We are only a few days into the New Year and 2016 is already off to a fast and exciting start in Massachusetts. Beginning last Friday, we had three full days of State Relay Championship action for all D4, D1, and D5 schools. While all those squads were staying busy at Reggie, quite a few other teams headed north to Hanover, NH, for the 46th Annual Dartmouth Relays. We wouldn't be surprised if you had trouble keeping up with all the results from this weekend, so here is your full rundown on all the action from the oval!
State Relay Championship
D4
Once the final school bell rang last Friday, all the D4 teams across the state loaded up their buses and headed to the Reggie Lewis Center for the State Relay Championship meet.
Looking to defend their team title from 2015, Norton boys knew if they wanted to secure victory they would need all hands on deck. It was obvious, from Norton's hurdlers to their distance runners, they had come well prepared and up for task of securing another team trophy. Starting off the day with a 4th-place finish in 4 x 50 relay, Norton went on to score in every race they toed the line. The biggest highlight of the night came from the Lancer 4 x 200 quartet that consisted of Justin Ireland, Camden Cleathero, Andrew Raneri, and short sprints star, Abu Ceesay. These boys were not only responsible for Norton's lone relay victory, but also ran 1:31.76 and shattered the previous D4 State relay record of 1:33.3 from 2001. In addition to their 4 x 200 victory, Norton boys competed well in the 4 x 4 (3:35.5) and HJ Relay, where they took 2nd in both events. These strong performances and their other point-scoring relays would eventually give Norton a point total of 49, which secured their 2nd-straight D4 team relay title. Finishing a very respectable 2nd were the boys from Milton with 38 points. Friday night highlights for Milton included their new meet record and victory in the 4 x 50 (22.38), their runner-up finish in the 4 x 200 (1:32.40), and their 4 x 800 victory in a time of 8:24.7. Right on Milton's heels was the squad from Burlington, who finished in 3rd place with 37 points.
On the D4 girl's side, we were treated to a very close battle for team supremacy. Last year, Pembroke and Norton ended the meet in a tie for 1st place. This year's contenders were the squads from Tewksbury and Milton. Striking first were the young ladies on the Tewksbury 4 x 800, which won in a time of 9:49.9. Other Tewksbury victories came from the 4 x 400 (4:10.9) and shot put. Milton girls responded with a victory in the 4 x 50 relay, runner-up finish in the SMR, and a very strong 1-2 finish in the DMR. At the conclusion of the night, Tewkbury's 4 x 400 victory would give them the final edge and a total of 57 points. Milton girls held their own and finished just behind Tewksbury with 56 points, while Norton finished 3rd with 33.5 points.
D1
Less than 24 hours later, the Reggie Track and Field Center was buzzing once again on Saturday morning with all the D1 teams ready to take on a day full of relays.
Starting things off bright and early, the ladies from Newton North were out to try and capture their 7th-straight D1 team title. They definitely made their presence known right away, as they went 1st and 3rd in the 4 x 50H relay shuttle. While the Lady Tigers amassed a total of 14 points on the oval, a majority of their points come from the work on the inside of the track. On top of the 16 points from the 4x50H relay, Newton North won the HJ relay, took 2nd in the LJ relay, and 2nd in the shot put relay. By the end of the afternoon, Coach Tranchita and his Tigers had a total score of 58 points and their 7th-straight team title. The young ladies from Wachusett Regional took 2nd with 41 points and Newton South was 3rd overall with 36 points.
Despite finishing a bit behind the top finishers in the team race, the girls of Lincoln-Sudbury still had plenty to be excited about on Saturday. Taking 5th overall with 33 points, the Lady Warriors big points came from their 12:16.16 DMR victory. This performance not only broke the previous D1 record of 12:19.5, but it is also currently the 2nd fastest time in the country.
