Avon relay team wins state championship at Class M meet

From left, Julia Freeman, Lauren Edge, Ziyaumdora Hudson, and Kathryn Martin won a state championship for Avon in the 4×200 meter relay at the Class M meet on Thursday. (Photo courtesy Courtney Fusco)

NEW HAVEN, Feb. 13, 2025 – A year ago, junior Kathryn Martin and Lauren Edge and two other teammates won a state championship with the Avon High girls indoor track and field team in the 1,600-meter sprint medley relay

Martin and Edge won another state championship on Thursday night on Avon’s 4×200 meter relay team at the Class M championships at the Floyd Little Athletic Center at Hillhouse High. Martin, Edge, senior Julia Freeman and freshman Ziya Hudson beat Rockville by nearly a second to become the second Avon High girls relay team to win a state championship in indoor track and field.

Avon won with a school-record time of 1:47.89 with Rockville taking second in 1:48.83. The time also secured a berth for the relay team at the upcoming national championship meet.

The Avon girls had three relay teams finish in the top three of their respective events as Avon finished sixth in the CIAC Class M championships with 27 points. The Avon boys finished tied for ninth with 13 points.

Earlier this month, the Avon girls’ sprint medley relay team (Edge, Hudon, Martin, Ying Ying Cheng) became the first girls to win a Central Connecticut Conference championship with a school-record time of 4:18.95.

At the Class M championships, the Falcon sprint medley relay finished second with a time of 4:20.42 behind Nonnewaug, who won the race in 4:17.89.

In the 4×800 meter relay, Avon (Abigail Van Hoof, Laura Funderburk, Miri Ek and Cheng) finished third with a time of 10:20.49. At the CCC championships, this team was fourth with a time of 10:19. 86.

The only other Avon girl to finish in the top six was Yasmin Rensch, who finished sixth in the high jump with a leap of 4-10.

Avon’s sixth place finish is the third-best finish for the Falcons at the state championship meet. The Falcons were fifth in 2013 and 2018 at the Class L meet and third at the Class M meet in 2024.

On the boys side, Avon’s 4×800 meter relay (juniors Brahm Bulow, Chris Campbell, sophomore Andrew Kessler, senior Aidan McLaughlin) shaved nine seconds off their third place time at the recent CCC championships to finish second with a time of 8:29.41. Weston ran away with the race, winning by nine seconds with a time of 8:20.21.

It was the highest finish for an Avon boys relay team in indoor track at a state championship meet. The Falcons had 4×220 yard relays finish second at the Class C championships in 1966 and 1968.

Avon’s 4×200 relay team (Oliver Lojewski, Arin Yadav, Camden Herzog, Jaemin Aziz) finished sixth with a time of 1:35.86, less than 0.8 of a second out of third place. Rockville with a time of 1:35.06 took third.

Bulow won an individual medal by taking fourth in the 3,200 meters with a time of 9:46.58.

The top two finishers in each race automatically advance to the State Open.

At the recent CCC championships, also in New Haven, the Avon boys finished 14th with 11 points while the Avon girls took seventh with 28 points.

Top 10 finishes for the Avon girls came from Van Hood, who was fifth in the 1,600 meters with a season-best time of 5:29.03, Edge, who was sixth in the 55 hurdles with a season-best time of 9.33 seconds and Rensch, who was sixth in the high jump with a leap of 4-10. Hudson was tenth in the long jump with a leap of 15-4.

Among the relay teams for the girls, Avon won the sprint medley relay, took fourth in the 4×200 relay (Julia Freeman, Edge, Hudson, Martin) and 4×800 (Van Hood, Funderburk, Ek, and Cheng). Avon finished fifth in the 4×400 relay.

Among the boys, Bulow was fifth in the 3,200 meters with a season-best time of 9:48.25 with Kessler finishing tenth in the 1,000 meters with a time of 2:51.16. Oliver Lojewski was 12th in the long jump with a leap of 19-7.

Avon’s 4×800 relay (Brahm Bulow, Chris Campbell, Andrew Kessler, and Aidan McLaughlin) finished third with a time of 8:38.00 while the 4×200 relay (Camden Herzog, Oliver Lojewski, Arin Yadav, and Jaemin Aziz) finished sixth and the sprint medley relay team took eighth.

