Joel Barlow’s Mariella Schweitzer competes in the hurdles during the SWC indoor track championship earlier this month.
Christian Abraham / Hearst Connecticut Media
NEW HAVEN—The Weston boys entered the South-West Conference track and field championships on Friday at Floyd Little Athletic Center as the two-time defending champion with 10 team titles overall.
But Weston coach Matt Medve believed Bethel had its share of depth, was the team to beat and his team would need a solid effort to overcome that depth.
As it turned out, Weston scored points in 13 of the 15 events including multiple top-four finishes and eked out a third straight team title. Weston won with 97 points, Bethel had 95 and New Milford 62.
While the boys celebrated their team title, the Weston girls did their part in the final event of the meet to clinch their for double the fun and excitement. Weston won five of the top six spots in the girls pole vault to earn 27 points and clinch the SWC girls indoor track and field title with 100 points. Newtown was second with 89 and New Milford third with 54.
“I am so proud of these kids,” said Medve, who coaches both the girls and boys teams. “We’ve been doing very well in this meet, but in the boys meet Bethel was the favorite coming in here. Our boys just rose to the occasion. Our depth, covering top four finishes in most of the events and completing strong efforts in each event was key for us.
“The 55 hurdles is what really won this for us with the points we got in that event. John Cassol won (8.04), Chris Lewis was second (8.76) and Jake Fine was sixth (9.30). Everyone stepped up for us. Scoring in 13 of 15 events gave us points we didn’t expect coming into the meet.”
For the Weston girls, Elise Russell won the pole vault with a height of 11 feet, teammate Lucy Fine was second (9-0), Evelyn Miano took third (9-0), Rachel Esslinger was fifth (8-6) and Ellison Weiner was sixth (8-6). It was the seventh straight SWC title for the girls and 13th of the last 14. They have won 14 titles overall.
“The boys and the girls have both been competing at a high level,” Medve said. “We’ve been doing better than we thought we could. Our boys and girls titles tonight shows how every point counts in a meet like this. Depth and hard work, that’s how both teams came out on top.”
Coyle cruises to 600 win
Molly Coyle of Immaculate started strong and finished strong to win the girls 600 in 1:38.64.
And that’s the way she likes it.
“I usually get really excited just before I’m about to run a race,” Coyle said. “Because of that, I’m always looking for a good start and strong finish. I led from start to finish in the 600 and that’s typically how I run my races.
“I’m definitely excited with this win, it’s a good way to go into the states.”
Golembeski’s winning move
Jason Golembeski of New Milford was hanging back in the middle of the pack in the boys 1000-meter run.
Suddenly, it dawned on him.
“When I heard the bell for the last lap, the bell lap, I realized if I wanted to win this I really needed to go,” Golembeski said. “With the strong guys I was runnig against, I just needed to pull ahead and get up there.
“I usually stay back in my races and use my kick to do it and win at the end. Fortunately I was able to do that today.”
Golembeski finished strong and won the 1000 in 2:41.43.
The win was special for Golembeski who missed much of the regular season with a hip injury and illness.
“It feels good to get this win with what I had to deal with in the regular season,” Golembeski said. “I’m 100 percent now and this is a good boost going into the state meets.”
Kyle surprised he won 600
Aidan Kyle of Weston thought he might have hurt his chances in the boys 600 when he went too hard to start off. But he re-grouped during the race, slowed his pace and had enough energy to find late kick and win the 600 in 1:27.21.
“In the beginning I was concerned because I went out to fast,” Kyle said. “Early on, I didn’t know if I would have enough at the end to win, so this is a surprise.
Schweitzer earns 3 wins
Mariella Schweitzer of Barlow had a special day at the SWC meet with three wins.
She won the long jump with 16-8.5, she won the 55 hurdles in 9.11 and won the 300 in 42.11.
“I’m really happy I got the three gold medals, but wasn’t happy with my distance in the long jump or my time in the 55 hurdles,” Schweitzer said. “In the 300, I went out strong and felt good the entire race. I ran second early in the race and then pulled away with about 150 meters to go and led the rest of the way.
“I’m going into the states now feeling confident.”
2020 SWC TRACK AND FIELD CHAMPIONSHIPS
BOYS RESULTS
Team results: 1. Weston 97, 2. Bethel 95, 3. New Milford 62; 4. Newtown 43; 5. Pomperaug 41; 6. Masuk 39; 7. Bunnell 27; 8. New Fairfield 24; 9. Brookfield 20; 10. Immaculate 13; 11. Barlow 4.
4×200 relay: 1. Bethel 1:34.77; 2. Pomperaug 1:34.85; 3. Weston 1:34.86; 4. Masuk 1:37.16; 5. New Milford 1:37.95; 6. Newtown 1:38.23.
4×800 relay: 1. Newtown 8:34.32; 2. Weston 8:37.62; 3. Bethel 8:45.69; 4. Barlow 9:03.18; 5. Immaculate 9:07.18; 6. New Fairfield 9:33.08.
