DLN boys track previews: Coatesville aims to remain in fast lane

The Coatesville High School boys finished first in the team standings at the PIAA District 1 3A Track and Field Championships, capturing their third district team title in the last four District 1 championships, taking first place in 2018, 2019 and 2022. While graduation took the standout Red Raider seniors who were a key part of that title run last spring, Coatesville aims to continue its tradition of track and field excellence this spring.

Key returning Red Raiders include senior Drew Domurat (high jump), senior Josh Miller (middle distance), junior Tommy Silvester (middle distance), junior Robert Turner (sprints), sophomore Amir Haskett (sprints), junior Donte London (sprints), senior Isaiah Brightman (hurdles), senior Joshua Miller (throws), junior Takiyah Lynch (throws) and junior Tommy Silvester (middle distance).

Other Red Raiders to watch include senior Frank Bradley (javelin), sophomore Elijah Morris (sprints), senior Marcus Evans (middle distance) and junior Albert Morton (jumps).

“Our team lacks experience in terms of performing at a championship level,” said Coatesville head coach Damien Henry. “We will continue to work hard to continue to develop our program and attempt to defend our division, league, and district titles.  We have some young talent and I am excited to see how they perform this season.”

Here’s a look at the local high school boys’ track and field teams this spring:

 

Avon Grove: Top key returning athletes include junior Connor Carroll (sprints – 100, 200, 400), senior Gavin McGinn (middle distance – 400, 800) and junior Connor Britton (distance runs -800, 1600, 3200)

“We are very deep – we have 175 kids (boys and girls) on the team,” said Avon Grove head coach Eric Broadbent. “We are well balanced overall and can score in a lot of different event areas.  We are also young too so there will be a bit of a learning curve with all of these young athletes.  Our coaching staff is the best I’ve ever had in my career.  From throws, distance, hurdles, and sprints, we can get the most out of our athletes.”

 

Bishop Shanahan: Eagles senior Jameson Todd, fresh off his seventh-place finish at the Pa. Indoor Track Championships in the 800 meter run, is expected to team up with senior Will Kolimago as strong contenders in the Ches-Mont League in the 800 meter run this spring. Todd and Kolimago are expected to team up with seniors Matt Carpenter and Adam Shirker as a strong 4×400 relay team after just missing a medal at the Pa. Indoor Track Championships.   Shanahan sophomore Jack Polizzi (52.9 as a freshman) and junior CJ Okafor look to make their mark in the 200 and 400 meter runs. In the long jump and high jump, junior Jeff Bucklin is looked upon to have a breakthrough season and freshman Aiden Civitella had a strong indoor track season at the triple jump, where he is expected to make a mark this spring.

 

Conestoga: Key returnees for the Pioneers include junior Calvin Jordan (100, 200, 4×100), junior Colin Grimes (100, 200, 4×100), junior Kyle Friend (100, 200, 4×100, long jump), junior Charlie Henderson (400, 800), sophomore Jonah Brown (200, 400), junior Tommy Barausky (800, 4×800), junior Luke Desjardins (800, 4×800), junior Shane Walsh (1600, 3200), senior Aidan Max (3200), junior Nick Galasso (high jump), sophomore Patrick Barausky (pole vault), sophomore Kevin Gares (pole vault) and sophomore Brendan Wahlers (hurdles). Key newcomers include sophomore Bradley Younce (shot put), freshman Parker Warkentine (800, 1600, 3200) and junior Tyler Cassidy (hurdles).

“Our strengths include depth in the short sprints and relays with a lot of interchangeable parts,” said Pioneer head coach Mark Carberry. “Our biggest challenges include lack of depth in the distances and field events.”

 

Devon Prep: Key returning athletes include senior Justin Eburuoh (100, 200, 400 meter run), junior Patrick Rullo (1600 and 3200), sophomore Carter Shaak (long jump, 200 meter run) and senior Andrew Dean (discus). Other athletes to watch are senior Christian Ottesen (javelin) and sophomore Jack Bonner (400 meter run).