GIRLS INDOOR TRACK
2025 CIAC Class M championships
At New Haven
GIRLS (Top 20): 1. Hillhouse 45, 2. Joel Barlow 37, 3. Mercy 35, 4. Woodstock Academy 31, 5. Nonnewaug 28, 6. Avon 27, 7. New Fairfield and Sufffield 26, 9. Rockville 22, 10. Ledyard 20, 11. Sheehan 19, 12. Weston 18, 13. Guilford 17, 14. Plainville 16, 15. Branford and Waterford 12, 17. Ellington 10, 18. Foran and New London 9, 20. North Haven 8
Others: Lewis Mills 0 points
Individual results
Girls 55 Meter Dash Finals:
1. Destini Reid, Hillhouse, 7.31*; 2. Ellison McDonald, Nonnewaug, 7.37*; 3. Tamia Chapman, Plainville, 7.46*; 4. Mackenzie Bray, Brookfield, 7.52*; 5. Hayli Graham, Suffield, 7.64*; 6. Darielys Arnold, New London, 7.65*.
Girls 300 Meter Dash:
1. Olivia Taylor, Joel Barlow, 41.34*; 2. Juliet Allard, Woodstock Ac, 41.37*; 3. Tamia Chapman, Plainville, 41.72*; 4. Destini Reid, Hillhouse, 42.03*; 5. D’Yona Sumler, Hillhouse, 42.56*; 6. Deanna Moore, Hillhouse, 42.71*.
Girls 600 Meter Run:
1. Sarah Roberts, Mercy (Ct), 1:37.40*; 2. Madeline Garguilo, Nonnewaug, 1:38.93*; 3. Deanna Moore, Hillhouse, 1:40.68*; 4. Maisie Rosengarten, Weston, 1:41.31*; 5. Jenna Luoma, Ellington, 1:41.55*; 6. Sophia Garguilo, Nonnewaug, 1:41.93*.
Girls 1000 Meter Run:
1. Avery Maiese, Waterford, 3:04.61*; 2. Kate Littler, Ledyard, 3:05.53*; 3. Abigail Winslow, Weston, 3:07.89*; 4. Rebecca Langlais, Tolland, 3:09.73*; 5. Grace Glaser, St. Joseph, 3:11.50*; 6. Charlotte Kenney, Branford, 3:14.41*.
Girls 1600 Meter Run:
1. Katie McMorrow, New Fairfield, 5:12.05*; 2. Rose Penney, New Fairfiel, 5:14.97*; 3. Eleanor Chamberlain, Sheehan, 5:24.33*; 4. Ava Tarasuk, North Haven, 5:25.54*; 5. Olivia Jackson, Guilford, 5:26.98*; 6. Madelyn Mariani, Pomperaug, 5:27.50*.
Girls 3200 Meter Run:
1. Sarah Roberts, Mercy (Ct), 11:30.60*; 2. Ripley Penney, New Fairfiel, 11:40.72*; 3. Eleanor Chamberlain, Sheehan, 11:47.34*; 4. Ellie Ballard, RHAM, 11:48.69*; 5. Rebecca Langlais, Tolland, 11:49.87*; 6. Olivia Jackson, Guilford, 11:52.33*.
Girls 55 Meter Hurdles:
1. Phoebe Cora Smith, Joel Barlow, 8.66*; 2. Juliet Allard, Woodstock Ac, 8.76*; 3. Emma Weitknecht, Woodstock Ac, 8.94*; 4. Shantana Smith, Weaver, 9.11*; 5. Lauren Edge, Avon, 9.22*; 6. Gianna Perugini, Nonnewaug, 9.26*.
Girls 4×200 Meter Relay:
1. Avon (Lauren Edge 11, Julia Freeman 12, ziyaumdora hudson 9, Kathryn Martin 11), 1:47.89*; 2. Rockville (Alexia Diaz 12, Abigail Fisher 12, Gabriella Montano 12, Melody Rowe-Cary 11), 1:48.83*; 3. Joel Barlow (Phoebe Cora Smith 10, Cecilia Rahner 9, Vika Abukhovich 10, Olivia Taylor 11), 1:49.61*; 4. Sheehan (Isabella Mariconda 9, Hope Obremski 11, Julia Gootman 10, Shayla Welch 11), 1:49.97*; 5. Plainville (Sabra Dewar 12, Kenisha Cayones 10, Zainayla Elliott 10, Tamia Chapman 12), 1:51.10*; 6. Branford (Djamilla Toukour 12, Cheyenne Wilson 12, Ella Stone 12, Glorianna Buckley 12), 1:51.41*.
