Nick Petito
Nick, a sophomore, is the young gun on the Cape cross country team, the only non-senior in the top five. Nick, usually Cape’s No. 5, moved his team position to No. 4 and 10th overall, breaking 17 minutes with a 16:59 clocking at the DIAA championships. Nick ran 16:55 at Killens Pond a week earlier, placing seventh overall to help Cape win the Henlopen Conference title with five runners in the top seven. Cape scored 22 points to win the conference, with Caesar Rodney in second with 66 points. Nick ran the 3,200 meters last spring as Cape boys’ track placed second in the state. Nick returns next fall as top dog from the Cape pound of runners.
Andrew Radka
The No. 3 runner on Cape’s state championship cross country team is like a witness protection position because virtually no one but family ever asks, “Who was Cape’s third guy?” Andrew, a senior, is like Sakrete (always in the mix), placing ninth at the state championships in 16:48 to keep Cape at a team-low 42 points for the state championship victory. Andrew ran 16:40 a week earlier, placing fourth to help Cape to the Henlopen Conference championship. Andrew also ran on Cape’s record-setting 4-by-800-meter relay team last spring that broke Cape’s 43-year-old state record of 7:59.6
Brayden Redd
Brayden iced Cape’s state championship cross country victory Nov. 8, running 17:06 for 14th place, putting the trophy in the bus and alerting the fire companies of Milton, Rehoboth and Lewes to get ready for the all-towns parade. Brayden ran 16:52 a week earlier at the Henlopen Championships, placing sixth overall to help Cape to victory. "To finish in the top 15 running below 17 minutes this season and win a state championship with guys I grew up with was redemption for last year's disappointment,” said Brayden, who was on Cape’s team that was edged by Salesianum last season. “Winning the state title was a huge relief; the perfect closure to a high school career.”
Riley Stazzone
A wingman to top runner Jason Baker all season, Riley was money in the bank for Cape’s state championship cross country team. Riley, a senior, delivered like an Amazon package on the porch Nov. 8, clocking a 16:48 to place seventh overall, helping Cape to a low 42 points. The gap between Cape’s No. 1 through No. 5 runners was 59 seconds, with a team average time of 16:47. Riley ran 16:30 a week earlier on the same course, placing third to help Cape to the Henlopen Conference championship. Riley is looking to run some stellar times during indoor track season, then perhaps run in college. He’s looking at Carnegie-Melon and Lehigh.
