TRACK AND FIELD: North Penn boys, Upper Dublin girls win 3A team titles at District 1 Championships

CALN – Faith Castronuovo began her District 1 Track and Field Championships Friday with a pair of Class 3A silver medals in the 4×800 relay then the 1,600 meters.

Saturday, the Upper Dublin senior was finished with second place.

"It was kind of motivation," she said. "Also one of my other teammates got second and my coach was like ‘We're just loving that number.' So, just gave extra motivation to try to bring out the gold today."

A medal of that color finally came for Castronuovo in the 800 meters. She added a second gold later in the day at Coatesville, teaming with Charlotte Marlowe, Brady Kullmann and Tytiana Nelson to take first place the 4×400 Relay – a victory allowing the Cardinals to make a late leap over leaders Central Bucks East and Kennett and capture the Class 3A team title.

"We're definitely really excited, Castronuovo said. "This is our favorite time of the year so I think just keeping it light, happy and yeah, trying to finish it off strong."

Upper Dublin entered the 4×400 with 34 points, trailing the 38 of both CB East and Kennett. East got five points in placing fourth in the 4×4 but the Cards got 10 courtesy of their top time and ended up with 44 points, ahead of the Patriots' 43. Kennett finished third at 38.

There was also a one-point difference in the Boys 3A team race, North Penn claiming the title for the second straight season with 41 points to put them just over Perkiomen Valley's 40. Garnet Valley was third at 36.

Morgen Brown gave the Knights their top finish Saturday, coming in second in the 300-meter hurdles. Musa Herzi took third in the 800 meters. Justin Landis added an eight-place finish in the 3,200 while Jacob Garrett was eighth in the javelin.

"We did it last year and that was awesome and it's something we always want to do, coming back this year, get it done as a team again," said Landis, who won the 1,600 meters Friday. "And we made it pretty dramatic at the end but it was pretty cool to come out with the one-point victory which was close but to get the victory as a team is always something we're trying to reach for and it's super awesome."

Cheltenham senior Amirah Nesmith defended her district titles in both the Girls 3A 100 and 200 meters, the University of Florida commit winning the 100 in meet-record time.

"Since I didn't really have an indoor season because I was injured, I just wanted to come out here and show people that I'm still here, still got another season," Nesmith said.

Wissahickon's Dominic Harvey-Sheppard won the Boys 3A 300-meter hurdles for the third straight season.

"It's very important to me," Harvey-Sheppard said. "I prayed about this situation. I haven't been having the best season this year but I came out there, just did my thing."

Norristown's 4×100 relay of Natalia Johnson, Kayla Rivera, Aniya Smith and Layah Rose claimed gold with a time of 47.48. Cheltenham took second, Amira Banks, Nesmith, Jadesola Turton and Nyla Rasheed posting a 47.90. North Penn earned bronze as Kylie Hill, Hanna Mohammed, Isabelle Rudnick and Violet Buchholz ran a 48.05.

The Faith Christian boys repeated as Class 2A team champions, the Lions amassing 151 points, well ahead of second-place Bristol's 97. Dock Mennonite was fifth with 62 points.

Brady Clymer added two golds to the ones he won Friday in the javelin and high jump, the Faith sophomore winning the 400 meters in 50.98 then running with Nate Phipps, Carter Zwart and Kaiden Rea on the first-place 4×400 relay that posted a time of 3:33.28.

Zwart also provided a gold in the 3,200 meters (10:39.98) with FCA having three medalists in both the 800 meters and shot put.

In Girls 2A, Faith Christian finished second, its 106 points only bettered by champ Chester Charter's 111.

Castronuovo won the Girls 3A 800 with a time of 2:11.22 – the UD junior third after running a 1:05.79 in the opening 400 then pulling away on the second lap.

Lower Moreland's Annie Moniz (2:13.20), CB East's Ava Mignon (2:13.58) and Plymouth Whitemarsh's Emma Simeral (2:13.75) finished fourth, fifth and sixth, respectively.

