By Patrick O’Brien
It was an exciting day at the D2 Championships at Londonderry. The weather was about as rough as it gets for late May to start the day, but the athletes persisted through difficult conditions. The day featured tight finishes, dominant performances, and record-breaking efforts across the board. As the day went on, conditions steadily improved, and the sun even peeked out later in the meet. Great job to all the teams and athletes who competed. A special thanks to Londonderry and their community as they certainly stepped up to host an incredible event!
Girls
Girls Results Courtesy of Lancer Timing
Sprints & Hurdles
Right off the bat, the 100 was a statement race for Coe-Brown, as they swept the top three spots. Lilah Fitzpatrick defended her title in 12.79, and teammates Riley Hawkes and Jazzlyn Curry followed in second and third to total 24 points in the event.
All eyes were on Timberlane’s Charlotte Beaudoin in the 400, and she delivered with a 56.72, leaving the rest of the field behind. Strong finishes followed, though, as Hanover’s Josie White and Milford’s Rylee Coates, both ran sub-60 for second and third.
The winners of the 100 and 400 faced off in the 200 and went 1-2, with Beaudoin pulling away to win in 25.83. Fitzpatrick took second in 26.50, while Hollis Brookline’s Grace Dow finished third.
Earlier in the day, Dow won the 100 hurdles in 15.31. This event was one of the most competitive of the day, with three more girls under 16 seconds. Coe-Brown’s Bristol Shirland, Kingswood’s Norah Pelletier, and Oyster River’s Elizabeth Carty were tightly grouped for second through fourth. All of these girls were back for the 300 hurdles, and this time Pelletier ran down Dow to take the win at the line, 46.82 to 46.84. Elizabeth Carty finished strong for third.
Mid-Distance & Distance
The 1600 played out fairly tactically, with Hanover teammates Aria Deeb and Megan Faris pulling away from Oyster River’s Olivia Kavanagh over the final lap. Deeb won in 5:10, just two tenths in front of Faris.
The 800 was another Hanover 1-2, this time with Millie Larrick going gun-to-tape to win in 2:20, ahead of Deeb. Oyster River’s Maddy Cook closed hard to take third in her third event of the day.
The 3200 featured many athletes doubling or tripling back, so it wasn’t surprising to see Oyster River’s Neely Roy take the lead as one of the few fresh athletes. Faris, Kavanagh, and Deeb followed close behind. Eventually, Kavanagh and Faris broke away, with Faris making a big move with 200 meters to go to secure the win in 11:07. Teammates Kavanagh and Roy placed second and third, while Deeb finished a very respectable fourth in her third event of the day.
Jumps
As one of the first events of the morning, the weather proved to be an equalizer in the high jump. Merrimack Valley’s Jada Lucas and Timberlane’s Danielle Bates both cleared 5-0, but Lucas secured the upset victory on fewer misses. Behind them, three athletes tied for third at 4-10: Bow’s Camden Wilson and Madison Pfister, and Coe-Brown’s Annabel Speed.
Bates would not be denied a victory, winning the triple jump by over a foot with a final jump of 35-3.25. Behind her, Coe-Brown’s Jazzlyn Curry and Oyster River’s Avery Baumgardt were separated by just a few inches in second and third.
Kingswood’s Norah Pelletier dominated the long jump, with four separate jumps which would have won the competition. She won with a 16-10, while Curry edged Baumgardt by just half an inch in another tight battle for second.
The girls pole vault started late in the day and had to be postponed mid-competition, with three athletes traveling to Pelham the following day to finish. That did not stop Bow’s Julia Hou, who vaulted a new Division 2 record of 11-1. Coe-Brown followed with a 2-3 finish from Brooke Bachhuber and Brooke Main, sealing the team title.
Throws
Coe-Brown’s Isabelle Grenier took the win in the shot put with a throw of 30-0.25, holding off Milford’s Zoe Rick, who was close behind at 29-2.5. Merrimack Valley freshman Genny Blanchette placed third.
