NFA girls, Griswold boys roll to ECC track titles

EAST LYME ― The Norwich Free Academy outdoor track and field teams may not be the powerhouses that ruled the Eastern Connecticut Conference and won state titles in the 1990s, 2000s and 2010s.

But the Wildcats are getting closer to that level.

The NFA girls rolled to their first outdoor title since 2019 with 161 points to beat defending champ Woodstock (145) at the ECC Division I championship meet Monday at East Lyme High School.

The NFA boys led the whole meet but narrowly finished second when favored East Lyme inched ahead on the strength of distance running to win in the last two events. The Vikings scored 145 points to NFA's 135 in the eight-team event.

"We're two guys from Ledyard and the Dave Tetlow coaching tree but we want to bring NFA track back to where it was," NFA first-year girls head coach Jeff Wadecki said.

NFA boys coach Tom Teixeira is also from Ledyard.

"The girls pretty much performed as almost exactly what they needed to do with a few going above and beyond their PRs. It was a good day," Wadecki said.

NFA senior pole vaulter Lily Gilbert posted perhaps the most impressive mark by winning the pole vault in over 2 1/2 feet with a 11-8 clear – just off NFA's Allison Sullivan's 12-0.5 ECC record in 2011.

Wildcats senior Hannah Graham won the discus for the third year in a row with a 132-6, eight inches off an ECC record. Graham qualified for the nationals with her performance.

NFA junior Karina Chan, a converted middle-distance runner, was NFA's breakout star with a win in the 3,200 (11:50.84) and a second in the 1600 (5:27.70).

"I wasn't a very good 400 runner (9th in ECC meet last year) so I thank my coaches for building me into long distance," Chan said. "I won only a few cross country races and was ninth in the ECC meet last fall, so this was a big step up for me today."

Contributions everywhere

Strong sprinting helped NFA with Carolina Holmberg finishing second (13.24) in the 100 and fourth (27.72) in the 200. Riley Davis, the defending ECC champ, was second (1:00.88) in the 400.

NFA finished 1-2-3-5 in the pole vault, rolling off 26 points, which essentially was the margin of difference in the meet where Woodstock did not score in that event. Samantha Schies was second (9-6), followed by gymnast star Trinity Ambruso in third (9-0) and Madison Ayer in fifth (8-6).

Davis was second (16-8) in the long jump, and Kaityn Titus was third (31-9.50) in the triple jump.

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Throwing dominance

The NFA boys stepped up to nearly stun East Lyme. The heroics of junior thrower Chris Amy sparked the Wildcats to a big lead early. Amy knocked off East Lyme friend and rival Thomas Matlock, the New England indoor champ, in the shot put with an ECC record of 60-7.25 to top Matlock (60-6.25).

Amy also won the discus with a school record and ECC record 167-8.

Amy previously held the school record, which he's broken multiple times this season, in the discus with a throw of 167-02. He also holds the school record in the shot put (61-10.5).

"It feels great," Amy said. "Matlock and I have a rivalry, but I guess it's not a real rivalry unless you beat him."

"Chris has beaten him in the dual meet, invitational and now today,” NFA throwing coach Ted Koziol said. “They're both incredible performers and will continue to battle in the State Open and New Englands. We're just hoping Chris stays healthy."

Amy led an NFA strong showing in the boys shot put. Mardocher Civil was third in 49-3, which is usually good enough to win the ECC in years outside of Amy and Matlock. Mason Holt was sixth and added a fourth in the discus.

Relay win

NFA also received a first (43.83) from the 4x100 relay team of Malachy Murray, Oliver Aubin, Bryant Beauvil and Damaggio Casanova.

"That's a great win for them," Teixeira said."The 4x100 was seeded third behind Fitch and East Lyme. We had sprinters and hurdlers step up today."

Aubin was second (11.45) in the 100 and fifth (23.59) in the 200. Mosea Gittens Brown was second in the 110 high hurdles with a strong 15.05 time. Fernando Flores was third (16.04) in the 110 highs and third (42.81) in the 300 intermediate hurdles.

Finishing second (9:37.64) for NFA was Patrick Croughwell in the 3,200 and the 4x800 relay of  Croughwell, Nichola DeBartolo, Jesse Crouteau and Kyle Kornacki were also runner ups in 8:15.54.

Wadecki settling in

Wadecki, a long-time NFA assistant with a long-distance specialty, is settling in during his first year as Wildcat head coach. NFA was not unbeatable during the regular season but is developing its quality depth.

"Being head coach is definitely different, more challenging," Wadecki said. "I focus on everything: the jumps, throws and races. It's a lot more fun to have a hand in everything."

Griswold boys wins title

The Griswold boys captured the ECC Division 3 and 4 championship meet, outdistancing Windham and St. Bernard at Griswold High School. The Wolverines finished with 161.5 points. The Whippets had 118.5 points, while the Saints placed third with 114 points.

Griswold swept the top three spots in the 3200 with winner Tycen LaBelle (10:25.16), Sean Silva (10:55.08) and Maxwell Brown (11:07.12). LaBelle also won the 1600 in 4:40.21.

The Wolverines 4x800 relay team of Xzavier De La Rosa, Dylan Bailey, Brown and Silva also won the ECC title in 8:47.14.

Griswold gained valuable points with runner up finishes from Jadyn Alvarado (400, 53.11), Dylan Bailey (800, 2:09.56), Matt Perea (shot put, 43-10 and discus, 144-0), Brenden Hopkins (javelin, 133-4), Isaiah Blades (pole vault, 11-6), and the 4x400 relay of Alvarado, Hopkins, De La Rosa, and Bailey, which placed second in 3:43.88.

Also, the Wolverines’ Joe Franklin was third (38-3) in the shot put, Luke Cassidy placed third in the javelin (132-4), Aeden Cutter finished third in the long jump (19-6), and Noah Souvenance was third in the triple jump (37-11.25).

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Other notables

The Killingly boys, who placed seventh with 41 points, got big performances from Everton Brown and Jeremiah Smith.

Brown was a double-winner, placing first in both the 100 (10.80) and 200 (22.30) meter dashes, while Smith won the 110 hurdles (15.31) and placed second in the long jump (19-9.25).

On the girls side, Plainfield’s Nevaeh Dailey was a double-winner. Dailey won both the shot put (29.6.5) and the discus (126-5) events.

The Panthers’ Abigail Lawton was the runner up in the 300 hurdles (50.53). Plainfield’s 4x100 relay team of Annika Fishlock, Cam’Rynn Ross, Lawton, and Aaliyah Thayer finished third in 53.13.

Killingly’s Shanaya Brown was the runner-up in the long jump (16-2).

Griswold’s Madison Pudvah won the javelin with a throw of 92-8. The Wolverines’ Olivia Riley placed third in the 800 (2:32.97) and Griswold’s 4x800 relay team of Riley, Ryley Hubert, Emily Eliasson, and Sophia Wooten finished third in 10:51.77.

This article originally appeared on The Bulletin: Norwich Free Academy girls outdoor track team wins ECC title