1000: 1. Jason Golembeski (New Milford) 2:41.43, 2. Jadon Parris (Brookfield) 2:42.24; 3. Kevin Crowley (Weston) 2:42.90; 4. James Sullivan (Immaculate) 2:43.09; 5. Evan Gallagher (Bethel) 2:43.47; 6. Nicholas Jacobs (Newtown) 2:45.45.
600: 1. Aidan Kyle (Weston) 1:27.21; 2. Ryan Karp (Pomperaug) 1:27.59; 3. Schyler Parris (Brookfield) 1:27.70; 4. Andrew Poseno (Newtown) 1:28.11; 5. Jesse Meadows (New Milford) 1:28.62; 6. Aidan Budge (Newtown) 1:30.98.
55 hurdles: 1. John Cassol (Weston) 8.04; 2. Chris Lewis (Weston) 8.76; 3. Maxwell Pizzalato (Masuk) 8.96; 4. James Bishop (New Milford) 9.20; 5. Toby Ferris (Newtown) 9.24; 6. Jake Fine (Weston) 9.30.
55 dash: 1. Stephen Blake (Bunnell) 6.62; 2. Mark Cristino (Pomperaug) 6.66; 3. Tyler Loth (Bethel) 6.74; 4. William Hornby (Newtown) 6.75; 5. Marquise Lawrence (Bunnell) 6.78; 6. Theo Gross (Masuk) 6.80.
1600: 1. Patrick Gibbons (New Fairfield) 4:39.31; 2. Robert Harkin (New Milford) 4:42.67; 3. Luca Cazzaniga (Bethel) 4:44.65; 4. Dennis Johnson (Bunnell) 4:50.52; 5. James Sullivan (Immaculate) 4:51.07; 6. Roddy Stones (Bethel) 4:51.45.
Sprint Medley Relay: 1. New Milford 3:47.05; 2. Bethel 3:48.26; 3. Brookfield 3:48.87; 4. Bunnell 3:49.80; 5. Weston 3:51.33: 6. New Fairfield 4:08.47.
300: 1. Tyler Loth (Bethel) 37.02; 2. Tristan Andrew (Newtown) 37.15; 3. Aidan Markward (Pomperaug) 37.41; 4. Jack Spencer (Weston) 38.00; 5. Ross Relator (Immaculate) 38.21; 6. Greg Grom (Pomperaug) 38.39.
3200: 1. Robert Doyle (Bethel) 10:14.17; 2. Robert Harkin (New Milford) 10:16.80; 3. Patrick Gibbons (New Fairfield) 10:18.05; 4. Garred Farrell (New Milford) 10:19.85; 5. Drew Mitchell (Immaculate) 10:20.49; 6. Andrew Taborsak (New Milford) 10:23.41.
4×400 relay: 1. Pomperaug 3:34.72; 2. Weston 3:36.18; 3. New Milford 3:38.01; 4. Bethel 3:38.96; 5. Newtown 3:47.27; 6. Immaculate 3:50.83.
High jump: 1. Dylan Torok (Masuk) 6-2; 2. Marcus Guyton (Bethel) 6-0; 3. Alex Kennedy (New Fairfield) 5-6; 4. Jackson Simms (Newtown) 5-4; 5. Ethan Appiah (Newtown) 5-4; 6. Dylan Chicha (Weston) 5-2.
Long jump: 1. Marcus Guyton (Bethel) 21-0.5; 2. Matthew Bigelow (Weston) 20-2; 3. Stephen Blake (Bunnell) 20-0.5; 4. Michael Reseska (Bethel) 19-11.5; John Cassol (Weston) 19-8.5; 6. Timothy Fraedrich (Bunnell) 19-8.
Shot put: 1. Arthur Murillo (Masuk) 45-1.5; 2. Jeffrey Nugent (Masuk) 44-4.25; 3. Christopher Bon Tempo (New Milford) 43-4.25; 4. Grant Baker (Newtown) 42-10; 5. Kevin Wood (Bethel) 42-1; 6. Tyler Berendsohn (New Milford) 41-2.5.
Pole vault: 1. Matthew Bigelow (Weston) 15-0; 2. Connor Nordmann (Bethel) 12-6; 3. Chris Lewis (Weston) 12-0; 4. Jake Fine (Weston) 11-0; 5. Logan Klebenow (Weston) 11-0; 6. Aaron Smith (Weston) 10-6.
GIRLS RESULTS
Team results: 1. Weston 100, 2. Newtown 89, 3. New Milford, 4. Immaculate, 5. Barlow 42, 6. Bethel 32, 7. Pomperaug 30, 8. New Fairfield 19, 9. Stratford 14, 10. Bunnell 12, 10. Brookfield 12, 12. Masuk 9.
