The Delbarton Winter Track & Field team launched the 2025-26 season in impressive fashion at the Ridge Invitational, held yesterday at the Ocean Breeze Complex on Staten Island. From sprints to distance events to jumps, the Green Wave delivered standout performances across the board.
Senior captain Aidan Ponzio set the tone with a busy and highly successful day, competing in four events. Ponzio placed 3rd in the 55m hurdles, clocking a personal best 8.12—good for 13th all-time in the Delbarton record book. He added a 4th-place finish in the long jump, 7th in the triple jump, and a near-PB effort in the 55m dash.
Junior Brendan Martin made his mark on the all-time lists as well, surpassing 37 feet in the triple jump (11th all-time) and leaping 18'4.75" in the long jump (13th all-time).
The 55m dash crew showed early-season speed, with four athletes breaking 7 seconds. Senior newcomer Luke Eisenhardt debuted with a sharp 6.85, followed by juniors Giovanni Bushell (6.87 PB) and Jaxson Edwards (6.97 PB). Both Bushell and Edwards carried the momentum into the 200m, where they notched more personal bests. Edwards' 23.81 ranks 7th all-time, and Bushell's 23.94 sits 8th all-time.
The mid-distance squad continued the success in the 600m. Junior standouts Joshua Akakpo and Hans Clovis, fresh off a strong cross country season, placed 4th and 5th respectively. Akakpo ran a swift 1:26.96, while Clovis stopped the clock at 1:27.19, earning 9th all-time in school history.
Senior Matthew O'Reilly, returning to indoor track after a breakout XC campaign, placed 4th in the 1600m with a time of 4:49.72.
In his first-ever indoor meet, junior Lucien Bret impressed in the 1000m, finishing 5th in 2:42.13.
One of the highlights of the meet came in the finale—the 4x400m relay. The quartet of Clovis (52s), Akakpo (51s), Bushell (54s), and Bret (54s) battled against some of the state's top squads to secure 3rd place in 3:33.05. The performance ranks 14th all-time in Delbarton history and stands as the 4th-fastest fully automated time of the modern winter track era. With all four athletes juniors, the relay promises even more excitement as the season progresses.
The team returns to Ocean Breeze this Wednesday, December 10th, for the Lid Lifter Invitational.
