Samantha Connors
Sam completed her senior season of field hockey for the Appalachian State Mountaineers, starting all 20 games and leading the team in minutes played with 1,194. More of a defensive player, Sam was credited with two defensive saves, two goals and two assists on a solid team that finished 14-6. Sam was a three-time All-MAC Academic team member. Sam was a three-sport athlete at Cape, playing field hockey (21 career goals and 17 assists) before swimming in the winter and playing tennis in the spring, where she placed fourth her senior season in the Henlopen Conference. Sam was a varsity midfielder her four years at Cape, playing on four state championship teams. Sam plans to pursue a master’s degree in occupational therapy and hopefully work as a graduate assistant coach.
Grayson Davis
A freshman stud middleweight wrestler in a Cape lineup that includes state champs Austin Guerrieri and Nick Walker, Grayson is ready to rock the Vikings uniform. Grayson’s journey has been a bit circuitous, mostly wrestling in national tournaments, but in 2025-26, he is in the Cape lineup. Grayson weighs about 150, but according to coach Chris Mattioni, he plans to go down to 144 for the Southern Slam and Beast of the East. Grayson was a 130-pound middle school grappler in the same class as Blake Walker, now a Cape sophomore who placed third in the state as a freshman. Grayson, a former Beacon state champion, was homeschooled last school year, wrestling mostly in tournaments. Grayson was ranked No. 2 in the country at 130 pounds for middle schools.
Olivia Montini
Olivia has been running local races since she was 5 years old. Her dad Paul and mom Becky also run. They are from Philly but are also card-carrying muppets and homeowners at Sesame Street by the Sea. Olivia ran high school at Penn Charter and just finished her senior cross country season at Swarthmore in the NCAA Division III nationals. The team invite was the first for the Garnet, but Liv has been there all four years. Swarthmore won the NCAA Metro Regionals. They were led by Montini’s 10th-place finish. She owns personal best of 17:48 for three miles, 18:53 for 5K and 22:05 for 6K, which is the standard distance for NCAA women’s races. Olivia was All-Centennial Conference first team in 2024. She has won the Bryn Mawr Invitational three straight seasons. She is majoring in engineering.
Nolan Peet
Lewes Elementary student and Seashore Striders runner Nolan Peet finished fourth in the Cross Country Coaches National Youth Championships last weekend in Knoxville, Tenn. Nolan, who finished third at the 2024 championships as a 6-year-old, managed to take fourth among sub-bantam 7-year-olds, racing the 2K in a personal-best time of 8:40, a full minute faster than his time last year. Nolan's grandfather Tom was a cross country standout in the Philadelphia area, while mom Marybeth and dad Steve both ran for the Seashore Striders 23 years ago. Marybeth was Lewes Elementary’s Teacher of the Year last year, while Steve works just down the road as a physical therapist at Joynt PT. Nolan’s sisters Lilly and Annie also competed at the national championships.
