Connecticut's Class of 2028 and 2029 athletes continued to produce standout performances across championship meets and invitationals from May 18th through May 24th, with several underclassmen ranking among the state's best overall while others delivered significant personal improvements.
Sprints & Hurdles
The boys sprint events were led by sophomore Rodney Crockett (Middletown High School), who ran 10.74 to win the 100 meters at the CCC South Division Championships. The underclass depth behind him was strong, with Reinaldo Soto (Bristol Central High School), Kimari Eady (Cheney Tech), and Benicio Dean (Platt High School) all running 11.11 or better in tightly contested finals.
The 200 meters was equally competitive, led by Kaden Clark (Farmington High School) in 22.53, followed closely by Berenger Xavier (Southington High School) at 22.60 and Eady at 22.66.
Several athletes also delivered major breakthroughs. Jameson Warner (Plainfield) dropped from 25.24 to 22.64 in the 200 and improved his 100 to 11.84, while Bryce Quinn (Griswold) also ran 22.64 after entering the week at 23.44.
In the 400 meters, sophomore Dorian Greene (Ledyard High School) led the rankings in 49.61, while Chase Larsen (Darien High School) and Kyle Wiebke (Pomperaug High) also broke 51 seconds. Keith Schmidt (Rockville) highlighted the week's improvements, lowering his 400 best to 51.12 while also progressing in both horizontal jumps.
On the girls side, sophomore Kyra Mclean (Stratford High School) led the underclassmen in the 100 meters with her 12.24 victory at the SWC Outdoor Championships, while Brookelyn Grant (Middletown High School) and Ella Barber (Greenwich High School) also posted top-tier marks. Barber also ran 25.78 in the 200, where she was joined by Laniyah Gates (Career High School) and Riley Barber (Greenwich High School) in a tight top group all under 26.07.
Freshman Isabella O'Neill (Cromwell) delivered one of the week's biggest breakthroughs, dropping from 38.04 to 25.74 in the 200 meters. Sophomore Addison Gray (New Fairfield) and Cailan Hall (Mercy) also posted strong sprint improvements across multiple events.
The girls 400 meters featured a standout 56.80 victory at Night of Speed from sophomore Deanna Spears (Bloomfield High School), while Mclean and Ava Coleman (Windsor High School) rounded out a tightly packed top three for the underclassmen in the 400.
Hurdles were similarly deep. Juan Toledo Acosta (Windham High School) led the underclassmen boys 110 hurdles in 16.26, while C.J. Fowler (East Haven High School) topped the 300 hurdles in 40.61.
On the girls side, sophomore Cynthia Singleton (Naugatuck High School) led the 100 hurdles in 15.82, while Olivia Edwards (Wilton High School) ran 45.90 to top the 300 hurdles.
Freshman Imani Bell (Academy of Aerospace and Engineering) added a highlight breakthrough with a school-record 12.60 in the 100 meters.
Distance
The underclassmen boys 800 meters was led by sophomore Holden Hines (Xavier High School) who won Night of Speed in 1:57.04, with Nico Cardello (East Lyme High School) also under two minutes and Eric Gamble (Bloomfield High School) at 2:00.05. Leo Baroni (New Canaan) produced a key breakthrough, lowering his best to 1:58.52.
The 1600 meters featured a tight finish between Cardello (4:31.21) and Jack Dempsey (Norwich Free Academy) at 4:32.54 at the ECC Division 1 & 2 Championships, while James Hayes (Greenwich High School) and Quentin Koch (Greenwich High School) led the 3200 field in 9:35.56 and 9:39.05, respectively.
On the girls side, freshman Kate Duggan (Joel Barlow High School) led the girls underclassmen 800 in 2:17.15. Sophomore Lauren Parrett (Glastonbury High School) anchored the 1600 in 4:57.17 and also ran 11:20.27 in the 3200 for first place in both events at the CCC North Division Championships.
The 3200 featured one of the closest finishes of the week, as Sophie Passalacqua (Greenwich High School) edged Angelina Ruggeri (Ridgefield High School) by just 0.01 seconds in 11:05.64 to 11:05.65.
Freshman Ruby Kuselias (Mercy High School) led the underclassmen girls mile field in 5:24.96 with her runner-up finish from Night of Speed.
Jumps & Throws
The boys jumps were highlighted by sophomore Christian Gaskins (E.O. Smith High School), who cleared 6-8 in the high jump for first place at the CCC North Division Championships. Jeremiah Riddick (Windsor High School) led the future stars long jump last week at 21-6, while Reinaldo Soto (Bristol Central High School) added a 42-6.5 triple jump lead.
Freshman Isabel Botseridge (Simsbury) highlighted the girls jumps with a high jump improvement from 4-6 to 5-0, while Ny'asia Taylor (Hillhouse High) and Jillian Fant (East Lyme High School) led the long and triple jumps for the underclassmen respectively.
In the throws, sophomore Aiden Nosol (North Haven High School) led the boys shot put at 46-2.5, while freshman Hobie Valenti (Grasso Tech) topped the discus with 129-6 and won the Vo-Tech Track & Field Championships. Sophomore Logan Davis (Lyman Memorial High School) led the javelin at 167-7 and took the win at the ECC Division 3 & 4 Championship.
On the girls side, sophomore Tabitha Klimovich (Naugatuck High School) led the discus with 103-7 and took first place at the NVL Outdoor TF Championships. Hailey Mayo (Coventry High School) topped the javelin at 103-1 and freshman Katelyn Michitsch (Pomperaug High) followed closely.