- June 21, 2025
Matanzas High freshman Peyton Cerasi ran a personal-record 10 minutes, 56.56 seconds to place second in the 3,200-meter at the Class 3A state track and field championships, Saturday, May 10.
Cerasi also ran the 1,600, finishing 12th with a time of 5:15.25 at the University of North Florida's Hodges Stadium. In the 3,200, Cerasi was second behind Ciara McCloskey of Naples Gulf Coast who ran a time of 10:54.17.
Cerasi’s races were rescheduled for Saturday following a weather delay the previous afternoon. Teams were held for over three hours until the decision was made by the Florida High School Athletic Association to reschedule.
She said she kept her composure by breathing in and out and not taking the race for granted. She also reminded herself that being a freshman means there is next year.
“I had to calm my nerves. I was definitely nervous, especially since the race got delayed (Friday),” she said.
Even though Cerasi was the sole Matanzas athlete to qualify for state, her teammates came out to support her on Friday and returned on Saturday.
“I told them not to worry about it, but they all came back anyway,” she said. “I was so touched.”
Cerasi’s running career started in the seventh grade. Her training got more serious in the eighth grade when she began working with the current Matanzas track coach Katie Hoover, her dad Rob and trainer Owen Shott. With the introduction of tempos and base training, she progressed from running the 800 meters in middle school to 3,200 meters.
She transfer from Flagler Palm Coast High School after the fall semester. She set the Bulldogs cross country record with a 5K time 18:19.2 at the Class 4A state championships. She also has the Pirates' school track records in both distance events.
“I’m just so grateful for this opportunity,” she said. “I give it all to the Lord above — it’s God’s plan. I’m just a freshman, so I know later I am going to get that first place. I’m really happy with how I did.”
