After Saturday's stellar DI battle, all eyes turn to Sunday and the DII Championship meet, which features a great team battle on both sides. The boys meet pits Woburn, Reading, Chicopee, North Attleboro, Mansfield and a number of other teams that could get themselves in the mix, and the girls meet looks an awful lot like the DI meet, where Notre Dame plays the role of Newton North- solid favorite on paper, but the field of Whitman-Hanson, Marshfield, Concord-Carlisle et al will come and get them if allowed. As always, DII should be as tight as it gets.
DII Boys
There is no clear favorite in this meet, so handicapping the team scores is sort of a waste of time. Reading and Woburn have the most horsepower, Chicopee Comp has Alex Niemec, who should be good for 20 points on his own, and Mansfield and North Attleboro have history on their side. So, we'll go event by event, and try to get deep enough to give an idea as to who matters for the team title.
In the field events, the individual wins should be foregone conclusions. North Attleboro should have the shot put settled, as Eric Beckwith is the state's best at 59 feet, but Central Catholic, Tewksbury, and Chicopee Comp all have skin in the game with Ryan Doherty, John Fiorello, and Brian Garcia all able to grab key points. Likewise, Alex Niemec has long jump and high jump cornered, but if Reading can get its tandem of Robert Federico and Ryan Maney on the board, these could be key points won. The high jump has 15 others seeded over 6', so after Niemec, it's anybody's game.
The sprints break down similarly. Walpole could take over the straightaway, as Connor McCarthy and PJ Hayes (behind Belmont's Nathan Worrell) are top seeds in the hurdles and dash. A big race from Ryan Maney in the hurdles could go a long way for the Reading squad, and there are tons of team points up for grabs in the dash. A tight race ensues in the 300 as well, as NA's Alex Jette, KP's Matt Bowers, and Mansfield's Matt Baldasare battle in a race that could keep those three teams in the hunt for the team title. Reading should regain its advantage in the 600, though, as JD Greenfield has the top seed by nearly a second, although Woburn's Kyle Sullivan could stop the bleeding here with a runner-up finish.
The distance races each have a favorite- Mike Andre of Agawam in the 1000, Owen Gonser of KP in the mile, and Arlington's Daniel McDonald-Meteer in the deuce. Bay State competitors Needham and Wellesley score their points here, but if any of the team favorites can score here, even deep, this goes a long way.
One thing is for sure, this meet will come down to the relays. Woburn is the top seed in the 4x200 and 3rd in the 4x800, and they have a highly seeded 4x400 as well, but who knows how spent it will be. Reading has a top-5 team in the 4x200 and will battle Woburn and Marshfield for the 4x400 title, unless Marshfield chooses up to the 4x800. Wellesley and Gloucester should do battle in the 4x800, but as the DI kids found out today, where you're seeded going into a meet has very little to do with its outcome.
So, in the end, no prediction, just a ton a good teams battling it out for a Massachusetts-shaped trophy. This could look like the Middlesex League meet, the Hockomock League meet, or even the Bay State League meet when it's all over.
DII Girls
In this meet, the top 4 teams are fascinating to watch. NDA, Marshfield, Whitman-Hanson, and Winchester are point-hoarders in certain events, while all of these teams have events they don't even contest. For W-H, they need to do their work in the distance events. For Marshfield, it'll be the hurdles and jumps we watch. For NDA, look at the sprinting events for the bulk of their points. And for Winchester, it's all field, baby.
Starting with the favorites, NDA has the top seed in the dash in Amanda Reilly (along with Natick's Danielle Mitchell), the top seed in the 300 in Isabella Dimare (ahead of North Andover's Jenna Smolag), the best 4x200, surely one that would need to include both sprinters to have its best shot, and the 3rd fastest hurdler, that's Dimare once again. Shauna Owen could give some depth points in the long jump, and they have a 4x800 that has upside all the way to second. What Coach Kates decides to do with Dimare will have a major impact on this meet, but he might not feel as good about that 4x200 without her in it.
And in this corner, we have Marshfield. The top two seeds in the hurdles, but only a smidge ahead of Dimare, are Ellen DiPietro and Kesley Sullivan, with Dipietro the favorite in the high jump, and Sullivan seeded 2nd in the long jump. DiPietro and Sullivan, after combining for what the Rams hope is 38 points, will then join up with two others I the 4x400, hoping to push them over 40 and to the win.
In this corner is Whitman-Hanson. Sisters Rachel and Abby Baker will wait to see what Dracut's Karina Shepard does (likely the 1000), as they are the #2 seed in the mile and 1000 behind her. Gianna Cacciatore will place in the 2 mile as well, and there is a 4x800 that should have little trouble winning. The key for the Panthers is what Sam Richner does in the high jump. Having jumped 5'3" this season, a big day from her could give them the edge.
And lastly, well actually not really, is Winchester. It's all about the field for them, as Jackie Vahey could knock off Milford's Siaina Campbell in the shot put, Carrie Abraham is the top seed in the long jump, and an inch off the mark in the high jump, and Alex Curtin has some long jump pop in her as well. Abraham could take as high as 4th in the hurdles too, making them a possible 40 point team, but without a scoring relay.
Walpole, with 600 favorite Gina Conti and long jumper Maddi Shea, isn't a point-hoarder like the others, but has some firepower. Concord-Carlisle, Central Catholic, and Mansfield are all mid-distance powerhouses with 600 runners and 4x400's to buoy them, and Falmouth will hope Lauren O'Neill takes the 2 mile away from the likes of Danielle Voke of North Andover. Like the boys, I'm not comfortable making a prediction, but I will say this- the coach who makes the best moves will win this meet. Or, it won't matter what the coaches do. Either way, stay glued to your IPADS.