Pictured above: Valley View’s Class 3A boys champions. (Ben Magnotta Photo)
By Tom Robinson and Ben Magnotta, NEPASportsNation.com
SCRANTON – Unbeaten Lackawanna Track Conference division champions Valley View and Mid Valley added to their credentials Thursday night with titles in the 67th annual Jordan Relays at Scranton Memorial Stadium.
The No. 1 Big School and Small School boys teams in the Riverfront Sports Super Six Track and Field Power Rankings of District 2 teams used different methods to capture the Class 3A and 2A championships.
Valley View won its second Class 3A title in three years without a first-place finish. The Cougars used five second-place finishes and a third in the six-event meet to compile 46 points, 14 more than Division 1 rivals Scranton and Abington Heights, who tied for second.
Mid Valley won two events, matching Dunmore for the most in Class 2A, while claiming its third straight outright title and fourth straight overall. The Spartans shared the 2019 title with Montrose and the meet was not held in 2020 when the spring sports season was canceled because of COVID.
Connor Swartz led the way for Valley View, anchoring the 4×400-meter and 4×800 relay teams and running a 400 leg in the distance medley. All three teams finished second.
Sprinter Jacob Nielsen was on two second- and one third-place team.
Jamie Heid, Bryce Sokoloski, Ethan Williams and James Liparulo each were part of a pair of second-place finishes.
Jabari Glezen, Connor Hilling and A.J. Kucharski were each on second- and third-place relays.
Colin Kravitz was the top individual performer on a night that emphasizes teamwork. He led North Pocono to wins in half of the six races, but the Trojans managed only one other point and finished fourth with 31 points.
Abington Heights, Scranton and fifth-place Delaware Valley each won an event.
Running 400 legs each time, Kravitz anchored the 1200 sprint medley and 4×400 relay along with running the third leg of the 1600 sprint medley.
Each time Kravitz received the baton, the Trojans were in second place. Each time he completed a lap, they were well in front. He had two split times under 48 seconds and the other under 50.
Aiden Horne, who anchored the 1600 sprint medley, was also part of all three relay wins while Noah West ran on two.
Abington Heights and Scranton won the night’s longest races, the 4×800 and distance medley, while LTC Division 2 champion Delaware Valley set the night’ s only meet record in the shortest.
The Warriors ran the 4×100 in 43.41 seconds. Ryder Machado, Aiden Black, Henry Goginski and Armand Ruest teamed to beat the 11-year-old Valley View record by seven-hundredths of a second.
Mid Valley outscored Dunmore, 50-43, for the Class 2A title. Lackawanna Division 4 champion Montrose was third with 36.
Jordan Chmielewski was on Mid Valley’s winning 1200 sprint medley and 4×400 relay teams and was also part of one of the team’s two second-place finishes.
Cody Michaels, who led off in both cases, and Zachary Popko were also on both winning teams.
Timothy Kramer had a win and two seconds while Gabe Pacyna had a win and a second.
Dunmore won the meet’s first two events.
Tommy Clark broke two minutes on the opening 800 leg to put Dunmore out in front in the distance medley.
Cory Domiano and Dom DeSando followed him, then ran legs on the 4×100 win that followed.
Montrose won the 4×800 and Holy Cross won the 1600 sprint medley.
MORE JORDAN RELAYS COVERAGE
Boys results and Mid Valley team photo: Jordan Relays boys results – NEPA Sports Nation.
Girls results: Jordan Relays girls results – NEPA Sports Nation.
