Girl Performance List Boys Performance List
And here we are! New Englands Week! NH is hosting the 77th edition on a brand new track at UNH’s Wildcat Stadium!. It looks absolutely amazing and, if last week is any indicator, is quite fast! Don’t forget the big board featuring Lancer Timing results and the livestream video feed!
The New England Championships are truly one of its kind. A true historical, regional championship in what we would like to think is the most competitive region in the nation.
We are livestreaming all the action right here on NHTF! In collaboration with the other websites in the State Running Network, we will be bringing all the action right to you if you can’t make it over to Durham. And as always, this is free of charge thanks in large part to HOKA!!!
One important note – all tickets are sold online! LINK TO ONLINE TICKETS
One of the challenges to this preview is trying to actually pin down who exactly is planning to compete, but with the new entry system, requiring coaches to enter online along with paying the entry fee online, we should have a more accurate preview than compared with past years. With the 2 National meets occurring the very next week, many top athletes choose to skip the storied event to focus on nationals. With that said, we will focus this preview on NH athletes and who to watch for where. If you know an athlete is not competing, please comment below! Thanks!
Sprints and Hurdles
Nashua South’s dynamic duo of NH State Champ Soraya Ross and NH D1 Champ Nyah Musa are ranked tied for 6th with their blazing fast seed time of 12.10 from the MOCs. Portsmouth’s Mariam Nada, Concord’s Grace Saysaw, and Pinkerton’s Eva Roberts are ranked 14th, 15th, and 17th respectively. Nada’s teammate, Lily Jenkins is NH’s top seed in the 200 at 15th with Newfound’s Elle MacDonald right next to her at 16th, while South’s Mimi Ortiz sits at 21st.
The boys of NH stack up well as Bishop Brady’s, NH State Champion Joshua Gentchos garnered the 8th seed in the 100 with his MOC time of 10.77. D2 Champ, Hollis-Brookline’s Samuel Bruneau is seeded 12th with Con-Val’s Kendrick Edwards 16th, Trinity’s Nehemiah Oyaronbi 19th and Keene’s Chris Stevens 20th. Gentchos is slated as the 9th seed in the 200 with his 21.82. Stevens, who was beating Gentchos for 152 meters at the MOCs, improves to a 17th seed with South’s Ethan Schnyer and PCA’s Tim Kelm seeded 19th and 20th respectively.
We have all been waiting to see Central’s Harriet Barber have some company at the front when racing the 400. This is New Englands, so of course she will! Seeded 5th with her 56.71, the top seed is at 55.30, exactly what she needs! Kingswood’s Kyle Rapoza, the D2 champ, is seeded 18th with Timberlane’s Charlotte Beaudoin and Exeter’s Rayna Thompson at 22nd and 24th respectively. NH State Champion, Windham’s Kevin Brooks is seeded 9th with his 48.93. There are 25 seeds under the 50 second barrier in this one. Joining Brooks in this club are Profile’s Wyatt Lawton, South’s Barion Perry, John Stark’s Logan Montgomery and they are seeded 16th, 17th and 25th respectively.
The girls 100m High Hurdles may be one of NH’s strongest events courtesy of Bedford’s Anika Scott and Oyster River’s Erin Carty. Scott, the NH state record holder, is seeded an incredible 2nd, a scant .02 behind the top seed. Carty, the D2 champ, is seeded 5th with her 14.68. Yep, NH will be looking for 2 on the podium with this one. Throw in D3 champ, Newport’s Maddox Lovely as the 8th seed, Concord’s Morgan Doherty at 11th seed, and we now have 4 with realistic shots at a podium. On the boys’ side, Pinkerton’s John Child is NH’s top seed at 18th. D3 champ, Monadnock’s Gavin Lombara is ranked 20th.
Looking at the 300 Hurdles, NH Champ, North’s Jhanelle Thomas is seeded 3rd with her 44.49 MOC time. Carty will be doubling back and is ranked 10th. Don’t be surprised if she finds her way to the podium in this one. Hollis-Brookline’s Grace Dow sits at 14th seed. On the boys’ side, Winnacunnet’s Oliver Duffy is NH’s top seed at 16th and Lombara will be doubling back as he is 20th in this one as well.
Distance
The 800 in another event in which NH has a great shot at having multiple athletes podium. Bedford’s Fiona Lee is seeded 6that 2:13.48 with Dover’s Anique Poulin 8th with a 2:13.66. Considering 3rd seed is 2:12, both Lee and Poulin have legit shots at top 6. Throw in 9th seed Winnacunnet’s Charlotte Koutalidis as well as 11th seed Alanna Hagen and NH is strong in this event.
If the girls are strong, the boys 800 is even stronger as Granite Staters occupy 4 of the top 6 seeds. NH State Champ Bedford’s Jacob Redman is 2nd seed at 1:52.62. With the top seed sitting at 1:51.82, Redman certainly has a distinct shot at winning. Also in the conversation should be Coe-Brown’s Jamie Lano and Winnacunnet’s Ryan Zumbach, because whenever one runs 1:53, they should be in every conversation of contenders. Add in Hanover’s Lucian Gleiser, seeded 6th, this is NH’s strongest event.
