Wyoming Area’s Josh Murk competes in the shot put during day one of the District 2 track championships at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Scranton on Monday, May 11, 2026. (REBECCA PARTICKA/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Lake-Lehman’s Delcia Biscotto competes in the javelin throw during day one of the District 2 track championships at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Scranton on Monday, May 11, 2026. (REBECCA PARTICKA/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Dallas’ Hunter Pitcavage competes in the shot put event during day one of the District 2 track championships at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Scranton on Monday, May 11, 2026. (REBECCA PARTICKA/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Lakeland’s Kaylyn Davis and Mid Valley’s Natalie Talluto compete in the 300 meter hurdles during day one of the District 2 track championships at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Scranton on Monday, May 11, 2026. (REBECCA PARTICKA/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Delaware Valley’s Hailee Walzer competes in the pole vault during day one of the District 2 track championships at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Scranton on Monday, May 11, 2026. (REBECCA PARTICKA/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Dunmore’s Josh Dudick competes in the high jump during day one of the District 2 track championships at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Scranton on Monday, May 11, 2026. (REBECCA PARTICKA/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Mid Valley’s Olivia Thomas competes in the long jump during day one of the District 2 track championships at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Scranton on Monday, May 11, 2026. (REBECCA PARTICKA/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Lakeland’s Kaylyn Davis competes in the javelin throw during day one of the District 2 track championships at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Scranton on Monday, May 11, 2026. (REBECCA PARTICKA/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Western Wayne’s Sadie Booths competes in the discus throw during day one of the District 2 track championships at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Scranton on Monday, May 11, 2026. (REBECCA PARTICKA/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
North Pocono’s Jaden Mucha competes in the pole vault during day one of the District 2 track championships at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Scranton on Monday, May 11, 2026. (REBECCA PARTICKA/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Lakeland’s Evan Lonzinski competes in the javelin throw during day one of the District 2 track championships at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Scranton on Monday, May 11, 2026. (REBECCA PARTICKA/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Lakeland’s Rocco Spataro competes in the javelin throw during day one of the District 2 track championships at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Scranton on Monday, May 11, 2026. (REBECCA PARTICKA/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Elk Lake’s Brody Crisman competes in the high jump during day one of the District 2 track championships at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Scranton on Monday, May 11, 2026. (REBECCA PARTICKA/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Blue Ridge’s Chance Davis competes in the high jump during day one of the District 2 track championships at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Scranton on Monday, May 11, 2026. (REBECCA PARTICKA/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Lackawanna Trail’s Lila Ryon competes in the javelin throw during day one of the District 2 track championships at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Scranton on Monday, May 11, 2026. (REBECCA PARTICKA/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Dunmore’s Carter Sload competes in the high jump during day one of the District 2 track championships at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Scranton on Monday, May 11, 2026. (REBECCA PARTICKA/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Dunmore’s Weston Yannone and Western Wayne’s Robert Carrelle compete in the 300 meter hurdles during day one of the District 2 track championships at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Scranton on Monday, May 11, 2026. (REBECCA PARTICKA/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Western Wayne’s Vincent Baldini competes in the the javelin throw during day one of the District 2 track championships at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Scranton on Monday, May 11, 2026. (REBECCA PARTICKA/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Abington Heights’ Kianna Seid competes in the pole vault during day one of the District 2 track championships at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Scranton on Monday, May 11, 2026. (REBECCA PARTICKA/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
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Wyoming Area’s Josh Murk competes in the shot put during day one of the District 2 track championships at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Scranton on Monday, May 11, 2026. (REBECCA PARTICKA/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
SCRANTON – Stephen Martin knew there was going to be pressure.
The Lake-Lehman 4×800 relay team was coming off a state bronze medal last season. Three of the four members – Martin, Finn Cronin and Bodhi Cronin – were all returning this year.
That bulls-eye couldn’t have been painted in brighter colors.
“It’s a lot of pressure, especially when the teams around you just keep getting better and better,” Martin said. “You see all these times on social media, and you try your best not to look at them. You have to lock in.”
Nevaeh Baran is one of the top Class 3A jumpers in the state. She holds the district record in the triple jump, and is a returning PIAA medalist in two events – a fourth in the triple and third in the long.
The pressure doesn’t phase her in the least.
She embraces it with open arms.
“I like the pressure of being on top, so it’s nice to come home with a win,” the Greater Nanticoke Area senior said.
It was a good opening day of the District 2 Track and Field Championships at Scranton Veterans Memorial Stadium on Monday as the Wyoming Valley Conference brought home several gold medals.