In the discus, Blanchette delivered on her final throw, moving from fourth into first to win at 108-4. Grenier took second at 105-0, with Merrimack Valley’s Anabella Dunlop and Zoe Rick very close behind.
Oyster River’s Mollie Sexton was the only athlete over 100 feet, winning the javelin at 104-3, while Hanover freshman Eila Lahaye edged Pembroke’s Jasmine Blake by just three inches for second.
Relays
The 4×800 led off with a strong three-team battle in tough conditions between Oyster River, Coe-Brown, and Hanover. After a back-and-forth race, Oyster River’s Maddy Cook pulled away on the anchor leg to lead her team to a 10:06 victory. Coe-Brown finished second, with Hanover third.
The 4×100 went to form, as Coe-Brown led most of the race and won in 50.23. Oyster River was a second back in second, with Merrimack Valley third.
The 4×400 was a dominant showing from Timberlane, as they separated from the field early and cruised to victory in 4:07.99. Hanover came from behind to take second, with Merrimack Valley holding on for third.
Teams
It was an exciting team battle, as Coe-Brown and Hanover were tied through 17 events, but big points in the pole vault pushed Coe-Brown to a 118–103 win. It was a balanced effort for the Black Bears, with an emphasis on throws, jumps, and sprints. Hanover scored the majority of their points in the distance and mid-distance events, with contributions across the board. Oyster River was not far behind in third with 85.
Boys
Boys Results Courtesy of Lancer Timing
Sprints & Hurdles
The 100 looked like it would be a good battle between Bow’s Gavin Buxton and Souhegan’s Brody Smith coming in, and that is exactly what materialized. Buxton got a great start out of the blocks and was able to hold it all the way as Smith started to come up on him late. They finished in 11.00 and 11.07 respectively, which are great times in the conditions they had. ConVal’s Ross Stephens placed third to kick off a big day for him.
That big day was highlighted by a new Division 2 record in the 400 in 48.46, where Stephens controlled the race and left the field behind in the second half. Hanover’s Rhys Jones ran a great race to finish second in 49.86, and Coe-Brown’s Jackson Doran ran a very strong last hundred to place third.
The 200 featured many of the same names, and once again it was Ross Stephens taking the win in 22.13, continuing to establish himself as the top long-sprinter in the division. Brody Smith once again made it very interesting in second, and Gavin Buxton was close behind in third. This was actually the same top three finishers from the 100, but in reverse order.
In the 110 hurdles, one of the top favorites delivered, as Coe-Brown’s Brogan Grzybowski left no doubt, running 15.32 to finish over a second and a half ahead of the field. Perhaps less expected was his teammate Griffin Beckman crossing second to secure big points for Coe-Brown. In a very tight battle for third, Dylan Hawkins of Pembroke secured the podium spot.
Oyster River’s Samuel Nunoo-Quarcoo built a slight advantage over Grzybowski through the first half of the 300 hurdles, and it proved too much to overcome. Nunoo-Quarcoo won in 41.07 to Grzybowski’s 41.44, while Hollis Brookline’s Devin Gomes was third.
Mid-Distance & Distance
The 1600 had a huge pack still connected going into the last lap, and it was anyone’s race. Hanover’s Ben Groves overtook Oyster River’s Ollie Lehman with about 200 to go and showed off his closing speed, pulling away with a blazing 58 second last lap. Lehman battled to outkick Coe-Brown’s Patrick Youngs and Milford’s Grant Skorupan in a tight race for second.
The 800 was one of the more tactical races of the day, with Groves doubling back and controlling it early, taking it out in a pedestrian 63 second first lap. Coe-Brown freshman Mateo Ferguson recognized this and made a great move to take the lead early in lap 2, but once again Groves had enough to take the win over the last 200 in 2:00.99. Ferguson took him all the way to the line, finishing just two tenths back. That slow early pace in the fast heat really benefitted the first heat, as Hanover’s Alexander Collins was able to take third overall.
