Chargers Have Strong Showing at Penn Relays

PHILADELPHIA, PA - For the first time in a decade, the Spotswood High School track and field program sent teams to the prestigious Penn Relays. Spotswood's Kayla Louis, Theodora Xipolias, Janiyre Amegor, Teagan Jones, Cooper Ciak, Tristian Obriski, Nicholas Creighton, Kieran Barlow, Tyler Andre, Ghanashyma Craig and Christopher Velez all participated in the three-day event which took place April 25 through April 27.

Louis, Xipolias, Amegor and Jones ran in the 4x100 girls high school relay heat. Ciak, Obriski, Creighton and Barlow ran in the 4x100 boys high school relay heat. Andre, Craig, Velez and Ciak ran in the 4x400 relay heat.

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The Penn Relays is the oldest and biggest track and field competition in the US. It's held every April and is hosted by the University of Pennsylvania. The competition features high school, collegiate, professional, and master relay competitions. Each spring, the Penn Relays typically draw more than 100,000 spectators over the three-day event.

Spotswood runners made the most of their appearance at the Penn Relays with record-setting performances.

"The Sposwood Chargers turned in one of the best relay weekends in program history with three relay teams running season best times," Spotswood High School Head Track and Field Coach Michael Reid said. "Two records were also broken during the three-day event."

"On the girls side, the Chargers put on an impressive performance on opening day at the Penn Relays," Reid continued. "The 4x100 meter relay team of Kayla Louis, Theodora Xipolias, Janiyre Amegor and Teagan Jones were second in their heat and finished an impressive 13 ^th overall in the section. The relay team set a new school record with a time of 52.56."

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To make the accomplishment even brighter for the relay team of Louis, Xipolias, Amegor and Jones, the runners are the first to run at the Penn Relays in the history of Spotswood High School's track and field program.

"The girls really set the tone for how each relay would perform on day one," Reid said. "The fact that they ran a great race in that environment, set a school record and just missed out of the top nine is quite an accomplishment. We still feel that we can improve on the time as the season continues."

"On the track on the boys side, the 4x100 meter relay team of Cooper Ciak, Nick Creighton, Tristan Obriski and Kieran Barlow ran a season's best time of 46.57," Reid said. "The team finished fifth in their heat and 52 ^nd place in the ultra competitive relay group."

"The goal of the season is consistency while improving in certain areas," Reid continued. "The baton exchanges from the boys were flawless in their race. I was very happy for the group after putting up a season's best time."

The final performance for the Chargers was the boys 4x400-meter relay with the team of Velez, Craig, Ciak and Andre. Velez, Craig, Ciak and Andre had advanced to the winter NJSIAA Group Championship and set a new school NJ Milesplit record with a time of 3:33.51. Excitement was high for the team surrounding their race.

"It was an exciting performance by the 4x400 team," Reid said. "This group always puts on a show every time on the track. We knew that they would run well, but the fact that they ran six seconds faster than their winter time at this point of the season says a lot about how they train."

All in all, it was a fun and competitive event for the Chargers relay team and the coaching staff.

"We feel honored and fortunate to be able to run in such a prestigious and historic event," Reid said. "This group of Spotswood student-athletes could not have represented the school in a better way.  We are very proud of their accomplishments.  We plan to make running at the Penn Relays a program tradition."

After the thrilling weekend, Louis, Xipolias, Amegor, Jones, Ciak, Obriski, Creighton, Barlow, Andre, Craig and Velez join their Chargers track and field teammates for the Greater Middlesex Conference Relays at South Brunswick High School on Wednesday and Thursday. The two-day event features the top high school track and field teams in the GMC.

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