Latin Academy girls cruise to another BCL title
Long jump will determine the boys champion
Even with the long jump being continued Wednesday at 2:30 p.m., the Latin Academy girls claimed their third straight Boston City League track title at Reggie Lewis Center with an all-around effort that saw top three finishes in 10 of 11 events Tuesday afternoon.
The Dragons finished with 150 points, while O’Bryant placed second with 95.
“We get them young — starting in seventh grade,” said Dragons’ sprint coach Imani Pressley about the team’s depth. “We really instill in them the spirit of champions and let them know that even if you don’t want it in seventh grade that you have five more years to push for. That is something that I try to remind my athletes.”
Junior captain Leanna Lynch led the way with two first-place finishes as she won the 55-meter dash (7.65 seconds) and the 300-meter run (43.33).
“It felt really good,” said Lynch. “I know that I worked hard this season and a lot of my competitors have as well. It was really good to come out here and compete today and just have a good time and reap the benefits.”
Senior captain Maia Poremba also took home some hardware as she placed first in the 600-meter (1:49.58) and second in the two mile (13:35.93).
Freshman Neve Flynn placed second in the 1,000 (3:33.97) and one mile (5:50.51). The 4×200 and 4×400 meter relay teams took second (2:04.02) and first place (4:54.58), respectively.
The Girls’ Athlete of the meet went to O’Bryant’s Sara Blanco, who claimed first place in the 1,000 (3:26.33), the mile (5:46.41) and two mile (12:39.81).
“Not really,” Blanco said about if she thought she would’ve won the award before the meet. “I knew I would win my events, but I didn’t think I was going to get ‘outstanding player.’ ”
The boys’ side will not have an official winner until after the completion of the long jump. That event will be completed Wednesday at 2:30 p.m. at the Reggie Lewis Center as the takeoff board was replaced in the hours before the meet.
O’Bryant has a ninepoint lead with 77 points to Latin Academy’s 68. Tech Boston is in third with 62. If the Tigers win, then it will be their third straight.
“It feels good knowing the guys that we have in the long jump tomorrow are seeded pretty high,” said O’Bryant coach Mike Ward. “So, I think we have a good chance to close it up.”
Junior Robert Nunez Martinez for O’Bryant was the standout through 11 events as he took first place in the 1,000 (2:55.16) and two mile (11:08.57). He also placed third in the mile (5:03.36) that was won by Brighton para-athlete Delmace Mayo (4:43.71).
Overall, O’Bryant placed in the top three in six of the 11 events.