The 3200 is always interesting at states as the last individual event, with plenty of runners doubling back and others staying fresh to take advantage. This year, that yielded one of the most exciting races of the day. After a few laps of a big pack at the front, Coe-Brown freshman Sam Youngs broke the race open with a couple of 68 second laps. He built a seven second lead, but it was clear that Oyster River’s Lehman was cutting into it heading toward the bell. In the end, a hard-charging Lehman overtook Youngs in the final moments, leaning to claim victory by just seven hundredths of a second. Hats off to Youngs, as it takes a lot of guts to make a move like that at a state meet as a freshman. Fellow freshman Dylan Faris of Hanover was able to fend off the rest of the pack to take third.
Jumps
The top two seeds prevailed in the long jump, as Souhegan’s John Katsel took the win in 20-9.25, and Oyster River’s Micah Gedney took second in 20-1. Souhegan’s Ryan Stone claimed third. Katsel also claimed victory in the triple jump, winning by over three feet with a 43-11. ConVal’s Walter Stephens and Coe-Brown’s Abel Clement followed.
Again, the high jump was one of the events most affected by the weather, with everyone well below their season bests. The favorite still came out on top, as Milford’s Ethan Morin won with a jump of 5-10. Oyster River freshman Rory Keegan placed second, and Merrimack Valley’s Owen Turner was third, both clearing 5-8. No one else cleared higher than 5-4 on this tough day.
It was unclear if the pole vault would be contested for much of the day, but as the weather improved, the competition was completed and turned into a competitive affair. The top two seeds, Coe-Brown’s Harrison O’Neal and Hanover’s Liam McConnell, came in with the same mark. True to form, they were separated by misses, as O’Neal took the win with one fewer miss than McConnell, with both clearing 11-6. Lebanon’s Brent Paige took third with a 10-0 clearance.
Throws
Just 2.5 inches separated John Stark teammates Owen Dion and Grant Spooner in the shot put, with Dion narrowly taking the win with a throw of 43-3. Lebanon’s Oscar Gulledge was third with 39-11.25.
Kennett’s Jonah Katz took control of the discus with a throw of 132-11, but Bow’s Charlie Garland made things interesting. Entering as the eleventh seed, Garland jumped all the way to second with a throw of 128-3, a result you do not see often at a state meet. Lebanon’s Brian Nelson finished third.
In contrast with the discus, the top seeds in the javelin largely held form. Pembroke’s Zachary Heichlinger took the win with a throw of 148-8, while Kennett’s Cadence Kenney placed second. Pembroke’s Brandon Lurvey rounded out the top three.
Relays
Kicking things off with the 4×800, a pack of four teams was reduced to two by the final leg, Plymouth and Souhegan. Plymouth’s Tate Hayman pulled away with a 2:02 anchor to seal the win. Souhegan held on for second, while Hanover used strong late legs to overtake Coe-Brown for third.
The 4×100 was the closest race of the day, with three teams in contention going into the final leg. Milford took the final handoff with a lead and was just able to hold off fast-closing Souhegan and Kingswood. Milford and Souhegan were separated by just one hundredth of a second, 44.28 to 44.29, in a true photo finish.
ConVal took control on the opening leg of the 4×400 and never gave it up, going wire to wire to set a Division 2 record of 3:25.19. Ross Stephens capped it with a 47.7 anchor split, while Hanover and Coe-Brown finished second and third.
Teams
Coe-Brown looked like the strongest team coming in, and that held true, as they won the meet scoring 94 points. Pole vault, hurdles, and distance provided major points, but it was truly a full team effort. Hanover had quite the day to take second with 78, highlighted by a gutsy triple from Ben Groves that accounted for 24 points. They also had a lot of strong performances around him to back it up. Behind them, Souhegan edged out Oyster River for third, 64 to 60.
