East Stroudsburg, PA - A record number of  competitors competed at the eleventh American JavFest Friday and Saturday at East Stroudsburg South High School, in East Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania. 56 athletes of the 215 athletes produced personal bests over the two days of competition which included an instructional clinic.

The meet had five divisions for both genders - novice, high school emerging elite, high school elite, open and  elite divisions - that was composed of athletes from 27 states and two Canadian provinces.

Below is a summary of highlights for each of the different divisions 

Novice
Girls

Vanessa Hackett claimed the victory with a 32.82 (107-8) throw on her first attempt. The ninth grader set a personal best to hold off second place finisher and seventh grader, Noa Wygonik, who fell an inch shy of Hackett with her 32.81(107-07) final round throw. Hackett's sister, Tori, won the 2023 event

Boys

Sophomore Karson Perry set a meet and personal record of 51.39 (168-07). The previous record was 165-03  by Aidan Shay in 2021. Eighth grader, Jack Tyson, finished second with a throw of 48.93 (160-06).

Emerging Elite

Girls

Olivia Barr won her second title in three years with a 46.00(150-11) toss. It was her seventh American JavFest medal. Sophomore Amber Bowling took second with a mark of 43.36 (142-03). She took third in in 2023 and 2024 as well.

Boys

Sophomore Hunter Pitcavage set a personal best of 58.05 (190-05) on his final throw to claim the victory. Alexander Kessler led the competition until the final round. His 57.57 (188-10) was a personal best. Last year, Kessler finished 22nd with a mark of 154-06.

HS Championship

Girls

McKayla Keck  continued her strong post season with a win on Saturday. The senior’s 46.63 (153-0) was 7’6” better than US #1 ranked Brett Jones 44.36 (145-06). US #2 Sophia Scott 44.33 (145-05). 
Keck claimed second at the Nike Outdoor Nationals with a mark of 46.10 (151’3”). It was her first time competing at the JavFest.

Boys

Junior Cable Gray improved on his personal best, personal best of 63.60 (208’8”), by six feet to win the title. He led after the first round, 63.24 (207-05), but Bryson Jacobs, the Nike Outdoor Champion took the lead back in the second round with his 63.92 (209-08). Gray’s fifth round throw sealed the win as Jacobs 64.53 (211-08), also in the fifth round and sixth round throw of 64.51 (211-07) wasn’t good enough.

Gray had finished fourth at the Nike Outdoor Nationals and also won the MIAAA Meet of Champions with a mark of 63.24 ( 207’6”).

Senior Thomas Bannon finished third with a throw of 62.15 (203-11). It was only the second loss of the season for the two time Connecticut state champion.

Open

Women

Rachel Schmitt, who completed her sophomore year at Delaware, was second entering the final round, but came up with a personal best of 42.28 (138-08) to claim the title by seven inches. 

Men

Ethan Cocco won the competition with a 69.00 (226-04). Ethan’s brother, Troy won the event in 2023.  Cocco competed for Clemson in 2024 and finished 15th at the NCAA Championships. Tristan Schmidt finished second with a throw of 66.74 (218-11). He competed for Penn State this past season and had a best of 209-10. Lorelai Paxton, a Mount St. Mary’s sophomore, finished second with a personal best of 42.10 (138-01).

Elite

Women

Ariana Ince came in as the favorite and came away with the victory.  After registering a best of 51.51 (169-0), she came up with her longest throw 55.82 (183-1) to earn the win. It was her fourth win since 2015 and her first since 2019. 

Emma Yungeberg set a personal best on her final throw. The 54.72 (179-06) improved on her best of 53.08(174-01) from this past college season. 

Last year’s winner, Sarah Blake finished third with a mark of 53.62 (175-11).

Men

Last year’s open winner, James Kotowski moved up and claimed the win. His 72.33 (237-03) on his first throw held off challenges from Vaughn Deinhart, 71.64 (235-00) and Ethan Shalaway, 71.25 (233-09). 

Kotowski’s mark did not improve on his season best of 75.18 set on June 11. Dinehart improved on his personal best of 67.60 set June 6, 2024.

Vaughn Deinhart has competed in the javelin for 2 years.  He was recruited from the University of Mary's (Bismarck, ND) baseball team in the Spring of 2023.  He picked up the javelin for the first time in his life on April 1, 2023. He finished third in the conference in 2023. He had two throws in the JavFest over 70 meters for the first time in Saturday's competition.

Shalaway earned this third medal since 2022. He previously won in 2023 and finished second in 2022.

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About the National Scholastic Athletics Foundation, Inc.

The National Scholastic Athletics Foundation (NSAF) is a non-profit, tax-exempt 501(c)(3) organization founded in 1990, with the mission to inspire and empower student athletes on and off the track.  The NSAF supports high school and junior-aged track and field athletes through national high school competitions, including Nike Indoor and Nike Outdoor Nationals, the Great American XC Festival, and the HBCU Challenge. The NSAF provides approximately $250,000 in grants annually.  For more information about the NSAF, please visit NationalScholastic.org.