DELAWARE STATE MEET

Anna Bockius Leads Padua To Near-Perfect Score For 13th Straight State Title

By Mary Albl of DyeStat 

At Killens Pond State Park on Saturday, the Delaware DIAA State Championships delivered familiar faces atop the podium, and a few new ones breaking through.

It was total domination once again for the Padua Academy girls, ranked among the top programs in the Northeast and in the latest DyeStat top 25 teams in the country. The Pandas, led by senior Anna Bockius, captured their 13th consecutive Division I state title, scoring a near-perfect 16 points.

Bockius, a Notre Dame commit, became a three-time state champion by successfully defending her individual title, cruising to victory in 17:34.4, the fastest girls time of the day. Her teammates Paige Ballinger (18:26.2), Teresina DeAscanis (18:34.1), Vera Cincilla (18:38.7), and Mary Drost (19:50.7) swept the top five scoring spots, solidifying Padua’s dynasty as one of the deepest lineups in the region.

Charter School of Wilmington finished runner-up with 72 points, followed by Caesar Rodney (130).

Padua will now look to qualify for NXN by way of the Southeast Regional. 

After coming up short a year ago, Cape Henlopen surged to the Division I boys’ team championship with 42 points, placing five in the top 14. Senior Jason Baker led the Vikings with a second-place finish in 16:06.2, while Brandon Williams of Charter School of Wilmington took the individual title in 16:03.0.

Salesianum (73 points) and Caesar Rodney (97) rounded out the top three teams.

Division II

 The Tatnall girls returned to the top with a commanding 52-point victory, with a mix of youth and experience.

Tower Hill junior Izzy Daniel earned the individual crown in 18:27.9, edging Tatnall freshman Lauryn Leech by one-tenth of a second (18:28.0). Leech’s breakout run helped anchor a deep Hornets lineup that also featured Krissa Woods (19:51.8) and Rachel Magee (19:54.3) among the scorers.

Archmere Academy finished second (70 points), and Wilmington Christian was third (99).

The St. Mark’s boys ended an 18-year drought and won their first state title since 2007 with a balanced performance that placed all five scorers in the top 17. The Spartans tallied 57 points, holding off Newark Charter (84) and Archmere (106).

Individually, Tatnall senior Dylan McCarthy claimed the Division II title in 15:37.9, followed by teammate Gavin Leffler (15:47.8) to complete a 1-2 sweep. Newark Charter’s Timothy Claessens finished third in 15:52.6.

TEAM CHAMPIONS

Division I: Cape Henlopen boys 42 points; Padua girls 16 points - RESULTS

Division II: St. Mark’s boys 57 points; Tatnall girls 52 points - RESULTS