Crestwood and the two Lake-Lehman teams captured titles in the 3,200 relay, and Baran started her road back to Shippensburg by defending her triple-jump title.
In all, seven athletes captured individual golds: Hazleton’s Kevin Lucas (triple jump), Hanover Area’s Symone Mims (shot put), Wyoming Area’s Jenesa Sancho (300 hurdles) and Josh Mruk (shot put), Crestwood’s Elijah Zeneski (300 hurdles) and Anson Jumper (pole vault) and Baran (triple jump). Lehman’s Finn Cronin (300 hurdles), Dallas’ Hunter Pitcavage (shot put) and Wyoming Area’s Luke Kopetchny (triple jump) also hit the state-qualifying standards in their events to advance to the PIAA meet.
The Crestwood boys are currently tied with Abington Heights at 33 points for the lead in the Class 3A race.
The second day of the meet continues Tuesday in Scranton where Wilkes-Barre Area’s Tim Leonard will take center stage. Coming off four gold medals at last week’s WVC meet, the Wolfpack senior was tops in both the 100 and 200 prelims Monday, and is on the verge of breaking both district records.
There are a lot of expectations on the Lehman 4×800 team, especially returning three out of four from last year’s bronze medal squad.
Judging by Monday’s winning time of 8 minutes, 2.81 seconds, it’s fair. The team’s bronze medal run at Shippensburg was 8:04.30
“Our race felt very tactical. We were really planning on how we were going to execute this from the beginning of the year because we knew what we needed to do from year’s past,” Martin said. “That really helped us a lot.”
Baran only jumped twice on Monday, popping off a 39-foot leap on her first attempt before hitting her mark of 39-11. Her leap was almost three feet further than Wyoming Area’s Taylor Gashi, who was second with a 36-9 ½.
The Greater Nanticoke Area senior and Michigan State commit is back in action Tuesday where she’s also the favorite in the long jump.
“It takes a lot of preparation, and my coaches really help me a lot with that. It needs to all come together on one day,” she said. “I only got two jumps in today, so hopefully, I can rest up and get some better jumps at states.”
Lucas and Mims might have been the WVC’s surprise champions.
Mims was seeded sixth coming into the Class 3A shot put with a seed put of 32-6 ½, but recorded her winning mark of 36-2 ¼ on her first attempt – almost three feet further than Honesdale’s Olivia Wood.
It was the same for Hazleton’s Lucas, who was pre-tournament sixth in the Class 3A triple jump, but hit his winning jump of 45-10 ¾ on his second try.
“I started my morning off thinking and believing that I was going to get first in the districts,” Lucas said. “I had a good warmup with my team, and everyone was telling me that I could do. I wanted to do this for myself and the team. This is special. It shows me I could do anything. I am doing this for everyone — my team, my family and the community.”
For the other WVC champs, it was a business-like performance.
Both Sancho and Zeneski were favorites in their respective 300 hurdles races. Sancho pulled away in the final 100 from teammate Lucia Campenni and North Pocono’s Elizabeth Moore to take gold with a time of 46.26, while Zeneski was two seconds faster than Tunkhannock’s Callum Jerome and Dallas’ Jason Dyrli.
“It was a tough race. It was very tiring in the end, but I just had to push through it,” Sancho said. “There was pressure, and I wanted to try and beat the record. I didn’t, but that’s OK. I did my best.”
Mruk was constantly in the 50-foot range in all of his six throws, hitting the winning put of 54-4 ¼ on his second attempt. Pitcavage’s 52-9, nine inches further than the state-qualifying standard of 52-0, came on his third attempt.
“I was a little nervous leading up to it, the butterflies in the stomach, but I was confident. I didn’t have my best week last week, but I was able to get through it and win the gold,” Mruk said. “After my throw last week, I worked way harder. Going into it, I felt really good, body-wise.”
For Katie Kozich, the Citizens’ Voice Female Cross Country Runner of the Year, she began her final district track meet with a gold in the 3,200 relay – teaming with Alyssa Leicht, Sophia Kwarcinski and Riley Ruch to beat out the Abington Heights team by 12 seconds.
Kozich will also run in the 800 and 1,600 Tuesday.
“Going into it, we were all really nervous, but we were practicing our handoffs yesterday. We did a lot of team huddles and deep breathing to calm the nerves,” Kozich said. “One thing we did today was write ‘FEO’ on our legs, which stands for ‘For Each Other.’ And that’s what we kept telling one another while we were running. It was a good reminder that we were doing this for each other.”