"I wasn't sure how the first lap was going to go out," said Castronuovo, who was third in the event in 2025. "I knew I didn't want to take over the race in the first 200, kind of just wanted to sit and see how my legs felt the last two so that was kind of the plan.

"I think I took it over around the last 300 mark and I just knew I felt strong and my coach and I have been really gearing our workouts towards trying to finish on strong legs and not make it sloppy, so yeah I was pretty happy with how that got executed today."

In the 4×400 relay, anchor Nelson took the baton with the lead and kept it, the Cardinals finishing in 3:51.36 for both first in the event and in the teams standings.

"It felt really good, I was really nervous at the beginning because I'm just always nervous with the 400," Nelson said. "But I know that I wanted to go to states and since I didn't do that well last time with my 200 last year, I wanted to do something different and do another race. So I did the 400, I got out really good and I felt the girls coming behind me and I know that they're really, really fast.

"And I just kept on pushing and my team was just like ‘Ty, you got to go, you have to go because they're right behind you.' So I just kept pumping my arms and using all my strength that I had left and the end and that was it."

Central Bucks East's Mignon, Reagan Donnelly, Keira Tomlinson and Gabrielle Szyarto were third at 3:53.66. North Penn (Gianna Williams, Isabelle Rudnick, Hanna Mohammed, Alyssa Chartrand) was seventh at 3:54.74 while Norristown (Dackesha McIntyre, Jorgia Ollarvia, Justice Durham, Zymirah Freeman) was eighth at 3:55.16.

Nesmith, wearing a large Florida bow in her hair and also had the school's cursive-script Gators logo in eye black below her left eye, topped the Girls 3A 100-meter field with a new district meet record time of 11:47, besting the 11.66 set by Wissahickon's Krista Simkins in 2005.

"It was very shocking," Nesmith said. "I know I had it in me but I was like I'm still kind of favoring my leg cause I don't want to re-injure it. Today, I just had to come in with a clear mind and just run my own race."

Norristown's Smith took second at 12.02 while CB East's Szyarto was third at 12.13.

Nesmith then collected her second gold of the day in the 200 meters, winning in a time of 23.73.

Abington's Ella Swanijung was third (24.37), Pennridge's Jaelyn Jones place fourth (24.49), Hatboro-Horsham's Ava Ray Edwards was fifth (24.73) Lauren Broadus of Springfield-Montco was sixth (24.92) while Cheltenham's Turton placed eighth (25.63).

"Honestly, I just wanted to get the double win again," said Nesmith, who won the 100 and 200 at last year's PIAA Championships." It was just like I knew I didn't really have an outdoor season as I wanted, I knew I had to go 23-something.

"I opened up with like my PR, I'm proud of myself for that."

Harvey-Sheppard completed his 300-meter hurdles district three-peat with a time of 37.81 with North Penn's Brown getting silver at 37.94. Central Bucks West's Lucas Stefaniak was sixth (39.24) Pennridge's Ethan Cirafesi took seventh (39.33) and Springfield-Montco's Caden Bronson was eighth 39.45.

"Me and the other kid from Penncrest (Ryan Gallagher, who placed second) and North Penn (Brown), we were right next to each other," Harvey-Sheppard said. "I just had to take off."

In the 110-meter hurdles, Stefanisk claimed third in 13.99 with Harvey-Sheppard fourth at 14.49. Hatboro-Horsham's Jathan Sampat was seventh at 14.93 with Bronson earning eighth in 15.20.

Pennridge's Jaelyn Jones captured bronze in the Girls 3A 300-meter hurdles with a time of 43.05. North Penn's Gianna Williams was seventh (44.38) and CB East's Tomlinson eighth (45.32). In the 100 hurdles, CB West's Araceli Easton came in sixth (15.10), Pennridge's Peyton Hepler was seventh (15.15) and Cheltenham's Khloe Saintable was eighth (15.20).