Girls 4×400 Meter Relay:
1. Hillhouse (Darea Vargas 11, Briana Thompson 10, Deanna Moore 11, D’Yona Sumler 9), 4:10.07*; 2. Weston (Abigail Winslow 11, Maisie Rosengarten 10, Sophia Taylor 12, Isabella Fournier 11), 4:12.08*; 3. Rockville (Abigail Fisher 12, Gabriella Montano 12, Melody Rowe-Cary 11, Carly Wujcik 10), 4:12.67*; 4. Daniel Hand (Rachel McCartney 10, Caroline Keating 10, Alice Agovino 11, Ellie Flynn 11), 4:13.62*; 5. Waterford (Chloe Butler 11, Elle DiBuono 11, Avery Maiese 12, Camryn Dickinson 12), 4:15.22*; 6. Mercy (Ct) (Molly Mones 9, Heather Meisinger 11, Sarah Roberts 11, Calista Nephew 11), 4:18.36*.
Girls 4×800 Meter Relay:
1. Mercy (Ct) (Kayla Johnson 12, Beatrice Perrault 11, Heather Meisinger 11, Calista Nephew 11), 10:05.05*; 2. Ledyard (Fionna Woody 10, Josephine Withbroe 12, Kaitlyn Sweeney 10, Kate Littler 12), 10:12.61*; 3. Avon (Abigail Van Hoof 10, Laura Funderburk 12, Miriae Ek 12, Ying Ying Cheng 12), 10:20.49*; 4. North Haven (Ava Tarasuk 10, Daniella Rapuano 12, Emma Pincince 10, Grace DeNardis 12), 10:40.52*; 5. Rockville (Kylie Burchell 11, Madalyn Saucier 11, Zoe Callahan 9, Gillian Liebe 10), 11:19.60; 6. Joel Barlow (Mila Baker 10, Clara Mehner 10, Viv D’Amico 9, Ally Bardani 12), 11:25.40.
Girls 1600 Sprint Medley:
1. Nonnewaug (Ellison McDonald 12, Gianna Perugini 9, Sophia Garguilo 11, Madeline Garguilo 9), 4:17.89*; 2. Avon (Lauren Edge 11, ziyaumdora hudson 9, Kathryn Martin 11, Ying Ying Cheng 12), 4:20.42*; 3. Rockville (Melody Rowe-Cary 11, Aaliyah Tucker 9, Abigail Fisher 12, Carly Wujcik 10), 4:25.19*; 4. Mercy (Ct) (Molly Mones 9, Macy Gerry 10, Heather Meisinger 11, Calista Nephew 11), 4:28.24*; 5. Foran (Ava Jaquez-Munroe 12, Julia O’Connell 12, Madeline Salai 10, Maria Azpiri-Sudusky 9), 4:30.96*; 6. St. Joseph (Charlotte Farrelly 11, Makena Hawkins 12, Camryn Tomey 12, Grace Glaser 11), 4:31.19*.
Girls High Jump:
1. Hayli Graham, Suffield, 5-02*; 2. Jenna Luoma, Ellington, 5-00*; 3. Jillian Fant, East Lyme, J5-00*; 4. Ayden Darvil, Suffield, J5-00*; 5. Cassidy O’Conner, Windham, 4-10*; 6. Yasmin Rensch, Avon, J4-10*.
Girls Pole Vault:
1. Jordan Carr, Joel Barlow, 11-00*; 2. Kaylin Diglio, Guilford, 10-06*; 3. Tatiana Gaither, Hillhouse, 10-00*; 4. Emmalyn Rodriguez, Sheehan, 9-06*; 4. Alexis Kuszpa, Daniel Hand, 9-06*; 6. Joselyn Salerno, East Lyme, 9-00*.
Girls Long Jump:
1. Ella Stone, Branford, 17-07.50*; 2. Darielys Arnold, New London, 16-08.75*; 3. Cassie Ward, Guilford, 16-07*; 4. Trinity Cason, Ledyard, 16-06.75*; 5. Sabra Dewar, Plainville, 16-06.50*; 6. Ava Jaquez-Munroe, Foran, 16-03.25*.
Girls Shot Put:
1. Lourdes Lawson, Suffield, 37-09.50*; 2. Avery Plouffe, Woodstock Ac, 35-11.25*; 3. Alexandria McWatters, Foran, 33-09.75*; 4. Antonnise Madden-Codner, Hillhouse, 33-09.50*; 5. Melody Gordon, Hillhouse, 32-00.25*; 6. Lillian Morgis, Woodstock Ac, 31-08*

