The Blue Hens traveled down the street to their home turf in Newark, DE, hosting the first-ever Blue Hen Invitational on April 20th. With a mix of current athletes, visiting alumni, and our fierce competition, the day was filled with remarkable performances and record-breaking achievements.
The day got started with the Women’s Distance Medley Relay, with the alumni team of Jenna Mlecko, Allison Einig, Haley Reid, and Emily Hansell securing victory in 14:22.9. Following closely, Delaware’s team of Aine Grubb, Lauren Pollock, Marleigh Ballard, and Kate Kershaw claimed second place in 15:17.2, which now sits as the second fastest time on the all-time list.
The sprinting events kicked off with the Men’s 4x100m relay, Kurt Krummenacker, Daniel Toms, Emmanuel Carreno, and Shane Isacson crossing the finish line first with a time of 48.82. The Women’s 4x100m relay witnessed a historic moment as Sam Radinsky, Rilee McMahan, Autumn Williams, and Amanda Desenchak set a new team record with a time of 53.51. The women’s B team, consisting of Julia Boyce, Gianna Dowling, Eli Manning, and Lianna Greenstein, followed closely, securing the third spot on the all-time list in 55.53.
In the Women’s Mile, Junior Delaney Oeth and Freshman Natalie Greger broke the 6-minute barrier for the first time, securing first and second place overall with times of 5:53.9 and 5:56.7, respectively. This marked a significant milestone for both athletes. Freshman Carly Curnutt followed just behind, also finishing under 6 minutes, running 5:57.6. In the Men’s 1600m, alumni Sasha Latina led the charge, finishing in 4:42.9, with freshman Liam Hutchenson following close behind in 4:49.1. Senior Matt Scarpelli and freshman Liam Trageser continue to work together, crossing the finish line just seconds apart at 4:52.4 and 4:56, respectively, with Trageser achieving a new personal best.
Graduate student Robin Collura showcased her talent in the Women’s 400m, advancing to fourth all-time with a time of 1:04.13. Junior Eli Manning and freshman Anna Callaghan finished just behind, placing third and fourth overall running 1:05.8 and 1:06.3 respectively. Freshman Devan Wasserman continued his success in the Men’s 400m, setting a season-best of 52.2 and moving up to 6th on the all-time list. Sophomore Spencer Wheeler had a breakout race, breaking the 54-minute barrier for the first time, and placing second overall running 53.84.
In the Women’s 100m, Freshman Autumn Williams continues her incredible season securing first place with a time of 12.75. Freshmen Amanda Desenchak and Ella Maletta rounded out the top three for Delaware, clocking in at 13.33 and 13.87 respectively. Desenchak set a new PR moving her up to third on the all-time list. Maletta also made her way to 8th on the performance list in her 100m debut. Sophomore Grace Wertheimer dominated the Women’s 100m hurdles, breaking the 19-second mark for the first time with a time of 18.53, promoting her to the 4th fastest time in team history.
In the Women’s 200m, Autumn Williams set a new season personal best of 26.58 maintaining her second-fastest time in team history. Freshman Amanda Desenchak and senior Sam Radisnky rounded the top 3 for Delaware running 28.23 and 29.5 respectively. Daren-James Seals led the men’s 200m running an impressive time of 22.78. This time sits as the third-fastest time in team history. Sophomore Kurt Krummenacker improves his 200m time advancing to the ninth spot on the performance list running 23.58. He battled it out to the line with freshman James Winston finishing just behind in 23.59 placing him 10th fastest all time.
Freshman Anna Callaghan led Delaware in the Women’s 800m, finishing second overall running 2:36.8. Freshman Samantha Paez finished next for Delaware running 2:49.7. Sophomore Evan Diefenback led the race in the Men’s 800m kicking hard at the end to 2:07. Followed by Alumni Sasha Latina in 2:10.2 and Spencer Wheeler making his 800m debut running 2:13.8.
In the Women’s 5k, junior Delaney Oeth continues to smash personal records setting a new personal best of 20:55 and taking the win. Freshman Ella Maletta finished second running 21:23 showing her broad range of talent after placing in the 100m earlier in the day. Freshman Marleigh Ballard made her collegiate debut running 21:41 followed by junior Lauren Pollock setting a new personal best in the 5k with her time of 21:46. In the Men’s 5k, Sophomore Matthew Kwiatkowski continues to lead the Delaware pack running just under 16 minutes in 15:59. Close behind was sophomore Evan Diefenbeck and freshman Dave Kelly both running respectable times of 15:05 and 16:30 taking 3rd and 4th overall.
The running events concluded with the 4x400m relays and the Women’s A team set out for success to break the team record. The team of Eli Manning, Anna Callaghan, Robin Collura, and Ella Maletta successfully set a new club record running an impressive 4:24.5. The underclassman shined in the men’s 4×400 anything but a baton race which consisted of Wheeler, Wasserman, Carreno, and Winston running 3:56.4.
Sophomore Maggie Morris kicked off the throwing events with an impressive performance in the shot put, showcasing her talent with a throw of 8.72m. In the men’s shot put event, John Diossi also made his mark with a throw of 12.44m, securing the 7th spot in team history. Sophomore Lianna Greenstein continues to dominate the jumping events winning the long jump with a mark of 4.57m. Sophomore Gianna Dowling, placed just behind with her jump of 4.35m earning her the 5th spot on the all-time list. Freshman Maya Morefield earned her place on the performance list with a jump of 4.0m, securing the 9th spot overall. Greenstein and Morefield continued to shine in the triple jump, achieving distances of 10.05m and 9.44m, respectively. Gianna Dowling excelled in the high jump, jumping a height of 1.2m. In the men’s long jump, Jack Sowinski reached an impressive distance of 5.07m, while John Shaw dominated the triple jump with a remarkable leap of 10.6m.
It wouldn’t be a Delaware meet without the classic chocolate milk 4x200m relay which was the official last event.
After a successful Blue Hen Invitational, Delaware will travel to Shippensburg PA this Saturday 4/26 for their final meet of the season!
Full results can be found here.
