Locals aiming for regional glory
Valley sprinters have best chance to bring home medals
WOONSOCKET – When the New England Interscholastic Outdoor Championships begin at 10 a.m., Saturday at the Norwell (Mass.) High oval, Woonsocket senior Quinn Harlan will find herself seeded third in the 200-meter dash with a PR clocking of 24.78, achieved at the Rhode Island meet at Brown Stadium last weekend.
She also will compete in the 100 sprint, an event in which she’s ranked tied for seventh (12.44), and the long jump, where she’s seeded in a tie for 11th with a leap of 17-3 ¼.
The crazy part of it all? She captured state crowns in the latter two, despite the fact she was far off her lifetime-best clocking and distance, but finished second in the 200 with a personal best.
Head coach George Briggs isn’t sure how Harlan will fare at the South Shore, but does know his amazingly-gifted Villa Novan won’t disappoint.
“She’s more than capable of winning all three, and – to be honest – it wouldn’t surprise me if she did,” he stated. “She shows up for big meets and produces; she puts it all on the line. It seems like the tougher the competition, the more she rises to the occasion.
“With her, I think it’s as simple as she just doesn’t like to lose,” he continued. “Deep down inside, she hates it. I believe it’s her identity. She’s a tremendously-gifted athlete. You know, she ran cross country as a freshman, but she later quit because she didn’t like running distance. Still, she had a phenomenal closing kick. She’d just blow people away.
“Once she left, we persuaded her, ‘OK, if you don’t want to do crosscountry, that’s fine. Will you do indoor and outdoor (track & field) for us?’ She loved sprinting and jumping, so she signed on. We had our awards banquet (on Monday) night, and she was selected the girls’ indoor and outdoor teams’ MVP for the fourth straight year.”
Briggs indicated Harlan’s best time in the 100 is 11.9, and her premier long jump is 18-0 ¼, which she attained at the outdoor state meet last spring after placing second – and rolling her ankle. That injury prevented her from competing in the 100 and 200 dashes, though not without trying.
“My hope for her in the 100: I believe it’s going to take 11.7 or 11.8 to win it, but she’s right there with her PR, and I know she’s going to bring her ‘A’game. In the 200, I think 24-low will win. As for the long jump, the low 19-foot mark usually wins, and she’s more than capable of that, so we’ll see.”
The only other local athlete to rate in the top six at the regional event is Lincoln senior Sam Andrews in the discus. Andrews closed the state championships with a trio of seconds in the discus (127-6), javelin (PR of 113-0) and hammer throw (169-5) and a fourth in the shot put (36-6).
The fact is, she lost the titles in the discus and javelin by an aggregate distance of a scant nine inches. After her attempts in the spear, she naturally left the stadium turf near tears.
Because the hammer isn’t contested at the actual New England meet (as the other five states don’t recognize it at their meets), she will compete in only the other three on Saturday.
She’s seeded 18th in the javelin (the Ocean State titleist is Toll Gate senior Ariana Pafume, who edged her by two inches on her final throw, is a spot ahead of her), and 22nd in the shot put.
Andrews nevertheless won the “put” at the indoor state meet, and has a season outdoor best heave of 37-plus feet.
In that event, her 36-6 toss is only three feet, one-quarter inch off of sixth-ranked Sam Stevens of Shelton, Conn., and three feet, six and threequarter inches away from fifth-rated Seekonk High sophomore Cameron Garabian (40-0 ¾).
As for the spear, Brattleboro, Vt. junior Kai Boyd has a seed of sixth at 121-8, so Andrews is well within range of registering a “stunner” in that event.
“I think Sam has a good chance of placing well in the discus,” stated Brian Grant, her throwing coach. “The first goal is to reach the finals and get those extra three throws … The thing about Sam is she’s always looking to post a PR, so when she didn’t in the javelin and discus, it was tough on her.
“I told her afterward, ‘You know how many people would love to take three seconds and a fourth at states?’ and understands that, but she’s so driven, I think it’s only going to help her this weekend. She’s got the mindset of ‘I’m not going to let that hap- pen again.’
