Lowell crowned track champs
Kwaateng, Mutiso lead school to victory
Lowell High’s Richard Kwaateng and Samuel Mutiso didn’t know what the meet records were in their respective events last night at the Div. 1 Track Championships, but they most surely did after as they dominated the infield of the Reggie Lewis Center.
Kwaateng tied the meet record in the 55-meter dash in his preliminary heat and then went on to break it with a frighteningly easy 6.37-second win in the final. Mutiso wasn’t pleased with what he called a “sloppy” race, technique-wise, in the 55 hurdles, but still came up an easy winner in 7.47.
Kwaateng, who set a personal best of 6.30 last week at the Merrimack Valley Conference championships, rode out the momentum that he has built in the last couple of meets.
“I didn’t know what the meet record was,” Kwaateng said. “It wasn’t my fastest time, but it carried on to the finals. I feel like I definitely can go faster.”
Kwaateng came back later in the meet to win the long jump with another meet record of 23-1/4 and, along with Mutiso, was part of the winning 4×200 squad that blazed to a 1:30.41.
Mutiso is looking for a clean race at All-States after clipping a hurdle in the final.
“It was pretty sloppy,” he said. “I have more to do at practice. We haven’t run our best races to be honest. The goal was to run clean, which I didn’t, and to stay focused.”
Lowell ran away with the boys team title with an electrifying 84 points. Newton North was a distance second with 64.
Defending mile champion Lucy Jenks, of Newton South, was out to repeat, but also help pull freshman teammate Amelia Everett to a personal best. Jenks, who will attend Stanford, accomplished both. The blond with the smooth stride ran with Everett on her shoulder before switching gears and crossing the finish line in 5:00.88 for the easy win. Everett pushed hard over the final 200 to break her personal best by four seconds in 5:11.36 for third. Ava Criniti, of Lexington, took the silver medal in 5:10.92.
Jenks may take a run at the meet record at next Saturday’s All-State championships.
“I was running with my teammate, pacing her for the first 1000 and then went,” said Jenks. “I’m usually not the best at pacing at practice. It was nice being able to help Amelia out.”
Jamie Chamberlain, of Brookline, had a big night with a win in both the 55 hurdles (8.31) and long jump (18-1/2). The Warriors defeated Lexington in the 4×400 to clinch the team title with 62 points. Lexington was second with 60.12 points. Sarah Schlosberg captured the 55 for Brookline in 7.46 and Sonja Nagle also earned a win in the 1000 in 2:59.27.