Also a contender, Oyster River’s Haley Kavanagh is seeded 3rd in the 1600 meters, courtesy of her 4:53.27 solo MOC effort. Looking forward to see her have some help as the top 2 seeds are sitting at 4:47 and 4:50. Exeter’s Gavin Malark is the top seed on the boys’ side at 17.
In the 3200, NH State Champion Bedford’s Kelseigh O’Neil is currently ranked 7th. Pinkerton’s Contessa Silva is ranked 15th, Oyster River’s Mackenzie Cook 19th, Plymouth’s Elli Englund 21st, Concord’s Shelly Smith 24th and Hopkinton’s Maddy Lane’s 25th. We mention them all hear because the conditions at the MOCs were certainly challenging, so look for all to improve on their seeds! Also keep in mind, Cook’s 10:36 from Loucks Games earlier this season. BG’s Matthew Giardina sits at 7th seed with his 9:19.96 but keep in mind his 9:04 from Loucks Games. With the top seed at 9:10.95, Giardina is certainly a title contender. D2 Champ, Con-Val’s William Simard sits at 12th seed and South’s Dante Castellano is at 13th seed. Look for them to rekindle their friendly rivalry and move up. Perhaps the most interesting seed is NH State 1600 champ, PCA’s Jonas Teeter. He is a sub 15:00 5k kid, who will be fresh for this one. Seeded at 15th, feeling he has a shot at a podium. It will take at least a sub 9:20 effort to accomplish this.
Jumps
Top seeds in the girls High Jump are all at 6’6″. Timberlane freshman and NH state champion, Danielle Bates has cleared 5’4″ this season. She is a contender here. NH State Champ, Spaulding’s Paul Butler and Trinity’s Rere Edokpolo each cleared 6’4″ at the MOCs. They can podium, but with the top 22 also with this to their credit, they will have to be clear of misses to do it. Similar story in the girls pole vault as Londonderry’s Lilly Haggett and Amanda Robinson will need to clear the earlier heights as their are 19 athletes sitting at 10’6″ or higher. NH State Champ, Winnacunnet’s Wyatt Patterson sits as tied for 3rd seed with his 14’6″. Keep in mind he has cleared 15′ this season and anything can happen in the pole vault, which also means we should expect Concord’s Colby Nyhan, seeded at 14’0″ to have a shot at podium as well.
Scott returns in the Long Jump as the 3rd seed. With the top seed at 19’9″, and considering Scott’s monumental 20′ leap indoors, don’t be surprised to see her on the top of the podium Saturday. Nada also will be long humping as the events 16th seed. It will take at least 18’0″ to podium in this one. Did you ever think you would say NH’s 22’0″ long jumper would be an 11th seed? Well this is New Englands and that is where Winnacunnet’s Duffy finds himself as the top 2 seeds are over 23′. With Alain Twite 14th seed 1 inch behind Duffy, you understand the stiffness of this competition.
Twite’s better chance at a All-New England honors has to be the Triple Jump where he is the 5th seed by virtue of his 46’2.75″ seed. Keene’s Isaac Nelson is also a podium contender as the 8th seed. Looks as if Concord’s Ella Goulas is focusing on the Triple Jump where she is seeded 10th and is NH’s top seed.
Throws
Mascoma Valley’s super soph Georgia Kondi tops the NH seeds at #10 with her MOC winning toss of 38’6″. Winnisquam’s Lauren MacDonald is seeded at 17. In the discus, Portsmouth’s Maria Akalonu is the top NH seed at #9 less than 2 feet from a podium slot. While in the javelin, NH State Champ, Windham’s Kelly Wright is NH’s top seed at 20.
Get on over to the shot put as we have the top 3 seeds with throws over 60′! North’s Darius Smith is the top ranked NH seed at 16. The discus sees the top 4 over 170′! South’s Elyza Mercado is NH’s top seed at #18. NH State Record Holder, Concord’s Nick Reynolds sees himself ranked 3rd with his MOC toss of 186’1″. However, if he throws to his potential, he is certainly one of the favorites for the New England title. And, no we don’t think he can reach the woods with this sector.
Relays
The 4x800s will kick off the meet on the track of course. Pinkerton, NH’s top seed on the girls’ side is seeded 6th giving them a legit shot at All-New England. Better yet, the Bedford boys, the new state record holders, have a chance to make it 2 consecutive titles for the Granite State as they are the top seed and CBNA won last year. The 4×100 features 2 of NH’s top teams with current state record holder Pinkerton (7th seed) and current MOC champ Nashua South (2nd seed) as having legit shots at winning a NE title. Pinkerton boys, fresh off their own state record breaking performance, finds themselves in the fast heat as well. Finally in the 4x400s, Winnacunnet girls are the top NH seed at #10 with Milford being the top seed on the boys side at 15.