BOYS INDOOR TRACK
2025 ClAC Class M championships
At New Haven
BOYS (Top 20): 1. Lyman Hall 100, 2. East Lyme 75, 3. Rockville 30, 4. Sheehan 28, 5. East Haven 23. 6. Hand 21, 7. Brookfield and Tolland 16, 9. Avon and Woodstock Academy 13, 11. Ellington, Waterford and Weston 12, 14. Hartford Public and Seymour 10, 16. Killingly 8, 17. Ledyard 7, 18. Rocky Hill and Wolcott 6. 20. Notre Dame-WH 5
Others: Lewis Mills 0 points
Individual results
Boys 55 Meter Dash Finals:
1. Tyler Varveris, East Haven, 6.55*; 2. Tucker Larson, Sheehan, 6.63*; 3. Angel Dominguez, Wolcott, 6.68*; 4. Christopher Cretella, North Haven, 6.70*; 5. Jacob Scott, East Lyme, 6.71*; 6. Kamal Maxwell, Hartford Pub, 6.72*.
Boys 300 Meter Dash:
1. Owen Rich, Lyman Hall, 35.64*; 2. Aaron Rich, Lyman Hall, 35.71*; 3. Tyler Varveris, East Haven, 35.74*; 4. Tucker Larson, Sheehan, 36.45*; 5. Nicholas Masters, Weston, 36.55*; 6. Aedan Virgulto, Daniel Hand, 36.72*.
Boys 600 Meter Run:
1. Thomas Conklin, Lyman Hall, 1:22.29#; 2. Emmett Kristoff, Rockville, 1:22.69#; 3. Christian Menounos, Woodstock Ac, 1:24.11*; 4. Timothy Conklin, Lyman Hall, 1:24.47*; 5. Titus Olson, Waterford, 1:26.64*; 6. Angelo Poteat, Weaver, 1:29.76*.
Boys 1000 Meter Run:
1. Dillon Stoeffler, Tolland, 2:34.18*; 2. Sam Leone, East Lyme, 2:34.84*; 3. Landon Wall, Brookfield, 2:35.23*; 4. Jilali Benjdid, East Lyme, 2:40.04*; 5. Joey Papalia, East Lyme, 2:41.78*; 6. Caleb Zahner, Ellington, 2:43.91*.
Boys 1600 Meter Run:
1. Sean McCauley, East Lyme, 4:21.42*; 2. Sam Leone, East Lyme, 4:22.70*; 3. Colton Sallum, Woodstock Ac, 4:26.87*; 4. Tyler Deme, Sheehan, 4:33.00*; 5. Matthew Carrier, East Lyme, 4:34.09*; 6. Owen Fletcher, Notre Dame-W, 4:39.78*.
Boys 3200 Meter Run:
1. Sean McCauley, East Lyme, 9:30.49*; 2. Evan Belles, Brookfield, 9:42.60*; 3. Daniel DiTunno, Rocky Hill, 9:44.58*; 4. Brahm Bulow, Avon, 9:46.58*; 5. Tyler Deme, Sheehan, 9:46.89*; 6. Jack Faitsch, East Lyme, 9:53.12*.
Boys 55 Meter Hurdles:
1. Owen Rich, Lyman Hall, 7.49*; 2. Jeremiah Smith, Killingly, 7.72*; 3. Dylan Calsetta, Ellington, 7.86*; 4. Damarion Wilson, Prince Tech, 8.01*; 5. John Daniels, Daniel Hand, 8.11*; 6. Jaedan Barnes, Hartford Pub, 8.22*.
Boys 4×200 Meter Relay:
1. Sheehan (Tucker Larson 11, Jayden Dougherty 12, Colin Westbrook 11, Jack Barkasy 11), 1:32.96*; 2. Daniel Hand (Aedan Virgulto 12, Lucas Nolte 11, Stone Leckey 11, John Daniels 12), 1:33.14*; 3. Rockville (Devant Bariffe 11, William Davis 10, Otavio Pinto 11, Alexander Walden 12), 1:35.06*; 4. Ellington (Dominic Attardo 12, Dylan Calsetta 10, Ivan Afriyie 10, Shane Gesualdi 12), 1:35.47*; 5. East Lyme (Jacob Scott 12, William Grant 12, Topher Regan 11, Kyle Miranda 10), 1:35.47*; 6. Avon (Oliver Lojewski 12, Arin Yadav 12, Camden Herzog 9, Jaemin Aziz 11), 1:35.86*.
Boys 4×400 Meter Relay:
