The Crestwood Red Devils girls’ track team proved that despite being a smaller team than in recent years, the Chagrin Valley Conference Valley Division title still belongs to them, winning their third straight league championship by scoring 158.0 points last week at Great Lakes Cheese Stadium in Burton.
“It is a great testament to our kids,” said Crestwood Co-Coach Jim Schweickert. “Our numbers are down this year, so we knew that it was going to be a battle to try to repeat again because we didn’t have the depth but had some good front-runners and it turned out to be that way.”
Crestwood will compete for Ohio High School Athletic Association Division III regional berths by competing in the OHSAA Division III district meet at Perry High School beginning on Thursday afternoon at 4 p.m.
“I think it is going to be tough for sure, but I think we have a lot of girls with a lot of potential coming out of this,” said Red Devils’ Co-Coach Megan Mertz.
Last week, junior Liv Martini paved the way for Crestwood to capture its third consecutive league championship by winning all three short distance sprints and also capturing first place in the long jump.
Martini won the 100-meter dash with a time of 13.14 seconds, followed by senior Lorena Dehoff who took eighth place at 15.06 seconds, captured first place in the 200-meter dash at 27.07 seconds, followed by freshman Elissa Terry who earned eighth place with a time 32.70 seconds, netted first in the 400-meter dash with a time of 59.43 seconds with sophomore Mia Divis taking eighth place with a personal record of 1:10.24 and took first in the long jump with a distance of 16 feet, 11¾ inches followed by junior Jackie Blasiole who placed second with a. personal record of 16 feet, 10¼ inches.
“Liv was pushing through some injuries,” noted the first-year Co-Coach Mertz. “She has been struggling toward the end, but she knew we needed her, and she knew it was a close meet and she pulled it all out; so props to Liv.”
Sophomore Maddie Grace Gonczy wrapped up second place in the 800-meter run by logging a personal record 2:26.55, followed by junior Piper Seibold who finished fourth with a personal record 2:28.17.
“I would say that Maddie ran by far her best race of the year to get second. Piper had to hold a girl off for the whole second lap, so those two places were huge,” added the second-year Co-Coach Schweickert.
Seibold took second in the 1600-meter run with a personal record of 5:24.89, followed by freshman Abby Pfost who took eighth place by logging a personal record 5:59.42.
Junior Piper Freedline snagged fourth place in the 3200-meter run at 12:45.38.
Blasiole anchored the hurdles, winning the 110-meter hurdles with a personal record 16.42 seconds, followed by Divis who took sixth place with a time 20.05 seconds, and netted third place in the 300-meter hurdles at 53.31 seconds, followed by junior Emily Doering who placed sixth at 54.72 seconds.
The quartet of Divis, Doering, Terry and Dehoff took fourth place in the 4×100 and the 4×200 relay with respective times of 56.25 seconds and 1:59.32.
Seibold, Blasiole, Doering and Gonczy teamed up to take second place in the 4×400 relay with a time of 4:18.92.
Seibold, Pfots, Freedline and Gonczy netted second place in the 4×800 relay with a time of 10:22.31.
Senior Madison Sheridan excelled in the throwing events, winning the shot put with a distance of 31 feet, 9 inches, followed by junior Trinity Jarem who took seventh place with a distance of 24 feet, 10 inches, and captured first place in the discus throw by recording a distance of 106 feet, 1 inch.
Freshman Piper Overfield earned third place in the high jump, clearing the bar at 4 feet, 6 inches and Dehoff came in fifth place with a height of 4 feet, 4 inches.
On the boys’ side, the Berkshire Badgers claimed the league title for the first time since 2015 by scoring 162.0 points.
“Our school had a great tradition of being competitive in the league for years and years under Coach Julie Cole,” said Berkshire Coach Bryan Wadsworth. “It is a proud moment for me and it is a proud moment for the guys to bring this back and I think we are going to use this as momentum to carry us forward.”
Berkshire will return to its home course for the OHSAA Division IV district meet in Burton beginning on Wednesday at 4:30 p.m.
“Our home field for district is tough,” noted the third-year coach. “I have been looking at the times, it is tougher than it was last year. The boys are ready and are going to give it their all.”
According to him, sophomore Aiden Hollingsworth and freshman Tripp Wadsworth taking second and third place respectively in the 800-meter run with personal records of 2:08.98 and 2:09.74 created the path for Berkshire to finally bring the league banner back to Burton.
“As a sophomore and a freshman that was a big ask that we put on them before going into it and we are all proud of them,” Coach Wadsworth added. “They were excited. The whole boys’ team rallied around them.”
Senior Sam Bable took fourth place in the 100-meter dash, clocking a time of 12.43 seconds, followed by sophomore Ezekiel Townsend who netted sixth place at 13.14 seconds.
Senior Brady Wadsworth wrapped up fourth place in the 200-meter dash with a personal record 24.74 seconds, followed by freshman Alex Sustin who captured sixth place with a personal best 26.88 seconds.
Brady won the 400-meter dash at 54.05 seconds, followed by junior Danny Auth who earned fifth place with a time of 57.89 seconds.
Freshman Evan Trombo won the 3200-meter run with a time of 10:33.85, followed by sophomore Will Slattery who took fifth place at 10:57.93.
Junior Trey Cadwallader won the 110-meter hurdles with a time of 16.98 seconds, followed by Sustin who secured fifth place at 18.68 seconds.
Senior Quinlan Sirl wrapped up first place in the 110-meter hurdles by clocking 16.98 seconds, followed by Cadwallader who placed third with a personal best of 45.89 seconds.
Senior Jimmy Toh and freshman Joey Leagan teamed up with Townsend and Sirl to place fourth in the 4×100 relay with a time of 49.33 seconds.
The quartet of Sirl, Brady, Bable and Townsend placed third in the 4×200 relay by clocking a time of 1:38.49.
Auth, Brady, Sirl and Tripp joined forces to finish as the runners-up in the 4×400 relay with a time of 3:42.94.
The team of Tromba, Tripp, Hollingsworth and Slattery took second place in the 4×800 relay with a time of 8:58.08.
Senior Danny Tiller took sixth place in the shot put, recording a personal best of 39 feet, 10¼ inches.
Sophomore Jeremy Knauer-King earned sixth place in the discus throw with a personal record of 110 feet, 2 inches.
Senior Billy Verbic won the high jump, clearing the bar at 6 feet followed by junior Michael Costantini who took sixth place by jumping 5 feet, 4 inches.
Junior Cohen Gielink won the pole vault by clearing a height of 9 feet, 6 inches.
Verbic wrapped up third place in the long jump, with a distance of 17 feet, 9½ inches, followed by Costantini who earned seventh place with 16 feet, 4¾ inches.