In the race for top D1 boys squad, we would see a close battle all the way up until the finally tally of HJ scores. After taking the team title last year by just two points over BC High, Andover now had to hold off St. John's Shrewsbury in order to make it a repeat. Over the course of the day, Andover would score big points from their 4 x 200 (1:32.30), 4 x 400 (3:28.98), and 4 x 50H (28.23) victories. Only taking 1st in the DMR (10:32.37) and the long jump, St. Johns Shrewsbury also earned valuable points in the 4 x 50 (2nd), 4 x 800 (5th), 4 x 50H (5th), and HJ (3rd). In the end, SJS's 3rd place in the HJ relay gave them just enough to overtake Andover and win the team title with 30 points. Andover finished a respectable 2nd with 28 points and Peabody was 3rd with 25 points.
D5
Entering the homestretch of the weekend at Reggie, spikes were laced up and batons were gripped tight for the D5 State Relay Championship yesterday.
Despite being a well beaten runner-up last year, things would be much different this year for the boys of North Reading. The Hornet's day began with a very fine victory and new meet record time of 22.80 in the 4 x 50. That big victory and fast time definitely set the tone for the remainder of the morning, as North Reading went on to take 2nd in the 4 x 200 (1:34.51), 2nd in the DMR, 2ND in the LJ, and 3rd in the 4 x 50H. This certainly shut the door on anyone trying to take the team title, as North Reading accumulated a total of 50 points and easily beat runner-up, Newburyport.
Despite finishing 2nd behind North Reading, we imagine the bus ride back to Newburyport was too gloomy due to the spectacular HJ performance by Alexander Reduker. Not only did Reduker help Newburyport win the HJ relay, but he also soared to a US#1 height of 6-10. Despite the season only being a month old, Reduker has now improved upon his PR by five inches. With over a month until Divisional Championships and New Englands, we should expect to see Reduker get even higher.
If you were only paying attention to the track, you might have thought there was a pretty close team battle brewing on the girl's side of the D5 meet. Though on the infield, Old Rochester Regional was crushing the competition and securing a massive amount of points. The young ladies from O.R.R began their day with 1st and 4th place finishes in the 4 x 50H, then moved onto a victory and runner-up finish in the long jump, and wrapped up the afternoon with a first place finish in the high jump. In the end, Old Rochester scored a whopping 63 points and easily held off Ursuline Academy (36 points) and Hamilton-Wenham (32 points).
Dartmouth Relays
Looking to
keep busy before their respective state relay meets this week, a handful of
Massachusetts's athletes trekked north to Hanover for the 46th
Annual Dartmouth Relays.
On the girl's side, Abigail Long of Bishop Feehan topped the list with her performance in the 2 Mile. After an excellent fall, Long made the most of her first real indoor test and ran a US#4 10:56.4 2mile, which is just off her lifetime best of 10:55.7.
Anthony Delasanta of Bishop Feehan moved up from the 300M to win the 400M seeded race. Delasanta's time was 50.85.
On the infield at Dartmouth, Julia Valenti of North Reading secured victory in the pole vault with a mark of 12'00 and that ranks her in the Top 20 in the country. In the boy's pole vault, Erick Duffy of North Andover finished 2nd overall with his vault of 15'00.
Hispanic Games
The Hispanic Games took place in the Armory in the Bronx, NY this past weekend and two of the best sprinters in Masachusetts made the trip. Ashley Lewis of Boston Latin finbished 7th place in the Invitational girls 400M run. She was clocked at 57.89. Rodney Agyare--May of Burncoat High School won the Varsity section of the 400M run with an impressive indoor time of 49.53.
Bay State League Meet #4 (1/7) and Dual County League Meet #3 (1/6)
Last Thursday night, the Bay State League athletes were warming up the oval for the three straight days of track action at Reggie.
The highlight of the meet would come from the girl's mid-distance and distance events. Sarah Armstrong of Needham showed signs of real speed when she won the 1,000 in a PR of 2:55.7. In the mile we would see Margie Cullen of Needham also fire the cylinders and win in 5:00.1, while Grace Connolly of Natick secured victory in the 2Mile by running 11:13.8.
At the Dual County League Meet, Thomas Ratcliffe of Concord-Carlisle would make sparks fly on a quiet Wednesday night at BU. Prior to last Wednesday night, Ratcliffe had only clocked in a 2:31.7 1,000m right before Christmas. Making the most of 2016 early on, Ratcliff soloed a 4:14.01 mile to win easily and broke the DCL record once held by Alberto Salazar.