the discus.