“Plus, her best-ever throw in the discus is 138-8, so if she does that, she should be right at the top (as Southington, Conn. junior Amanda Howe’s top-seeded length is 139-9, while Bloomfield, Conn. senior Brittany Jones rates second at 132-1).
“In the javelin, it definitely will be a little tougher to place in the top six because there are so many people in front of her. Still, she PR’d by four feet at the state meet, so maybe she can pop another one even further.”
Grant mentioned Andrews also should be more fresh at the regional meet, given the fact she has one less event to worry about (hammer).
On the boys’ side, Cumberland High senior Ben Drezek will use the New Englands as a test for the upcoming New Balance Interscholastic National Championships, slated for Greensboro, N.C. on Saturday, June 17.
At states, he mustered fourth in the 3,000 meters (8:52.32), though will run the regional standard 3,200 distance this Saturday. His converted seed time will be 9:32.00, good for 21st overall.
“Ben did the 3,200-meter steeplechase at a (USATF-affiliated) Twilight Series race in Lowell on May 20, and he ran 9:23 to break his own state record by over 15 seconds,” noted CHS veteran mentor Tom Kenwood, who will be attending his 43rd and final New England outdoor meet with his prized pupil.
“He’s actually going to use this meet as a prep for the nationals, where he will be competing in the 2,000 steeplechase,” he added. “He’s going to try to run the same pace that he wants at nationals, which is three minutes per 1,000 meters, or hopefully a little better.
“He’s not likely to finish in the top six at New Englands, and it’s more important for him to do well at nationals. Right now, I believe he has the third highest seed time in the 3,000 steelpechase in the country, but there are other state meets being held around the U.S. this weekend. I know New York runs the steeplechase at its state meet, and some of those kids are pretty good, so that could change.
“I’d just like to see Ben run a good time in the 3,200. If he can get down into the low 9:20s, that would be a nice accomplishment for him. It’s hard for a kid like him to hold back; that’s why you saw him lead the first four or five laps of the 3,000 at states, but then (eventual victor) D.J. Principe (of La Salle) took off.
“If he runs a six-minute 2,000 steeplechase, it would put him in contention for All-American consideration, so that’s what we’re shooting for.”
Other seedings for the male N.E. qualifiers include Novans’ junior Johnathan Upshur (tied for 11th with 14 others in the high jump at 6-2); Lions’ junior and state javelin champ Evan Grivers (18th, 163-7); Burrillville junior Ethan Prario (34th in the spear, 147-7); LHS junior Garrett Doyle (25th in the discus, 133-8); Broncos’ junior Nick Deering (27th in the triple jump, 419 ¼); and the WHS 4 x 400-meter relay quartet of Upshur, and sophomores Manny Gomes, Hezekiah Adeyeye and Nick Iarussi (23rd, 3:30.81).
“That time was a season-best by a lot,” Briggs said. “To finish sixth at states, and in an unseeded heat, that’s something else. The good thing about that group is they’re all underclassmen, so they’re all coming back. It’s a coach’s dream. They’re also going for the school record of 3:27.80, set in 1984. I know they desperately want to break it.”
In the 4x100 relay, the Shea foursome of Helton Delgado, Richard Dunbar, Jaylen Smith and Brian Tavares are seeded 24th (44.64), while the Burrillville contingent of Deering, Dom Esposito, Jared Gustafson, Kyle Rainville and/or Camden Harrigan have the 29th rating at 44.95.
For the girls, Mount St. Charles sophomore Eileen Whalen ranks 18th in the 400 (59.15); Cumberland junior Grace Henson 32nd in the 1,600 (5:18.63); Clippers’ senior Julia Dempsey 18th in the 3,200 (11:13.59); Broncos’ frosh Karlee Cournoyer 24th in the triple jump (34-4 ¼); WHS sophomore Gabriela Ribeiro 28th in the discus (104-4); and the MSC 4 x 400 relay of seniors Marina Schmid, Hannah Tousignant and Faye Cournoyer and Whalen are 15th (4:07.42).
If that quartet hustles to a time better than 4:02.00, it would stand a chance of sliding into a top-six finish.