Track & field: Tappan Zee leads local medal haul with girls relay gold at Loucks Games
Nancy Haggerty
WHITE PLAINS – Little more than a second. That’s all they need before a long-held dream is realized.
On Friday, Tappan Zee’s Hillary Abankwa, Gabby Shea, Katelin Lange and Tori Fears stood atop the podium at the 251-school Loucks Games, champions of the Nick Panaro girls 4x400 relay.
They smiled but were already thinking about the next time they’d run the 4x400.
The four clocked 3:59.7 with Fears putting on a big come-from-behind anchor kick to edge Weston by .28 of a second.
Their time was a personal best by .1. But it wasn't quite fast enough.
“We’re happy with how we ran,” said Fears, who’ll run next year for SUNY-Geneseo.
But, she explained, their time is still 1.7 seconds slower than what's needed want to qualify in the race for the top division at June’s New Balance Nationals. They’ve already qualified for the lesser emerging elite division but to make the trip to North Carolina worthwhile, they’re want more.
“We want the championship (division),” Fears noted, to compete against the best.
Ilenn Soto was similarly happy but similarly also not fully satisfied.
The New Rochelle junior threw a personal-best 39-8.75 to take second in the girls shot put, sharing the podium with teammate Carrie-Ann Calhoun, who was fifth (37-3).
“I still want 40. I’m right there,” said Soto, who wants to place at the State Championships after coming home empty last year.
Wrong lane, great time
Arlington’s Mark Scanlon knows he does better when he’s relaxed.
And relaxed, distracted, unfocused – whatever the word – Scanlon was that.
He even lined up in the wrong lane for the boys 800 and was told to move.
“I wasn’t really paying attention,” he said with a sheepish smile.
But that wasn't a bad thing.
The Arlington senior, who’ll compete for SUNY-Binghamton next year, ran a personal-best 1:53.63 for third overall in the boys 800.
Forty-nine boys ran in multiple heats.
“I wasn’t expecting to run that well,” Scanlon said. “That’s the best I’ve ever felt with 100 to go.”
Scanlon not only gained the standard to qualify for the State Championships if he finishes top-two at the Section 1 State Qualifier, but gained the so-called super standard, meaning he can finish dead last at the State Qualifier and still compete at States.
Clarkstown South (RJ Lamarre, Dan Phillip, Liam Heanue and Aryan Sadeghilari) ran a season-best 3:30.44 for third in the boys Nick Panaro 4x400.
Thirty-one teams competed. The Hudson Valley had four other teams in the top 10 with Nyack in fifth, Nanuet sixth, Brewster seventh, New Rochelle ninth and Rye Country Day 10th.
Medals but looking forward to Saturday
Saturday will be the final day of the 257-school track meet, which includes athletes from Canada.
And both Ramapo’s Anthony Harrison and North Rockland’s Nadia Saunders are looking forward to doing what they do best that day.
It wasn’t like they did poorly Friday.
Hardly.
But neither hit a personal-best mark in what are their second-best events.
Saunders, who’ll compete in Saturday’s triple jump, hit 18-6.75 for third in the girls long jump.
That was only 1.75 inches behind Quebec's Sasha Morancy, who took gold in the 33-jumper field.
Harrison threw 53-11.75 for third out of 50 in the boys shot put with New Rochelle’s Jordan Forrest fifth (51-9.5).
Ohio’s Nolan Landis (60-5.25) won and figures to be Harrison’s chief competition Saturday in the discus, Harrison’s best event. Harrison holds the Section 1 discus record and sits No. 2 all-time in New York among high school athletes.
Still, Harrison, who’ll throw for Georgia’s Kennesaw State University next year, noted third was his best Loucks shot put finish.
Fifth place went to another local senior and his podium appearance was a bit unexpected.
Clarkstown North’s Bryan Placide, who’ll play defensive end for St. Lawrence University’s football team in the fall, had never thrown the shot put more than 43-1.5.
But Friday he unleashed a stunning 50-0.5 throw.
“It means everything, honestly,” Placide said, crediting coach Jason Burdick for his improvement.
LOCALS OFF TO STRONG LOUCKS START:Track & field: Suffern, Bronxville, Arlington strike Day 1 Loucks Games gold
Other results
Lourdes’ Jaheim Jones ran a season-best 21.56 in the boys 200 but, after leading, was just nipped at the line by Christopher Columbus’s Anthony Brodie (21.5).
Ardsley’s Jalen Osbourne (21.91) was fourth and Ossining’s Brandon Raysor (22.3) was eighth.
Ursuline’s Lily Flynn clocked a season-best 2:11.71 for fourth out of 50 in the girls 800.
Lakeland/Panas shared the podium with Tappan Zee in the Panaro 4x400.
Brooke Sayre, Makayla Waugh, Lauren Salazar and JaLia Williams ran 4:09.45 for fifth out of 39 teams. Nanuet (4:09.83) was sixth and North Rockland also finished top-10 at ninth in 4;11.63.
Tappan Zee’s Deidre Sullivan clocked 8:12.59 for fifth out of 16 in the girls 1,600 racewalk.
Sixty-seven boys competed in the long jump.
Dalton School’s Zach Love won at 24-3.25. The top local finisher was Ketcham’s Devote Burgos (sixth place, 22-2).
The top 20 also included Iona Prep’s Sydney Moshette (12th, 21-7.25), Yorktown’s Aaron McGirr (13th, 21-7.5), New Rochelle’s Addul Keshinro (14th, 21-7.25), Brewster’s Brenden McBride (16th, 21-5.5) and Clarkstown North’s Marc Lobritto (21-5.25).
The girls 3,200 went to Pennsylvania’s Marlee Starliper in 9:54.75.
Tappan Zee’s Alexandra Thomas was the only local top-10 finisher in ninth at 10;57.55. Ursuline’s Sarah Flynn was just outside in 11th (11:03.71).
The boys 3,200 went to St. Anthony’s Matthew Payamps (8:52.3). The top local finisher was Nanuet’s Ryan Guerci in 11th at 9:14.25. That time is his all-time outdoor best.