“After our District XII Class AA championship victory last spring, our team lost a good amount of seniors to graduation,” said Tide head coach Dylan Gavin. “I’m looking forward to seeing the athletes step up and fill in the gaps that we will be missing from those guys that graduated last year.”

 

Downingtown East: Key returnees for the Cougars include senior Sean Kopanski (100 meter run, 400 meter run), senior Ryan Reece (100 meter dash, 200 meter run) and junior Luis Colmenares-Bittar (110 hurdles, 300 hurdles). Other athletes to watch include sophomores Brad Hoffnagle (100 meter dash, 200 meter run), Jack Griffiths (100 meter dash), Barry Harris (100 meter run, 200, 400), junior Nick Steinfeldt, (800 meter run, 1600, 3200), senior Ryan Christman (1600 meter run, 3200), junior Ben Fatone (800 meter run, 1600, 3200), sophomore Nate Parr (800 meter run, 1600, 3200) and junior Karthik Murugan (400 meter run, 800).

 

Downingtown West: Key returning athletes include senior Kelly Bell (200, 400 meter run – was 400 meter Indoor State Medalist), junior Richard Planck (1600, 3200 – was 2022 Individual District Qualifier; cross country State Qualifier), senior Matt Woodward (100, 200), senior Eddie Moore (100, 200), junior David Whitford (1600, 3200 – was 2022 cross country Individual State Qualifier), junior Joe Moorhead (800, 1600), senior Owen Harris (hurdles, 200 meter run) and senior AJ Saggese (throws). Other athletes to watch include junior Riley Trigo (1600, 3200), sophomore Sam Leisenring (800, 1600), sophomore Finn Pook (800), sophomore Spencer Dunn (200), freshman Josiah Wade (200, 400), freshman Rowen O’Brien (100, 200), freshman Olo Kolande (200, 400), freshman Ryan Witherspoon (200, 400) and freshman Evan Reidinger (1600 – was Indoor Nationals Qualifier.)

“We look poised for a breakout season with young talented sprinters and mid-distance runners leading the way,” said D-West head coach Scott Burns. “The veteran returners are established postseason qualifiers with valid medal aspirations that offer tremendous leadership. It’s a large team with more than 100 boys on the roster, so capitalizing on opportunities will be important for their rising stars.”

 

Great Valley: Key returnees include junior Hudson Ayre (discus), junior Lingesh Nagarajan (shot put), senior Pete Schembri 800 meter run, 4×800) and junior Colin Mahoney (800 meter run, 4×800). Other athletes to watch include freshman Cameron Gosa (100, 200 meter run), sophomore Trip Gomez (800, 1600 meter run) and sophomore Ryan Pepperman (800, 1600).

“This is the biggest team we’ve had since I’ve been coaching at Great Valley,” said Patriot head coach Nicole Jones. “The kids are enthusiastic and willing to learn from great leaders on the team who have district and state experience. The biggest challenge for us is tapping into the same momentum that we had last spring.”

 

Kennett: The Blue Demons will be led by sophomore Xavier McGreal (high jump, long jump), senior Matt Pollard (1600, 3200 meter run) and sophomore Aiden Ritch (100, 200 meter run). Other athletes to watch are freshman Josh Poulton (1600, 3200 meter run) and sophomore Bennett Studer (800, 1600 meter run).

Kennett coach John Ramagano said, “We will be strong in the horizontal jumps, with Xavier McGreal, who finished first in the high jump at the indoor state championships last winter.

“Our team’s biggest challenge is its depth, as we have our smallest team ever by quite a lot. We usually carry about 110 athletes (boys and girls) at the start of the season but this year we will be 77 total, with three senior boys.”

 

Malvern Prep: Key returnees include senior Tyson McGee (long jump, triple jump, 100 meter dash), senior Evan Smith (200 meter run, 400 meter run), senior Dylan Regan (400 meter run, 800 meter run) and senior Alex Daoud (110 meter hurdles and 300 meter hurdles).
Other Friars to watch include sophomore Will Cipollone (shot put), sophomore Bernard Blakey (jumps), senior Michael Geary (pole vault), sophomore Zade Smith (100 meter run, 200 meter run), freshman Trey Gibson (jumps) and freshman Ryan Woerner  (jumps and hurdles).
Malvern Prep head coach Mike Koenig said, “We have a large track team with a good amount of senior leadership, however a large percentage of the team – 80 percent of the roster is ninth- and 10th-graders — consists of guys who have never participated in track and field or have never been called upon to score points.”