Day Two on the track at districts began with the 3,200 meters. In Boys 3A, Cheltenham's William Edgar ran an 8:57.95 to take third place behind Lower Merion's Mazzeo twins, who both ran under the previous district record time of 9:01.75 set by Unionville's Paul Springer in 2007. Nicholas Mazzeo won in 8:57.10 with Alexander Mazzeo second at 8:57.95.

CB East's Tyler Tomlinson was fourth at 9:06.45, Souderton's Stephen Keller was seventh at 9:12:65 with NP's Landis eighth at 9:19.19.

Gwynedd Mercy's Reece Miller earned third in the 3A Girls 3200 with her finish of 10.36.16. Wissahickon's Berkeley Marcelis was next in fourth (10:38.55) with CB East's Isha Awasthi placing fifth (10:56.53).

Upper Moreland's Malik Rodgers earned silver in the Boys 3A 400 meters with his time of 48.28. CB West's Luca Petosa was fourth (48.65), Asher Bloom of CB East came in fifth (48.70) with Norristown's Muhammad Victor eighth (49.17).

CB East's Szyarto secured bronze in the Girls 3A 400 with her 55.56. The Hatters' Edwards followed in fourth at 56.04 with Pennridge's Karlie Freier fifth at 56.50. Upper Merion's Alyssa Hepburn took eighth with a 57.00.

In the Boys 3A 100, Pope John Paul II's Brandon DeAngelo was sixth in 10.96.

Pennridge's Elijah Kerzmann placed second in the Boys 3A pole vault, earning silver with his clearance of 14 feet on his first attempt. Upper Dublin's Collin Teufel was third after getting over 14 feet on his third try.

CB East's Rylan Crawford and Quakertown's Waylen Strzelski were fifth and sixth, respectively. Both cleared 13 feet, 6 inches but Crawford got over 13 feet on his first attempt with Strzelski clearing the height on his third.

In the triple jump, North Penn's Aliyah Larkins placed third in 3A girls with an effort of 37 feet, 10.25 inches while Central Bucks South's Erika Dombroski was sixth at 36 feet, 10 inches. In Boys 3A, Hatboro-Horsham's Ty Teasley earned fourth at 45 feet, 6.75 inches with Cheltenham's Devin Bynum sixth at 45 feet, 5 inches.

Gwynedd Mercy's Emma Morgan was third in the Girls 3A shot put with a throw of 37 feet, 7.5 inches. Quakertown's Anja Muse took fourth thanks to her toss of 36 feet, 10 inches.

In the Boys 3A javelin, Mac Mitchell of Quakertown posted a throw of 178 feet, 1 inches to earn third. North Penn's Garrett was eighth at 162 feet, 5 inches.

For the Faith Christian boys, Rea helped Faith Christian 2A team repeat with silver in both the 110 hurdles (15.91) and 300 hurdles (41.86). Nehemiah Daniels took second in the high jump (6 feet, 2 inches) and also ran with Gavin Hill, Cole Rickert and Phipps as the Lions were second in the 4×100 relay (44.54). In the shot put, Ben Mertz (42 feet, 6.75 inches and Phipps (41 feet, 4.5 inches) placed second and third, respectively.

Dock Mennonite's Isaiah Landes won the Boys 2A pole vault at 10 feet.

In Girls 2A, Faith Christian held off Chester Charter to win the 4×400 relay, the Lions' Teagyn Celone, Abby Rowland, Sophia Dennis and Cheyenne Greene winning 4:05.33.

Celone won gold in the 400 (59.82) and took third in the 200 (25.58). Greene was the district champ in the 800 with a time of 2:21.38. Rowland was second in the 3,200 meters (11:42.08) with Dennis second in the 300 hurdles (48.86).

Dock Mennonite's London Bey placed third in the 100 hurdles (18.28) and fourth in the 300 hurdles (50.86). Also for the Pioneers, Fiona Kaelin was third in the 800 (2:24.50) and Emily Merrill earned bronze in the javelin (82 feet, 3 inches).

Phil-Mont Christian's Georgia Swaim was second in the 800 (2:24.34) and third in the 3,200 (11:53.23).

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