By Patrick O’Brien
Boys
Sprints and Hurdles
After the graduation of several strong sprinters in the Division, Bow’s Gavin Buxton is left as a favorite in the 100. Ross Stephens of Con-Val has a great chance to pull off the 200-400 double, as he is the top returner in the 200 and the defending champ in the 400. He is also coming off a State Record in the 300m this past indoor season. Souhegan’s Brody Smith will also be a strong contender in whichever of these sprints he chooses to go after. Other names to watch in the sprints include Andrew Desmarais of Hollis Brookline and Rhys Jones of Hanover.
Coe-Brown hurdler Brogan Grzybowski enters the season in strong form, and is the favorite in the 110h. Lebanon’s Oscar Gulledge will look to challenge. The 300h is one of the more wide-open races on the track this year. Look for Grzybowski to battle with Elias Chaffee of Lebanon and Devin Gomes of Hollis Brookline.
Distance/Mid-Distance
The 800 has one of the more clear favorites of the meet in Grant Skorupan of Milford. He is the only guy in the Division to have run sub-2, and is coming off an impressive indoor season. George Sutherland of Plymouth will look to close the gap.
Hanover’s top 2 runners from XC return as the top returners in the 1600, with Ben Groves and Isaac McNaughton. Oliver Lehman of Oyster River is the top returner in the 3200 and is coming off a strong indoor season himself. Any of these guys could contest either distance race. Other challengers include Coe-Brown’s Patrick Youngs, Sam Youngs, Ben Larson and Broden Cox, Oyster River’s Levi Clapp, and Plymouth’s Tate Hayman.
Jumps
The High Jump at D2s is always strong, and this year is no different. Brody Smith of Souhegan is the defending champ, and cleared over 6’4” during indoor. Merrimack Valley’s Owen Turner and Milford’s Ethan Morin have also been over 6 feet and should push the competition.
Souhegan also has a favorite in the Long Jump and Triple Jump with John Katsel, who jumped a foot further than any other returner from last year’s Long Jump Championship, and a foot and a half further than the next closest in Triple. Coe-Brown’s Jackson Doran and Con-Val’s Walter Stephens are also contenders in these events.
The Pole Vault favorite also comes from Souhegan, as John Pisinski placed second last year at 12’, and will be looking to take it home this time around. Coe-Brown’s Harrison O’Neal and Hanover’s Liam McConnell are other names to watch.
Throws
The throws could be some of the tighter battles at the meet this year. Owen Dion and Grant Spooner of John Stark, as well as Morly Johnson of Con-Val, are top contenders in both the Shot Put and Discus, with Dion as the top returner in Shot and Spooner as the defending champion in Disc. Jonah Katz of Kennett is also a strong threat to win Discus.
Merrimack Valley’s Davian Loiselle returns as the defending champion in Javelin. If anyone were to take him down, it may be Brandon Lurvey or Zachery Heichlinger of Pembroke.
Teams
Going into the season, Coe-Brown and Souhegan have the two strongest teams on paper. Souhegan could get a ton of points in the jumps, with favorites across the board, while also scoring big points in the sprints and relays. Coe-Brown has points sprinkled everywhere, with an emphasis in the hurdlers, relays, and distance races. Other teams could get into the mix, and Oyster River and Con-Val both have the potential to score quite a few points.
Girls
Sprints and Hurdles
All of last year’s champions are back in these events, setting up some impressive performances. Timberlane’s Charlotte Beaudoin is the defending champion in both the 200 and 400, and will be tough to beat. Lila Fitzpatrick of Coe-Brown returns as the defending champ in the 100, and is also a top competitor in the 200. Mary Westrich and Josie White of Hanover, as well as Jennifer Watson of Plymouth round out the top athletes to watch in the sprints.
Hurdles should be one of the most competitive events of the meet. Oyster River’s Avery Baumgardt is the defending champion in the 100h, and Coe-Brown’s Bristol Shirland, Hollis Brookline’s Grace Dow, and Kingswood’s Norah Pelletier all return as contenders. There is not much separating that top group. Grace Dow is the returning champ in the 300h, but look out for Oyster River’s Elizabeth Carty, along with Pelletier, to challenge.
Distance/Mid-Distance
These events should all be competitive races and could be headlined by Oyster River and Hanover athletes. Hanover’s Megan Faris is the top returner in the 3200 and a strong contender to win. Millie Larrick and Aria Deeb of Hanover should also be top scorers in these events.
Oyster River can score a lot of points here as well, with Olivia Kavanagh and Maddy Cook. Kavanagh is a top contender in the 1600 and 3200, coming off a big indoor season. Cook is the top returner in the 1600 and a strong versatile runner for the Bobcats.
Some of these girls could opt for the 800, but Samantha Swanbon of Souhegan is definitely one of the favorites there after running really well in the 600 this winter.
Jumps
Avery Baumgardt of Oyster River will look to score a lot of points here for the Bobcats, as the top returner in Long Jump and the defending champion in Triple Jump. Norah Pelletier of Kingswood is one to watch for Long Jump, as is Danielle Bates of Timberlane in the Triple Jump.
Speaking of Bates, she is one of the top athletes at the meet and a huge favorite to win the High Jump. She is the defending champion, and is coming off a New England title during indoor. Camden Wilson of Bow is another one to watch here, having cleared 5’2” for second at last year’s championship.
Bow’s Julia Hou returns after winning a really close battle in Pole Vault last year. Brooke Bachhuber of Coe-Brown will provide competition behind her.
Throws
Coe-Brown’s Isabelle Grenier is the defending champion in both Shot Put and Discus by a sizable margin. Milford’s Zoe Rick and Merrimack Valley’s Anabella Dunlop should compete for points here.
Mollie Sexton of Oyster River returns as the defending champion in the Javelin, with Pembroke’s Jasmine Blake and Coe-Brown’s Elizabeth Joy as top challengers.
Teams
Going into the season, Oyster River and Coe-Brown appear to have the two strongest teams. Oyster River is the favorite as they have won for the past couple of years, and they have coverage over a lot of events. Distance, Jumps, Hurdles and Relays are the keys to their success. Coe-Brown gets a lot of points in the Sprints, and the field events, especially Throws. They have a strong team and should make it competitive. Hanover and Timberlane are two other teams to keep an eye on that can rack up some points.
