Each of Cazenovia’s track and field teams took aim at Section III Class B-1 championships late last week, and got close to the throne.
Going first, the Cazenovia girls went to Westhill High School on Thursday afternoon, where it picked up 103.5 points to finish comfortably in second place amid a nine-team field. Only Skaneateles, with 149.5 points, fared better.
Eighth-grade Clara Rowles’ sensational season continued with a victory in the 1,500-meter run, where in a time of four minutes, 46.31 seconds, Rowles held off Skaneateles’ Kaitlyn Neal (4:46.84) as Meggie Hart finished fifth in 4:57.94.
Also, Rowles took third in the 800-meter run in 2:29.98, while Hart rose up to finish second (10:40.33), right behind Neal (10:37.26), in the 3,000-meter run, where Mya Walters was sixth.
Jamie Joseph’s best finish came in the 400-meter hurdles, where she was second in 1:10.79 to Skaneateles’ Mia Grasso (1:09.72). She also got fourth place in the shot put, heaving it 28 feet 3 ¼ inches to finish ahead of Sarah Haley (27’9 ¼”) in fifth place, and tied for sixth in the high jump.
Ashley Kent did best in the triple jump, her leap of 33’3 ¼ putting her second behind CBA’s Ellissa Kempisty (34’1”). Kent was third in the 100-meter hurdles in 17.41 seconds, with Delaney Yates (18.42 seconds) fifth, exactly where Yates also finished in the 400 hurdles (1:17.01) behind Joseph.
Kent matched that third-place effort in the long jump, going 15’5 ¾” as Jessica Macheda (15’1 ¾”) was sixth. Tori Fischer was third in the high jump, clearing 4’10”, with Katie Robbins fourth (8 feet) in the pole vault. Adrien Owens took third in the 2,000-meter steeplechase in 8:13.89.
Scout Mueller finished third in the pentathlon, earning 1,840 points, with Ryleigh Tillison taking ninth place as she got 1,504 points. South Jefferson’s Kealy DeForest won with 2,246 points.
In the 4×800, Maria Stalder, Maddie Langey, Bailey Forrett and Kaitlin Rossiter took third place in 10:27.29, with Rowles joining Stalder, Rossister and Forrett to finish fourth (4:23.49) in the 4×400.
Kent, Yates, Macheda and Kiersten Underwood were fourth (53.43 seconds) in the 4×100 as Underwood was sixth in the 200-meter dash (27.53 seconds) and Stalder took eighth in the 400-meter dash in 1:04.34. Holly Eberle and Grace Wheeler were seventh and eighth, respectively, in the discus.
A day later, the sectional Class B-1 championships were held at Canastota, where Cazenovia had 75 points and took fourth place, with Westhill-Ludden (118 points) sailing to the top.
Walker Nichols earned 28 of those individual points. First, Nichols was victorious in the 110 high hurdles, going 15.95 seconds, more than half a second ahead of Westhill-Ludden’s Xavier Fleurinor (16.49 seconds) at the line.
Moving to the long jump, Nichols’ best attempt of 19’7” was enough to hold off Skaneateles’ Tommy Hagen (19’5 ½”) as, In the high jump, Nichols finished second, clearing 5’8” while Westhill-Ludden’s Jordan Roland won by topping 6 feet.
Nichols, paired with Alex Devine, Dan McKillop and Tom McNearney, went 46.20 seconds in the 4×100 to finish runner-up, half a second behind CBA’s 45.70 seconds, while Alec Boone and Sean Satchwell joined McNearney and Devine in the 4×400 as Cazenovia finished in 3:35.19, again in second place, this time behind Skaneateles (3:33.04).
Satchwell challenged in the mile, finishing second in 4:38.84 as Syracuse ITC’s Soloman Lawrence won in 4:32.91, and got to third place in the 3,000-meter steeplechase in 11:04.29. Devine was third in the 200 in 23.40 seconds and fifth (38’1”) in the triple jump. McNearney (53.74 seconds) and Alec Boone (53.92 seconds) were fourth and fifth, respectively, in the 400 sprint.
O’Herien got to sixth place in the 100 sprint in 12.07 seconds as Cameron Hoke’s 1,785 points left him in sixth place in the pentathlon, with the Lakers settling for seventh place (9:17.17) in the 4×800. Sawyer Hunt was sixth (39’2 ½”) and Will Kmetz seventh (38’7 ¼”) in the shot put, with Christian Winkler seventh (105’9”) in the discus ahead of Kmetz (103’8”) in ninth place.
