Section VI’s Pioneer claims top overall honor at 90th running of Wellsville Elks Club Spring Day, C-G places 2nd; host Lions conclude 6th behind top finishes by Faulkner, Oswald
WELLSVILLE — The sun was out. The temperatures are at its mid-Spring apex. The attendance for one of the biggest track and field meets of the year — outstanding. The perfect equation for a Saturday to be spent in the Lion’s Den.
The race for glory, and that sweet, sweet Spring Day t-shirt was on for nearly 20 schools in attendance to help ring in the 90th annual running of one of the area’s oldest invitationals to date at the John J. Rigas Track and Field Complex in Wellsville. In a meet of much magnitude, it provides the perfect measuring stick for the teams looking to make that extra boost into Sectionals right around the corner.
Many races were run. Many distances were recorded. Many personal bests were achieved. At the end of the historic day at the track, the top honor was claimed by the Pioneer Panthers, as they became this year’s Spring Day champions with a team score of 181.5 with many local squads such as Canisteo-Greenwood, Hornell, host Wellsville and Dansville following right behind all the way through.
“What a great Spring Day all around. It ran with perfection, and it’s funny because you are certainly appreciative of your kids and how hard they work,” said Wellsville boys coach Dean Giopulos. “To do what they did competitively at the same time, taking care of moving hurdles and the rest behind the scenes, it reminds me of how much I love coaching here. Specific to Wellsville. I love these kids, and the pride they have in our program, how hard they’re willing to work for it, it really means the world. It’s an incredible feeling to have.”
Canisteo-Greenwood was the top local school out of the bunch, as they combined to record a second place finish with 157 total points between their two teams, led by a flurry of Top 5 finishes. The boys team was paced by a strong afternoon from Dylan Depew-Cappadonia, who placed first in the 3200 run and second in the Steeplechase. Following up was Will Hosmer, who was one out of four different competitors to all record the same height achieved in the high jump. Will Streeter added in a third place finish in the Pentathlon
Other top individual finishers for the Redskins were Ashton Davis (fourth, 100 dash), Simon Warriner (fourth, triple jump), Liam McAneney (fifth, 1600 run), Aidan Stewart (fifth, Steeplechase), Mathias Sharp (fourth, pole vault) and Noah Drouin (fourth, Pentathlon). Canisteo-Greenwood was also able to garner three Top 5 finishes across the relays, placing fourth in the 1600, and fifth in both the 400 relay and the 4x55 Shuttle Hurdle relay.
On the girls side, the Lady Redskins were fronted by a strong 1-2 finish from Kori Dininny and Matayah Sharp at the pole vault, with Dininny taking the top honor. Mackenzie Hurlbut shined on the track with a great race in the 400 dash, placing second, while Sarah Coddington had three Top 5 finishes to add — second in the long jump, and third in both the 100 and 200 dashes.
The Lady Redskins also collected third place finishes across three relays — the 400 relay, 1600 relay and 4x55 Shuttle Hurdle relay. Other individual finishes include: Kylie Williamson (third, 400 dash), Kassidy Gardner (fifth, 800 run), Lyla Greenfield (fifth, high jump), Diana Morling (fourth, long jump), Madison Woodworth (third, triple jump) and Zaida Stewart (fourth, discus).
Following behind was Hornell, who tied with Springville for fourth place overall with 138 points, with five total first place finishes, three from their boys team by Kellen Crowe in the 200 dash and Jake Phillips in the 400 hurdles, paired alongside a winning 400 relay. Phillips would also add a fifth place finish in the triple jump into the fray, while Austin Gollnitz rounded off the top finishes with a third place marker in the long jump. The Red Raiders also finished second in the 1600 relay and 4x55 Shuttle Hurdles.
Selena Maldonado (second, 200 dash) and Elaina Flaitz (second, 100 hurdles) added in the team’s last two first place finishes, as Maldonado came up with the winning distance from the sand bunker in the long jump, while Flaitz followed up with her winning height in the high jump. The team would also collect a winning time from their victorious 400 relay squad along the way. Other individual top finishers include: Ella White (second, 100 dash; fourth, 200 dash), Silvia Carretto (fifth, 400 dash; third, 800 run) and Elisa Bodin (third, 3000 run; fifth Steeplechase).
Host Wellsville laid claim to sixth overall across the day’s meet, as the teams combined to produce 118 points while under guidance of Ayden Faulkner and Kaylee Oswald, who each recorded a pair of first place finishes for the Lions.
Faulkner’s brilliant day for the boys team helped propel him to glory with his victories being recorded from the sand bunker, winning in the long jump, as well as achieving a new personal best in triple jump that eclipsed over 40 feet, along the way. JT Mariotti was the second Lion to post a win after a strong performance at the Super 8 meet in Salamanca just 24 hours ago, topping out at 12 feet to record the win in the pole vault. Xavier Scott was the fourth and final competitor to medal at the top, as he raced his way towards victory in the 110 hurdles.
Scott and Mariotti would each add fifth place finishes to their resume, scoring them in the 100 dash and 400 hurdles, respectively. Wellsville would also record two third place finishes in the relay department — the 400 relay and 4x55 Shuttle Hurdles. Other individual finishes for the boys team include: Noah Joslyn (fourth, 1600 run) and Jack Davis (fifth, Pentathlon).
Giopulos said that he is beyond more than pleased with his third place boys squad, and that his hope now will be to use the experience to make another big push towards Sectionals upon the horizon.