1. Lyman Hall (Timothy Conklin 12, Thomas Conklin 12, Ethan Rich 11, Owen Rich 12), 3:31.78*; 2. Daniel Hand (Aedan Virgulto 12, Lucas Nolte 11, Emmett Merschman 11, John Daniels 12), 3:32.95*; 3. Weston (Maxime Carlson 11, Markus Soennichsen 12, Asher Leuzzi 12, Nicholas Masters 12), 3:34.62*; 4. Waterford (Titus Olson 12, Matthew Allen 12, Jake Wang 10, Brodie Scott 11), 3:36.08*; 5. East Haven (Tyler Varveris 11, Dante Rodriquez 12, Alec Richards 11, Aiden Esposito 11), 3:36.40*; 6. Ellington (Dylan Calsetta 10, Dominic Attardo 12, Alexander Akstin 10, Shane Gesualdi 12), 3:38.69*.
Boys 4×800 Meter Relay:
1. Weston (Asher Leuzzi 12, Brett Martin 12, Jack Lorenz 11, Markus Soennichsen 12), 8:20.21*; 2. Avon (Brahm Bulow 11, Christopher Campbell 11, Andrew Kessler 10, Aidan McLaughlin 12), 8:29.41*; 3. East Lyme (Dylan Johnson 12, Jack Faitsch 11, Andrew Carrier 12, Matthew Carrier 12), 8:33.48*; 4. Ledyard (Jack Keskeny 11, Greyson Stephenson 10, Antonio Soldato 12, Lucas Heide 11), 8:45.38*; 5. Lyman Hall (Peter Gournaris 12, Alan Redford 11, Samuel Haddad 10, Quinn Murphy 11), 8:49.78*; 6. Rockville (Bennett Zess 12, Youness Roussid 11, Josh Martin 11, Johnel Padilla 12), 8:57.24*.
Boys 1600 Sprint Medley:
1. Rockville (William Davis 10, Devant Bariffe 11, Otavio Pinto 11, Emmett Kristoff 10), 3:39.59*; 2. Lyman Hall (Finn Reynolds 12, Quinn Murphy 11, Timothy Conklin 12, Thomas Conklin 12), 3:39.73*; 3. Tolland (Jonathan Adadjo 10, Keith Carleton Jr. 11, Christopher Adadjo 12, Dillon Stoeffler 12), 3:40.50*; 4. East Lyme (Callaway Scott 12, Topher Regan 11, William Grant 12, Jilali Benjdid 12), 3:44.97*; 5. Brookfield (Tyler Bosco-Schmidt 11, Ansel Haxhinasto 11, Kellen Foster 11, Landon Wall 11), 3:45.81*; 6. Ellington (Dominic Attardo 12, Ivan Afriyie 10, Shane Gesualdi 12, Caleb Zahner 11), 3:49.67*.
Boys High Jump:
1. Ethan Rich, Lyman Hall, 6-06*; 2. Brodie Scott, Waterford, 6-04*; 3. Aaron Rich, Lyman Hall, 6-02*; 4. Braydon Shields, Daniel Hand, J6-02*; 5. Declan Bee, East Lyme, 6-00*; 6. Dante Rodriquez, East Haven, J6-00*.
Boys Pole Vault:
1. Zachary McKirryher, Seymour, 14-06*; 2. Christopher Drescher, Lyman Hall, 14-00*; 3. Sean Arms, Daniel Hand, 13-06*; 4. Justin Blezard, East Lyme, 13-00*; 5. Ian Rush, Waterford, J13-00*; 6. Nathan Fauteux, Rockville, 12-06*.
Boys Long Jump:
1. Aaron Rich, Lyman Hall, 22-07.50*; 2. Kamal Maxwell, Hartford Pub, 21-03.25*; 3. Ethan Rich, Lyman Hall, 21-02.25*; 4. Josiah Carter, Notre Dame-W, 21-01.50*; 5. Chase Kay, Plainville, 21-01.25*; 6. Jamel Kearse Jr., Ledyard, 20-03*.
Boys Shot Put:
1. Thomas Matlock, East Lyme, 63-06#; 2. Lucas DeCrescenzo, Lyman Hall, 50-09*; 3. Richard Jones, East Haven, 47-02*; 4. Nehamyah Briscoe, Rockville, 45-09.50*; 5. Myles Streckfuss, Ledyard, 45-08.75*; 6. Eli Manning, Woodstock Ac, 45-02.50*