 

Oxford: Key returnees include senior Phil Blum (high jump), senior Nate Robinson (long jump), senior Nate Scott (pole vault) and senior Jeremiah Sanders (100 meter run). Other athletes to look for are senior Dustin Long (triple jump), senior Colin Overbeck (triple jump), senior Ryan Evans (long jump), junior CJ Boyer (long jump), sophomore Owen Oliver (mile run), sophomore Nate Winters (100 meter run), sophomore Michael Besancon (400 meter run), freshman Brendan Campbell (800 meter run) and freshman Sean Latsch (800 meter run).

“We have a very strong group of athletes who are back again from last year,” said Oxford head coach Trevor Haney. “In addition to our returning athletes, our numbers have increased, and we intend to have these new athletes push for top spots on the team. We hope to have a very competitive season.”

 

Unionville: Key seniors include Joe King Jr. (sprints), Lucca DiMario (mid-distance), Eric Steuber (middle distance), Aryan Abbaraju (distance), Jack Detweiler (throws) and Alex Hall (throws).

“We will be strong in the distance events and throws,” said Unionville head coach Mark Lacianca. “If the team finds some help and depth in the sprints and jumps they can make a run at the division.”

 

West Chester East: The Vikings’ top returning athlete is junior Tyler Wileczek, who qualified for district championships last year in the 200 meter run. This year his focus will be on the 100 and 200 meter runs and the long jump. Other athletes to watch are senior Tyler Houp (distance) and senior Gavin Hefferan (distance).
“Our team is still in the rebuilding phase but hopefully we will have these individuals qualified for post season and a few other surprises,” said West Chester East boys coach Kareem Lanier.

 

West Chester Henderson: Key returning athletes for the Warriors include senior Preston Lubeski, who finished fifth at States in the 400 meter run last spring (48.19, which was among the top 10 times in Pennsylvania) and placed third at Ches-Monts and fifth at Districts in the 200 meter run (22.22). Other returnees include senior Will Potter (100 meter run, 200 meter run), senior Ramsey Tarazi (shot put, discus), senior Simeon Shappell Smith (distance), junior Ryan Kress (distance), sophomore Ben Pentz (distance), junior Alex Baum (distance) and junior Gavin Byrnes (sprint, pole vault).
Other Warriors to watch include sophomore Brady Collins (sprint), junior Aaron Varghese (distance) and senior Zac Blando (javelin).

“We have good balance in the lineup with some real talent at the top,” said Henderson head coach Kevin Kelly. “We have some pretty good depth.”

 

West Chester Rustin: The Golden Knights, the defending Ches-Mont American Division champions, return a solid and balanced lineup. Top returning athletes include junior Lucas Band (sprints/hurdles), junior Julian Irving (sprints), sophomore Ioannis Makris (sprints), junior Harry Davis (middle distance), senior Nate Kirkland (distance) and senior Jaysin Huynh (throws).

Band’s time of 7.80 in the 55 meter high hurdles this winter placed him in the top 10 in the state, and he will be a key member of the 4×400. Irving is a returning District qualifier in the 200 (22.62) and also qualified for Indoor States in the 4×200 relay. Makris is a versatile sprinter who was an Indoor State qualifier in the 4×200 relay this winter. Davis is a versatile runner who was a member of Rustin’s school record-breaking 4×200 and 4×400 indoor relays. Kirkland is one of the top 1600/3200 runners in the division and will contribute to the 4x800m relay. Hunyh is a returning District medalist in the shot put.
“We have a talented young core that looks to build off of their strong indoor season with hopes of repeating as American Division champions and sending more qualifiers off to the District 1 meet this spring,” said Rustin boys head coach Shaz Brown.