Throwing their weight around
Throwers from Lincoln High School made their mark as they return from the state meet with several medals in tow.
PROVIDENCE – For Lincoln High, there was ecstasy and heartbreak at the conclusion of the throwing events at these R.I. Outdoor Championships on Saturday afternoon.
Junior and relative newcomer Evan Grivers uncorked a PR distance of 163 feet, 7 inches on his first javelin toss of the day, then watched – in disbelief – as it held up to snag his first-ever state crown.
On the other hand, senior Samantha Andrews seemed rather satisfied after locking up second in the hammer throw (169-5) and fourth in the shot put (36-6). In fact, following the latter event, she walked to the hammer site (where she had lost to Ponaganset junior phenom and favorite Gianna Rao by 12 feet, five inches) and ate a salad from a plastic contain- er.
What followed, however, proved the very definition of sorry luck.
Andrews had maintained the lead in the discus before watching it evaporate; she closed with a toss of 127-6, but Portsmouth junior Brianna Shablom’s heave of 128-1 edged her by a scant seven inches.
In the spear, she manufactured a lifetime-best 113 feet on her initial preliminary toss, yet Toll Gate senior Ariana Pafume – on her final attempt – unleashed 113-2 to collect the state crown.
In the span of perhaps 40 minutes, the tall Lioness lost those two events by a combined nine inches. She left the Brown Stadium turf with her javelin in tow, and upon seeing head coach Sue Carlson just outside the entrance gate, broke into tears.
It came of no surprise, as she had been seeded No. 1 in the discus (138-8) and second in the spear (109-0). She’s such a driven athlete, has been for years, so it was tough to swallow.
“My first throw was 113-0, and that was my PR by four feet; I was hoping I had it, but Ariana just came up with a big throw,” Andrews sighed while waiting to accept her silver medal. “Just two inches! I was mad because I had worked so hard, but there’s nothing I can do about it. I had already PR’d, so I was happy with that. “But two inches?” After gaining his title, Grivers high-tailed it for the shot put venue. There he failed to place in the top six, though that hardly mattered.
“It still hasn’t kicked in; I still can’t comprehend it,” he grinned. “As a junior, I feel I can only improve on that length. After my first throw, I was stunned. A lot of people I didn’t even know were coming up to me and saying, ‘Good job! Great throw!’ It was still a tough competition in the end because the guys started throwing further.”
Grivers wasn’t the lone Lincoln athlete to shine on this day. Classmate Garrett Doyle placed fourth in the hammer (195-3) and fifth in the shot put (48-4) to add more points to the Lions’ total of 16, good for 11th in the boys’ team standings.
In fact, they were only two shy of 10th-place Woonsocket, which had three senior standouts – Jared Briere, Jake Greenless and Dilyn Cote – take second, fifth and sixth in the hammer.
With a superb showing, Central rolled to the boys’ title with 97 points, 12 ahead of runner-up Hendricken and 26 more than third-place La Salle.
Despite her disappointment, Andrews by her lonesome scored all of Lincoln’s 28 points, which earned 10th in the girls’ rankings. (Again, because of senior Quinn Harlan’s titles in the 100 dash and long jump and second in the 200, the Villa Novans edged the Lions by two points for 10th.
“Overall, I’m really happy with how all of our kids threw, including Sam,” LHS throwing mentor Brian Grant explained after the meet ended. “She was off in the discus, as she’s thrown 138-8, but she had a PR in the javelin. She came in seeded first in the discus, second in the jav, third in the shot and fourth in the hammer, and she’s leaving with three seconds and a fourth.
“I see that as a positive,” he continued. “As for Evan in the javelin, that was probably the high note, the surprise of the day.”
Like Andrews, Cumberland junior Chris Choquette left the stadium disappointed after being unable to record a top-six placement in the long jump. He closed with a leap of 20-0 ½ and settled for ninth.
Over the past few weeks, he had been suffering from plantar fasciitis pain in his foot, so head coach Tom Kenwood had to scratch him from his two premier events – the 110 high and 300 intermediate hurdles.
“Unfortunately, Chris just missed placing,” Kenwood stated. “He had a couple of jumps over 21, but he fouled on one and put his hands in the sand on the other. I know he was in moderate pain, but it was a gutsy outing for him, considering he hasn’t practiced in about two weeks.
“He did a little jumping (Friday), but that’s it.”
Fellow Clipper and senior Ben Drezek had entered the 3,000 as the ninth seed, but hustled to fourth with a respectable clocking of 8:52.32.
“I’m disappointed by the time; I know physically I can run much faster,” noted Drezek, who finished behind individual champion D.J. Principe of La Salle (8:44.91), Rams’ sophomore Joe dosReis (8:47.00) and Hendricken junior Sean Meehan (8:48.28).
“My legs felt OK, but my back was so tight, so sore. It actually threw off my rhythm. I took second by D.J. in the indoor 3,000, and my goal was to break 8:50 and finished second; I knew was going to beat D.J. (who’s bound for Stanford University on scholarship). I feel like I’m better than 8:50. I tried to fight through it but I couldn’t.”
CHS classmate Alex Mazika propelled the discus 133-8 to take sixth, though senior Arthur Rossi just missed the same in the pole vault. Despite placing eighth, he achieved a PR height of 10-0.
Central Falls sophomore Leonardo DaVeiga admitted being disgruntled himself after mustering fourth in the 100 dash (11.28).
“I’m not satisfied at all,” he said. “I felt I could’ve run faster, but I got off to a slow start and it threw me off. It was just a late reaction.”
Approximately 80-90 minutes later, he seemed much more at ease; that came courtesy of a third-place finish in the 200 sprint (22.56).
“I ran a much better 200 than 100, that’s for sure,” he smiled. “I was more relaxed, didn’t feel as much pressure, probably because I had already run the 100. I was much more loose, and felt good.”
The Shea boys’ 4x100 relay foursome of senior Richard Dunbar, frosh Jaylen Smith, junior Helton Delgado and senior Brian Tavares assembled a stellar performance, finishing in 44.64 to place second in the unseeded heat. After the seeded race, they all thought they had finished seventh of eighth.
“We ran our season best, improving by over a second, and that’s a lot for this race,” offered head coach Rich Kucal. “Unfortunately, I don’t think we snuck in. West Warwick beat us in the heat, and I think EP was just a little faster in the seeded heat. “I’m still proud of the guys.” The good news for the Raiders: They did snare the sixth spot, and now – like all other top-six placements – will begin preparation for the New England meet, slated for next Saturday at Norwell (Mass.) High School.
Actually, Cumberland senior Julia Dempsey, who will further her academic and athletic education at Merrimack College in North Andover next fall, also hustled to sixth in the girls’ 3,000 with a decent time of 10:33.59.
Classmate Julianne Ross chipped in the same placement in the long jump (15-8 ½). Unfortunately, junior teammate Grace Henson had to settle for seventh in the 1,500 (5:00.63).
“I was seeded third and took sixth, but I’m not bummed at all,” Dempsey said. “I was really sick last week with a cold. I still went to practice, but I had to cut back on my mileage.
“My PR is 10:23; I did that at the (Class A meet) two weeks ago down at Toll Gate,” she added. “I’m pretty satisfied, considering I had a headache while coming here. I wasn’t feeling that well, but I didn’t let it get to me. After all, it’s my last state meet.”