4×200 relay: 1. Weston 1:49.31; 2. Newtown 1:49.35; 3. New Milford 1:51.35; 4. Bunnell 1:51.94; 5. Stratford 1:52.61; 6. Pomperaug 1:52.63.
4×800 relay: 1. New Milford 10:02.14, 2. Weston 10:09.92; 3. Immaculate 10:10.24; 4. Bethel 10:18.16; 5. Newtown 10:29.95; 6. Masuk 10:52.97.
1000: 1. Julia Rosenberg (Weston) 3:00.22; 2. Ally McCarthy (Newtown) 3:02.27; 3. Ailene Doherty (Immaculate) 3:06.83; 4. Riley Powers (Newtown) 3:08.26; 5. Catie Coneybear (Brookfield) 3:13.31; 6. Charlotte Brehmer (Pomperaug) 3:15.60.
600: 1. Molly Coyle (Immaculate) 1:38.64; 2. Amelia Rudolph (Weston) 1:40.21; 3. Kate Johnson (Pomperaug) 1:40.52; 4. Ava Zielinski (Weston) 1:42.52; 5. Rylee Harrell (Newtown) 1:44.88; 6. Abigail Correard (Bethel) 1:47.05.
55 hurdles: 1. Mariella Schweitzer (Barlow) 9.15; 2. Grace Stephens (Masuk) 9.47; 3. Samantha Pomeroy (New Fairfield) 9.44; 4. Alissa Hurd (Pomperaug) 9.68; 5. Amelia Mabb (Pomperaug) 9.86; 6. Riley Gibbons (New Fairfield) 9.93.
55 dash: 1. Elise Barricelli (Newtown) 7.63; 2. Zoe Graham (Bethel) 7.77; 3. Dardielle Exantus (Bunnell) 7.70; 4. Elle Moshier (Stratford) 7.83; 5. Victoria Moran (Newtown) 7.87; 6. Elise Russell (Weston) 7.78.
1600: 1. Riley Powers (Newtown) 5:20.17; 2. Ava Graham (Bethel) 5:21.96; 3. Shae Zeitler (New Milford) 5:28.02; 4. Kayla Ondy (Immaculate) 5:28.02; 5. Miranda Anastasakis (Bethel) 5:31..14; 6. Mya Morabito (New Milford) 5:31.53.
Sprint Medley Relay: 1. Weston 4:23.28; 2. Immaculate 4:26.99; 3. Brookfield 4:30.54; 4. Newtown 4:30.86; 5. Pomperaug 4:38.09; 6. Bethel 4:44.18.
300: 1. Mariella Schweitzer (Barlow) 42.11; 2. Elle Moshier (Stratford) 42.56; 3. Nicole Sztachelski (Weston) 42.67; 4. Elie Barricelli (Newtown) 43.64; 5. Abigail Miles (Weston) 44.15; 6. Laura Wong (Newtown) 44.50.
3200: 1. Claire Daniels (New Milford) 11:55.66; 2. Keelin Bremner (Immaculate) 11:59.59; 3. Emily Tressler (Newtown) 12:22.91; 4. Lauren Manning (Immaculate) 12:30.97; 5. Abigail Calame (Immaculate) 12:32.08; 6. Madelaine Sweeney (New Milford) 12:32.48.
4×400 relay: 1. Weston 4:06.96 (meet record); 2. New Milford 4:16.14; 3. Newtown 4:17.76; 4. Immaculate 4:28.24; 5. Bethel 4:29.70; 6. Brookfield 4:34.39.
High jump: 1. Alissa Hurd (Pomperaug) 5-0; 2. Isabel Llach (Barlow) 5-0; 3. Vassa Rezvaya (Bethel); 4. Riley Gibbons (New Fairfield) 4-10; 5. Elizabeth Murphy (Weston) 4-10; 6. Lucy Fine (Weston) 4-8.
Long jump: 1. Mariella Schweitzer (Barlow) 16-8.5; 2. Samantha Pomeroy (New Fairfield) 16-0.5; 3. Anichka Malachi (New Milford) 15-10; 4. Avery Suriani (Pomperaug) 15-2.5; 5. Kaylah Phommachanh (Bunnell) 15-1; 6. Elise Russell (Weston) 14-11.75.
Shot put: 1. Sarah Nowacki (Newtown) 35-3.5; 2. Anna Burns (Newtown) 32-4.25; 3. Mariya Tazi (New Milford) 31-7.25; 4. Lily Beasley (Newtown) 29-1.5; 5. Megan Mingey (Brookfield) 28-9.25; 6. Amal Elmady (Brookfield) 28-8.
Pole vault: 1. Elise Russell (Weston) 11-0; 2. Lucy Fine (Weston) 9-0; 3. Evelyn Miano (Weston) 9-0; 4. Katie Matsuoka (Barlow) 9-0; 5. Rachel Esslinger (Weston) 8-6; 6. Ellison Weiner (Weston) 8-6.
