High School

California brother-sister schools take sprint relays by storm at Arcadia Invitational

The boys of Servite and the girls of Rosary Academy lit up the 2025 Arcadia Invitational, shattering records and dominating the relays in a showcase of speed and youth-driven depth.

Roland Padilla

Servite track and field boys' relay team medals at the 2025 Arcadia Invitational.
Servite track and field boys' relay team medals at the 2025 Arcadia Invitational. / Arcadia Invitational via Image of Sport

The Rosary Royals and Servite Friars had an extremely impressive showing at the 2025 Arcadia Invitational. Let's recap how things transpired for each of the respective squads.

The Brother School: Servite

Servite's historical performances this season may seem like a flash in the pan to some, but this group has been doing this for a long time as noted below by one of their freshman members of the 4x400 relay team, 11-time youth All-American Kamil Pelovello.

On the first evening of the meet, Servite's blazing young squad featuring star freshman, Jaelen Hunter, were absolutely flying during this race as they now hold the nation's third fastest time and set the meet record. The previous record was 1 minute, 24.15 seconds by St. John Bosco in the 2022 meet.

Did I forget to mention that this relay team consists of two freshmen and two sophomores?

On Saturday, Servite stole the spotlight once again with a dominant relay sweep at Arcadia. The Friars torched the track in the 4x100, clocking a jaw-dropping 40.00 seconds — a new California state record, the fastest time in the U.S. this season, and the No. 1 mark in meet history.

Here are some of the comments from sophomore Benjamin Harris and freshman Jaelen Hunter after their historic 4x100 meter relay showing. Harris ran the second leg of the relay and Hunter ran the third handing it off to sophomore Robert Gardner, who has a personal record in the 100-meter of 10.67, 46th-best in the state this season. There was a brief tease at the end where the clock showed 39.99 for just a few seconds before updating to 40.00.

And the breakout star of the night?

Sophomore Benjamin Harris, who blazed to a 10.33-second finish in the 100, good for second place overall and the fourth-fastest time in meet history. Harris also placed third in the 200 with a time of 21.17 seconds, which is good for the second fastest time in the state only behind Brandon Arrington of Mount Miguel, who broke Noah Lyles' meet record with a blazing 20.35. Servite’s mix of youth, depth and raw speed made them one of the most exciting teams on the track all weekend.

Benjamin Harris shared an inspired message after setting the third fastest time in state this season in the 100, and how it feels to be in the record books just a few notches below Noah Lyles. Someone Harris says, "I look up to a lot".

Jaelen Hunter took home first in the seeded 400 with a time of 47.91 seconds. His personal best of 47.74 seconds has him 10th overall in the state and the second fastest freshman in the state as well as in the nation.

To wrap up the evening Servite's 4x400 squad was just as impressive, especially considering it was made up entirely of freshman. The team clocked a time of 3 minutes, 12.33 seconds which is good for the sixth best time in the nation, second best in California this season, seventh best in meet history, and freshman national record.

The relay squad featured Jaelen Hunter, Kamil Pelovello, and twin brothers Jace and Jorden Wells. Hunter clocked a 47.36-second split, Pelovello followed with a swift 47.83, Jace posted a 48.35, and Jorden anchored with a 48.79.

It will be interesting to see how these young relays progress over the next few years. Head coach Brandon Thomas, also founder of Evo Track Club and Evo Sports Training and former coach at East Los Angeles College and Long Beach City College brings a ton of coaching expertise for this young generation.

Thomas brings first-hand experience as a high-level athlete, having competed in track and field at Cal State Long Beach from 1995 to 1996 and later at UCLA from 1997 to 1998. During his collegiate career, he earned NCAA All-American honors, won a Big West title, and was named All-Pac-10 in the 100 meters. He also helped UCLA capture a Pac-10 championship in the 4x100-meter relay and was part of the program’s second-fastest 4x100 team in school history. While at UCLA, Thomas had the opportunity to train under two legendary coaches — Tommy Smith and John Smith — further shaping his elite sprinting career.

He is also the proud father of elite USC sprinter and former Servite standout, Max Thomas, who is a sub-10-second 100 runner and a member of the elite sprints core.

The Sister School: Rosary Academy

Along with coaching Servite, Thomas also assists with Rosary, and it showed at the Arcadia Invitational.

On Friday evening, Rosary Academy, went off as another US leading mark was set which was good enough for 2nd all time in meet history. Justine Wilson is the leader for this sprints crew as she currently ranks 6th in the state for the 100 with a time of 11.62. Her time of 23.93 in the 200 is good enough for the state's 7th best mark and her 400 time of 55.32 has her as the 11th fastest in the state.

That is quite some range for the junior to be able to be so strong, with times among the top 10 in three sprints. Last year as a sophomore she finished 6th at the CIF State Championships with a time of 54.95.

Another key contributor to this relay squad is freshman Maliyah Collins. She ranks 12th in state with a time of 11.76 in the 100-meter race, with a 200 time of 24.18. Having such elite speed in your relay definitely goes a long way.

The other freshman of the bunch, Tra'via Flournoy, runs very respectable times clocking in at 12.34 in the 100 and 25.24 in the 200-meter relay.

All together this bunch took first in the 4x100 relay with a time of 45.57 placing them 4th all-time in meet history.

All in all, it was a statement weekend for both Rosary Academy and Servite — a glimpse into what could be a new era of sprinting dominance in California. With rosters stacked with freshmen and sophomores already putting up national-leading marks and breaking records, both programs are proving that age is just a number when talent and preparation collide.

As the season heats up, expect these young stars to keep turning heads—and keep rewriting the record books.

The boys from Servite and the girls from Rosary didn’t just run the relays — they ran the show. Talk about a true case of track and field supremacy by both sides of the gender 'relay-tionship'.

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Published
Roland Padilla
ROLAND PADILLA

Roland Padilla is a high school sports journalist, NIL specialist, and analytics strategist covering primarily West Coast track and field, basketball, and football for High School On SI. He began his career in 2015 reporting on Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook’s Thunder era for ClutchPoints before moving into full NBA coverage. He later worked directly with the founder/CEO of Ballervisions, shortly leading programming and cross-platform social strategy during its viral 2016 rise covering the Ball brothers—a run that helped propel the brand toward its eventual ESPN acquisition and evolution into SportsCenter NEXT. A three-sport alumnus and current throwing coach at Damien High School, and a former NCAA track athlete at UC San Diego, Roland blends athlete-development knowledge with advanced analytics in his role as a Senior Analyst at DAZN and Team Whistle. He has supported content strategy for major global and U.S. sports properties including World Rugby, FIFA Club World Cup, the New York Mets, MLS, X Games, the Premier League, the NFL, and the Downs2Business podcast. With a strong background in NIL rules, athlete branding, and recruiting, Roland helps families, athletes, and readers navigate the rapidly changing high school sports landscape—bringing national-level storytelling and clarity to the next generation of athletes.

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