St. Thomas of Villanova Track & Field Team Breaks Records at Sectional and State Meets
The St. Thomas of Villanova Track and Field Team recently competed in two major meets, the Class A Sectional Meet on May 4 at Hoffman Estates High School and the IESA Class A State Meet on May 10 and 11 in Peoria. With strong placement and school records broken, both meets proved that this team is "small but mighty."
Coached by Kristen Jordan, with assistant coaches Jenny Castelli and Mike Murphy, the team includes 5th grade student Jackie Westfall; 6th grade students Libby Castelli, Serena Cumarantunge, Abigail Jordan, Emily Murphy, Kara Rady and Katie Seligmann; 7th grade students Jack Castelli and Michael Kaczor; and 8th grade students Sam Hamilton, Andrew Jordan, Caroline Kawiecki, Michael Nix, Tyler Quinn and Victoria Walsh.
At the Track and Field Class A Sectional Meet on May 4, St. Thomas of Villanova competed against 13 other private and public schools from Illinois, including Emmons and Grass Lake in Antioch, St. Mary in Buffalo Grove, St. Anne in Barrington, Fox River Grove, Prairie Crossing and St. Gilbert in Grayslake, Valeo in Hoffman Estates, Quest Academy and St. Theresa in Palatine, South Beloit, St. Patrick in Wadsworth, and Harrison in Wonder Lake.
Despite this competition, the 8th grade boys won the sectional championship for the first time in school history. Other big wins included: Andrew Jordan 1st place in the 1600 M and 800M, Sam Hamilton 2nd place in the 400M, Tyler Quinn 2nd place in 200M, Jack Castelli 2nd place in 1600M, Libby Castelli 2nd place in the 1600M and 800M, and Abigail Jordan 3rd place in the 1600M and 800M. Michael Nix, who took 1st place in the Long Jump, also set a personal best record, improving by two feet with a jumping distance of 17 feet 7 inches.
A week later, at the IESA Track and Field Class A State Meet May 10 and 11, St. Thomas of Villanova competed against 180 schools and approximately 30 qualifiers for each event but still broke four school records and brought home six state medals.
Highlights from the IESA meet included: Andrew Jordan, 2nd Place in 1600M (4:49), State Medal and School Record and 8th Place in 800M (2:13) State Medal; Jack Castelli, 9th place in 1600M (5:11); Libby Castelli, 2nd Place 1600M (5:25) State Medal and School Record; Abigail Jordan, 5th Place 1600M (5:29) State Medal; Libby Castelli 5th Place in 800M (2:30) State Medal; Abigail Jordan 6th Place in 800M (2:30) State Medal; Andrew Jordan, Sam Hamilton, Michael Nix and Tyler Quinn 17th Place in 4 x 400 (4:08.89) School Record; and Michael Nix, 15th Place in Long Jump (17'8") School Record.
"We appreciate your talent and your sportsmanship," St. Thomas of Villanova Principal Mary Brinkman said in a congratulatory address to the Track and Field team. "You represented St. Thomas with class!"
St. Thomas of Villanova, which serves students in grades preschool through 8th grade, is located at 1141 E. Anderson Drive, Palatine, IL. For more information or to schedule a tour, call (847) 358-2110 or visit stvschool.org