By Patrick O’Brien
Sprints & Hurdles
Starting off with the 100m, Portsmouth’s Lily Jenkins won in a close battle with Bedford’s Ella O’Keefe, 12.83 to 12.86. Both the girls 200 and 400 turned into a race for second, as Manchester Central’s Harriet Barber ran away from the field in both, running 25.63 and 56.41. Jenkins would come back to place 2nd in the 200 in 26.31, while Sanborn’s Sophie Thurlow took 2nd in the 400 in 1:00.70. Both hurdles races saw the same two girls place first and second, as Bedford’s Anika Scott was able to hold off Oyster River’s Erin Carty in both. Scott ran 14.45 in the 100h and 45.31 in the 300h, while Carty crossed in 16.05 and 46.81.
On the boys side, Bishop Brady’s Joshua Gentchos was able to take the win in a strong 100m field running 11.19. Fellow Division 3 star Tim Kelm of PCA took second in 11.41. In the 200, Gentchos and Kelm were bumped back to second and third, as Christopher Chong was a surprise winner in 22.60. Chong had a monster meet, as he was also victorious in both hurdles races, running very fast times in the process. He went 14.89 in the 110h, crossing before his teammate JJ Powers who ran 15.74. That was followed up by a 38.76 in the 300h, out-dueling Winnacunnet’s Oliver Duffy who placed second in 39.92.
Mid-D & Distance
The girls 800 definitely lived up to the hype, as we saw 5 girls dip under 2:20, something only 7 girls in the state have done this season. In the end, it was Bedford’s Fiona Lee who came out on top in 2:15.18. After this, it was Newmarket’s Alanna Hagen (2:16), Oyster River’s Mackenzie Cook (2:17) and Haley Kavanagh (2:18), and Winnacunnet’s Charlotte Koutalidis (2:19) rounding out the stacked field. Bedford stayed on top in the 1600 and 3200, with Kelseigh O’Neil winning both in an impressive double of solo efforts. O’Neil ran 5:16.01 in the 1600, beating out Winnacunnet’s Carson Mariotti who crossed second in 5:24.43. 11:01.06 was her time in the 3200, where Oyster River’s Neely Roy was second in 11:36.28.
The boys 800 was also a fun one, as Bedford’s Jacob Redman and Winnacunnet’s Ryan Zumbach separated early from the rest of the field. Ultimately, Redman was able to hold on for the win in 1:54.51, while Zumbach crossed shortly after, running a gutsy 1:55.64. In the 1600, pre-race favorite Jared Bekkering of Bedford went off the front early and it seemed to be over. Bow’s Alden Betterly unleashed a crazy last lap to close the gap and make it a race in the last 100 meters, but Bekkering had enough left to win in a tight one, 4:31.70 to 4:31.86. PCA’s Jonas Teeter pulled away right from the gun in the 3200 and turned it into a time-trial, winning in 9:32.32. Oyster River’s Ian Hricz placed second in 10:16.79.
Jumps
Somersworth’s Savanna Comeau was the lone competitor above 5 feet in girls High Jump. She took the win in 5’1” over Goffstowns Penelope Annis, who cleared 4’ 11”. As expected, Bedford’s Annika Scott won the Long Jump, in 18’ 2”. She is in a class of her own for NH in this event. Winnacunnet’s Hayden Adams was the closest, placing second in 16’ 1.5”. Girls Triple Jump came down to just 1.25 inches as Portsmouth’s Mariam Nada jumped 33’ 10.5” for first, and Oyster River’s Avery Baumgardt jumped 33’ 9.25” for second. Bedford’s Ruby Kaupp had a day in Pole Vault, clearing 10’ 9” to set the new top mark in the state. Bow’s Julia Hou placed second to Kaupp, at 8’ 7”.
The Spaulding boys were not playing around in the jumps, as Paul Butler won High Jump and Cris Santana won Long Jump. Butler jumped 6’ 3” win against a strong field in which 6 got over 5’ 11”. Santana popped a 21’ 2.25” to take the long jump by one inch over Nicolas Ogelsby of Lebanon. Somersworth’s Tayshawn Shepard won comfortably in the Triple Jump with a 41’ 7”. Pole Vault was an event to watch coming in, and Winnacunnet’s Wyatt Patterson lasted the longest, clearing 14’ 2” to win it for the second year in a row. Bow’s Ben McDowell placed second in a very respectable 12’ 7”.
Throws
Raymond’s Madelyn Donahue was victorious in both Shot Put and Javelin, tossing 32’ 5.5” in Shot, and 99’ in Jav. Portsmouth’s Margaret Montplaisir was the closest in Javelin, at 94’ 3”, while Maria Akalonu, also of Portsmouth, was second in Shot Put in 31’ 4.5”. Akalonu came back to take first in the discus, throwing 110’ 3”. Sanborn’s Paige Chesbro took second in 105’ 7”.
Bedford’s Eli Goumas was dominant in the throws, winning both the Shot Put and Discus by sizable margins. He became just the second in the state to surpass 50 feet in Shot Put, throwing 50 ‘2” to win over his teammate Alexander Grudinskas who threw 44’ 8”. In Disc, Goumas won with a throw of 140’ 6”. Manchester Central’s Nicholas Barbee placed second in 127’ 6”. Winnacunnet’s Owen Denio won Javelin with a throw of 142’ 3”, while Bishop Guertin’s Logan Lowney was second in 135’ 3”.
