Chaminade's Jonathan Szymanski wins shot put and weight throw at CHSAA Intersectional indoor track and field championships
Jonathan Szymanski of Chaminade wins the boys weight throw with a mark of 66 feet, 2 3/4 inches, at the CHSAA Intersectional indoor track and field championship at the Ocean Breeze Athletic Complex on Staten Island on Saturday. Credit: Errol Anderson
As far as Chaminade junior Jonathan Szymanski is concerned, Saturday at Ocean Breeze Athletic Complex on Staten Island was the perfect day.
Szymanski was the only male to win multiple events at the CHSAA Intersectional indoor track and field championships, setting new personal bests in both the shot put and weight throw. He threw 60 feet, 8 1⁄4 inches to win the shot put by over seven feet and registered a 66-2 3 ⁄4 to capture the weight throw by over six.
The pair of gold medals further validated his titles in the same two events at the Nassau-Suffolk CHSAA championships on Jan. 26. However, these newer marks provided him with a ticket to the state championships, scheduled for March 8 at Ocean Breeze.
“I throw a lot, train a lot and I’ve focused a lot on technique and become a student of the sport,” Szymanski said. “I’ve been learning everything there is to know about throwing — what’s good, what’s bad. That’s one of the things I love most about throwing — that you kind of have a tape measure for yourself. You can see [that] if you actually put in the work, your differences will improve.”
Long Island dominated the throwing competitions. St. Anthony’s junior Anthony Morello (53-5 1⁄2) and St. John the Baptist junior Joseph Quinn (51-9 3 ⁄4 ) finished second and third, respectively, in the shot put to qualify for the state meet. St. John the Baptist senior Julian Vitucci (59-5) and Morello (58-10) finished second and third in the weight throw.
St. John the Baptist senior Shamir Lisbon finished second in both the high jump (6-2) and long jump (21-7 3⁄4). It will be his first trip to the state meet.
“It feels good that all that work I put in is finally coming out,” Lisbon said. “I just do what I do normally and let God do the rest.”
Though St. Anthony’s senior James Ciaccio only qualified for the state meet in one event — the 600 meters— he certainly made Saturday worth the trip. New York’s top-ranked runner in both the 400 and 500 is now also No. 1 in the 600. Ciaccio broke the meet record and won in 1 minute, 19.29 seconds. That time currently ranks fourth in the country, according to milesplit.
Ciaccio defended his CHSAA 600 title, but the real goal lies ahead.
“Going to state is honestly what we’ve been preparing for,” Ciaccio said. “The state is very competitive in the 600, so to know that I’m set up to compete with the best of the best is great. Hopefully I’ll pull out a better time.”
Fordham Prep won the team championship with 53.33 points. St. John the Baptist and Chaminade tied for fifth with 17.
Chaminade junior Sean Loggie finished second in the 1,600 (4:29.91) and Kellenberg sophomore Damion Gordon Jr. finished second in the 55 (6.54).
