Cape boys win Henlopen Conference Indoor Track Championship

Smyrna girls win title with Cape in solid second

Nathaniel Guy of Dover edges Cape’s David Smith in the 4-by-800. Both teams ran 8:35. Guy came back and won the open 800. DAVE FREDERICK PHOTOS

Dave Frederick

February 7, 2020

Follow your GPS to UMES and it will drop you in the middle of a field. “You have reached your destination,” except there are two Backbone Roads and all vertebrates only need one. The UMES Hytche Athletic Center is six miles south in Princess Anne proper.

The Henlopen Conference track Championships started at 1 p.m., Feb. 6, and ran for nine hours, long after the last train to Pittsville had left the station.

The Cape boys acquired the team title the hard way, without the use of sprinters. Cape scored 116 points to win the meet. They were followed by Sussex Central with 89, Smyrna with 86, and Dover and Caesar Rodney with 66 tied for fourth.

Smyrna ran away with the girls’ meet, scoring 201 points followed by Cape with 107, Sussex Academy with 66, Dover with 63 and Polytech with 46.

The Cape boys scored first-place points in the long jump with Karnell Wise (21-feet-7-inches); shot put, Josiah Miller (47-8); pole vault, Bryan Ciabattoni (12-9); and 1,600 and 3,200, Ethan Edery (4:37 and 10:14).

Sussex Central’s Travon McVicker won titles in the high jump (6-4) and 55 hurdles (7.87), and ran on the winning 4-by-200 relay with Dom Saragino, Skylar McVicker and PJ Stratton.

“I thought coming into the meet we had a chance to win it,” said Cape coach Matt Lindell.

The girls’ competition was dominated by Smyrna, as Lauren Summers won the 55-meter dash in 7.3 and 200-meter dash in 26.5, while Sarah Larose won the 1,600 in 5:43 and 3,200 in 12:30.

Cape’s Tia Jarvis captured the 400-meter title in a school record time of 59.8. Sawyer Walker won the high jump with a personal-best 5-2. And the 4-by-800 team won the gold with a team of Katie Kuhlman, Taylor Johnson, Elizabeth Melson and Olivia Brozefsky in 10:08.

Ellis Gaulden, the head coach of the Cape boys’ team, was voted Henlopen Conference Coach of the Year.

Cape point producers not placing first were: Andre Wolak, seventh in 400 meters in 54.6; Hunter Jones, seventh in 800 meters in 2:11 and fourth in 1,600 in 4:49; Jullian Calloway, eighth in 800 meters in 2:11; Sam Epstein, eighth in 1,600 in 4:56; Ryan Baker fourth in 3,200 in 10:33; Daniel Adili-Khams, sixth in 3,200 in 10:42; John Small, fifth in 55 hurdles in 8.4, seventh in long jump in 19-11, and seventh in triple jump in 38-8; Karnell Wise, fifth in high jump in 5-8 and third in triple jump in 41-8; Giovanni Bendfeldt, third in pole vault in 12-0 and sixth in shot put in 36-10; and Cesar Campos, eighth in pole vault in 9-6.

On the girls’ side, point scorers include: Taylor Johnson, sixth in 800 in 2:42; Katie Kuhlman, fourth in 1,600 in 5:46 and second in 3,200 in 12:36; Olivia Brozefsky fifth in 1,600 in 5:52 and second in pole vault in 9-0; Mia Neubling, fourth in 3,200 in 12:40; Noelle Sabbagh, fifth in 55 hurdles in 9.6 and fifth in triple jump in 32-0; Alexa Fuad, fourth in pole vault in 7-6; Tia Jarvis, second in long jump in 17-6; Reagan Ciabattoni, seventh in long jump in 15-1 and third in triple jump in 33-3; and Ny’Ashja Brown, fourth in shot put in 31-6.

Complete listing of results at md.milesplit.com.

The DIAA State Championship indoor meet is Saturday, Feb. 22, at the Prince George’s Sports Complex in Maryland.

Olivia Brozefsky is almost derailed on the anchor leg of the 4-by-800.

Katie Kuhlman, Taylor Johnson, Elizabeth Melson and Olivia Brozefsky ran a season-best time of 10:08 in the 4-by-800. In front are Tim Bamforth and Martin Rodriguez.