Local runners brought five state championships back to the region after Saturday’s Division II and III track and field championships at UNH.
In Division II, ConVal senior Rachel Hurley won the 3,200M run in 10:58.27, breaking ConVal’s school record held by Laura Laplante since 2006. Hurley’s time was good enough to qualify her not only for next week’s Meet of Champions but the New Balance Nationals in Greensboro, North Carolina on June 13-16.
“We knew she would be in the mix up front,” said ConVal head coach Lance Flamino, “but getting the win and a school record was a real treat.”
Hurley’s 3,200M time was the best in the state, regardless of division, as Caroline Fischer of Bishop Guertin’s winning time at the DI meet was 11:06.51.
ConVal’s Del Bonsu-Anane won the boys’ 400M dash in 50.72, a personal best that is just fractions off the ConVal school record of 50.56. Bonsu-Anane also finished fifth in the 200M dash in 23.62.
In the Division III meet, Wilton-Lyndeborough’s Sam Bailey cleaned up in the throwing events. Bailey, just on the verge of throwing championships over the past few years, finally broke through, winning the shotput title with a throw of 50’ flat and then taking the discus title with a throw of 150’11”. He’d also take fourth in the javelin.
Conant’s Abby Drew repeated as state champion in the long jump, as her leap of 16’ put her in first, just ahead of twin sister Haylie, who was second in 15’8.75”.
Back in Division II, a pair of ConVal runners ran excellent races on their way to second-place finishes.
Senior Evan Coyne was seeded tenth in the 800M, but led his heat wire-to-wire with a blistering 2:00.91, finishing second behind Porter Heigis of Coe-Brown (1:59.53).
Senior Clare Veverka was second in the girls’ 1,600M run at 5:10.02, running a tactical race that saw her come out at a two-mile pace before dropping the hammer in the second half. Milford’s Lauren Robinson won at 5:07.50. Veverka also took third in the 800M run at 2:19.76, a time just fractions of a second off of ConVal’s school record in the event.
Junior Harrison Kim had an impressive third-place finish in the 3,200M, finishing in 9:57.10.
Senior Sarah Newell was ninth in the 1,600M run at 5:41.77.
Senior Carter Hunt took 10th in the boys’ 1,600M run at 4:41.88.
Senior Savanna Hall finished eighth in the discus at 94’10.
ConVal’s girls’ 4x800M relay team of Reagan Riffle, Kendall Larson, Alyssa Janoch and Hailey Doherty finished 11th in 10:54.07.
The boys’ 4x800M team of Tyler Beard, Abe Dreher, Thomas Sennett and Haven Deschenes finished 11th in 9:26.08.
Ella Phillips was 11th in the girls’ 400M dash in 65.66.
There wasn’t much room for the distance runners of Division III to operate, as Kearsarge’s Mya Dube and Campbell’s Jeffrey Allen both swept the 800M, 1,600M and 3,200M runs and kept championships out of reach for the runners of Mascenic and Conant.
Mascenic’s Landen Vaillancourt was fourth in the 3,200M at 10:06.01, with teammates Logan Thibault (eighth, 10:28.59), Connor Traffie (ninth, 10:38.33) and Robert McLain (12th, 11:07.32) behind him.
Mascenic’s Dakota Somero was seventh in the 800M in 2:07.91.
The Mascenic boys did team up for a second-place finish in the 4x800M relay, with the team of Traffie, Vaillancourt, Somero and Thibault finishing in 8:23.34.
Conant’s team of Chris Taylor, Trevor Pierce, Matt Bernier and Ethan Vitello were fourth in the same event at 8:39.38 and teamed up for eighth in the 4x400M relay as well.
Taylor was ninth in the 400M dash in 54.65; Vitello was 11th in the event at 55.60. Bernier was seventh in 4:49.26.
Conant’s Isabella Mormando was 12th in the 800M at 2:37.71.
Mascenic’s Quinn Aldrich was 12th in the 1,600M run at 5:47.29; Conant’s Eva Shirey was 15th in 6:06.91. Aldrich also took eighth in the 3,200M at 12:36.45.
In the sprints, Abby Drew was third in the 100M dash in 13.58 with WLC’s Sam Boette in fourth (13.65). Abby was also sixth in the 400M dash in 64.07.
Haylie Drew took third in the 200M dash in 27.71 with Boette in seventh (28.51).
Dominic Hutchinson of WLC was 13th in the 200M dash in 25.50 and 15th in the 100M dash in 12.56.
Conant nabbed another MOC’s berth in the 4×400 relay, where Alleigh Lipinsky, Mormando and the Drew sisters teamed for a third-place finish in 4:23.32.
On the field, Haylie Drew was second in the triple jump at 33’5.50”.
Harrison Browne of WLC was 14th in the shotput at 35’3.25”.
Will Luksha of Conant was 14th in the discus at 94’.
Qualifiers return to UNH on Saturday for the Meet of Champions, starting at 2:30 p.m.