Quaker Valley sweeps WPIAL Class 2A team track titles for 2nd straight season

By: Dave Mackall
Tuesday, May 6, 2025 | 10:22 PM

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As she was crossing the finish line well ahead of any challenger, Cecilia Montagnese flashed a smile and seemed barely winded after finishing first in the 3,200-meter run.

The Quaker Valley senior counted it as just another routine day.

Even though it wasn’t for Montagnese and the Quakers, whose girls team became the first to win four consecutive WPIAL team championships in track and field Tuesday at Peters Township.

“I’ve been here for all four years. It’s really been a fun environment,” said Montagnese, who also captured first place in the 800- and 1,600-meter runs. “It’s just crazy to come back here with such a strong team.”

Nearby, Quaker Valley coach Jared Jones didn’t seem to mind the chill he felt following an ice bath from several team members in the cool, damp setting.

“We’ve got a really good group of kids in general,” Jones said. “The atmosphere of this team is such that they just have a lot of fun together. They enjoy competing with one another. That’s the fun part.”

And compete they did.

Quaker Valley also won the boys competition for the school’s second team sweep in a row, beating Beaver, 96-54; Shenango, 107-43; and Mohawk, 109-41.

When team competition comes into play, Jones said it changes the complexion of a meet, which otherwise emphasizes individual performances.

“A lot of times, the kids put so much pressure on themselves, so whenever they’re doing it for more than just themselves, it gives them the opportunity to step up to another level,” he said. “It’s fun to see that.”

The Quaker Valley girls, who also won team titles in three successive seasons from 2001-03, won their fourth in a row in their latest outing with margins of 97-53 each over Carlynton and Laurel and 101-49 over North Catholic.

“I’m really grateful for all the girls on the team,” said Montagnese, a Villanova commit for cross country and track and field. “It’s a great environment. It’s so fun. We listened to Disney songs on the way up here on the bus. We all have sparkles on our faces. We’re always pushing for each other to win.”

While the Quaker Valley boys won for a second straight time, they’ll have to keep the streak going a bit longer in order to match the WPIAL record of five, set by Mohawk from 1988-92.

Riverside won four in a row from 2017-21, counting a pause in 2020 because of the covid-19 pandemic.

With the team titles having been secured, several field events still were wrapping up, while on the track in the final event, Quaker Valley and Beaver were locked in a heated dual in the 1,600-meter relay.

As the anchors — Quaker Valley’s Clark LaLomia and Beaver’s Brady Mayo — rounded the final turn, Jones watched intently.

“Come on. You can do it,” the Quaker Valley coach seemed to be thinking as his eyes widened.

The duo whizzed neck-and-neck down the stretch and past Jones, with Mayo finishing ahead of LaLomia by a whisker.

“Too close to call,” Jones said before the results were made official. It didn’t matter. His teams were going home winners again.

“I wanted to go out with a bang on the last race. Felt like redemption,” Mayo said, still winded, but elated, despite Beaver’s runner-up finish.

“You have a little more adrenaline, a little more will when it’s that close,” he said.

Quaker Valley’s current dominance on both sides — boys and girls — is the result of a well-planned routine, according to boys team senior Davin “Macky” Gartley, who specializes in the hurdles.

“Most of us have been working all year,” he said. “Some started competing for the indoor season in November. We have a lot of kids that do that, and it translates to the outside track.

“We prepare well.”

Tags: Beaver, Carlynton, Laurel, Mohawk, North Catholic, Quaker Valley, Shenango