“It was great to see kids step up. I expressed to them with Sectionals coming up, how much these next few meets are as far as using the competition to bring them to a higher level. I could not have been more pleased with what our kids were able to do today,” he said. “The 400 relay lowered their time dramatically, Ayden won both the long and triple with his best jumps of the year. Xavier winning the 110 hurdles, JT and Brayden (Riley) in the Pole. When you look at our lineup and look at the PRs, our kids had a great day. Part of it is competing in good weather, and a lot of it is competing in front of your home crowd. They came in with high expectations and delivered. We have really transformed ourselves from an average to a really good team this year.”
As for the Lady Lions, they would see Kaylee Oswald take charge with a complete sweep of both throwing events once more, as she garnered winning distances in the shot put and discus. Her throwing teammate, Alyssa Dorrough, also picked up a couple of top finishes in the same swing, placing second in the shot put and third in the discus to further the cause.
The Lady Lions also garnered a fourth place 3200 relay finish, as well as a fifth place 400 relay finish. Other individual finishers were Ella Green (fifth, 1500 run), Talia O’Connor (fifth, 400 hurdles) and McKenna Wonderling (fourth, high jump). As for the team’s performance, head coach Jamie Bump said that her girls took advantage of the beautiful weather, and ran away with it.
“I am very, very happy with how well our girls performed. The weather was beautiful and they took advantage of it. It’s been a long time coming for that,” she said. “Our throwers led the way, taking 1-2 out there, and that’s to be expected. They’re two of the best throwers around. Allie (Bidzerkowny) plays tennis, but she had a great personal best in our 800 run today. She knocked off a bunch of time, and her sister Sam (Bidzerkowny) did the same thing in the Steeplechase, knocking 20 seconds off herself. There were a lot of great performances, and I’m excited to see what Sectionals brings next week after Hornell. All the teams had a great time here today, there was tons of camaraderie, and you can’t ask for a better day to hold such a great meet.”
The Dansville boys placed seventh overall with 84 total points behind four first place finishes, two by Dawson Wadsworth, who led the way with his top times in the 400 dash and 800 run on the track. Reese Dixon chipped in with his first place finish in the 1600 run, while Patrik Puffer was this year’s Pentathlon champion with nearly 2300 points accumulated. The Mustangs also placed fourth in the 400 relay. Other top finishers include: Jackson Zangerle (third, 100 dash), Elijah Bender (fourth, 200 dash; third, shot put), Corey Beman (second, 110 hurdles) and Ivan Wolf-Mialky (third, 400 hurdles).
Behind them sat Alfred-Almond, who placed eighth with 46 points, with a first place finishing 1600 relay leading the charge for the boys team. Heading the individual finishes was Tighe Grigg, who placed second in the 400 dash. Kouki Yatani finished third in the 800 run, while Jack Byrnes and Dylan Cannon followed with fourth and fifth place finishes in the 400 hurdles and pole vault, respectively. The Eagles also saw a second place finish in the 3200 relay and a fourth place finish in the 4x55 Shuttle Hurdles come into fruition.
As for the Lady Eagles, Isabel Jusianiec was the team’s top finisher, placing fifth in the 100 hurdles.
Rounding off the top 10 were both Cuba-Rushford and Fillmore, as both teams collected a total of 42 points on the day. Leading the boys team for the Rebels was Ethan Coleman, who provided an outstanding day with his first place win in the 100 dash and second place height at the pole vault. Tristan Clayson chipped in a fourth place distance on the discus. The team would also garner a fifth place finishing 1600 relay. Libby Drum would add in a second place finish in the 3000 run to lead the Lady Rebels.
For Fillmore, Henry Sardina gave a great fight down the homestretch against Dansville’s Dawson Wadsworth, but came away as the runner-up with his second place finish. Noah Strickland (1600 run), Eli Strickland (3200 run) and Ray Muzaid-Omar (high jump) all had third place finishes to add in. The Eagles were also victorious in the relay department, garnering gold in the 3200 relay. On the girls side, Rachel Hatch was the top finisher for the Lady Eagles, placing third in the 100 hurdles.
When the event’s 90th running came to a complete close, Giopulos reflected and gave his many thanks to everyone that helped make the historic meet happen, from the opposing teams in attendance to the volunteers and contributors who helped behind the scenes, including a familiar face to the program who helped conduct a smooth symmetry of the event. That, despite how overwhelming at times it can be to host a meet of vast stature.
“It's overwhelming to host a meet of this proportion, but our kids, our parents, our coaching staff, Chris Brown who retired, but he didn't retire from doing this for us. I can't tell you how much it means to have him there helping run the show. It makes this meet extra special,” Giopulos said. “There's so many people to say thank you to, but there are just not enough words. We even had teams like Pioneer, Odessa Montour, Salamanca, Bolivar-Richburg, Hornell, you name them. These coaches come up and say thank you, and tell us what a great meet it is that we run. It really is a whole team effort. For Jamie to be the head coach of the girls team in her first year, and contribute as much as she does with the smallest team around. I can't say enough for what they have all done to run the meet, and to support our kids as well as they support us.”
For all of the complete results on this year’s 90th running of the Wellsville Elks Club Spring Day, you can head over to NY Milesplit by clicking here.
As for Wellsville, their regular season will come to an end on Tuesday one last time in the Lion’s Den, as they host Hornell in a 5 p.m. competition.
“Hornell will be fun to go head-to-head against, but we also have to get some performances that will help us in Sectionals,” said Giopulos. “That's going to be a very good meet that will help us get better, and then the County Championship meet on Friday is a meet to help us get seeded high, although we won't be scored in it. I’ve told this group all season, we have to play to make ourselves better. It will be fun to see where we stand at the end of next week.”
Top 10 (combined team scores)
1. Pioneer 181.5
2. Canisteo-Greenwood 157
3. Franklinville 150
4. Hornell/Springville 138
6. Wellsville 118
7. Dansville 84
8. Alfred-Almond 46
9. Cuba-Rushford/Fillmore 42.
