The Cazenovia girls track and field team capped its season of team competition with a strong second-place finish at the Section III Class B-2 championships, held Thursday at Canastota High School.
The Lakers scored 103.5 points to finish as runner-up for the second year in a row to an excellent Clinton team, who won with 160.5 points.
Two girls earned individual sectional titles to lead the effort. Maddy Gavitt was the sectional champion in the long jump with a career best leap of 17 feet 4 1/2 inches. She also earned second in the pole vault with a personal best of 8’6″, second in the high jump by clearing 4’10” and second in the triple jump by going 35 feet.
Claire Edwards achieved a pair of career bests of her own to pace the Lakers in the throws. She won the discus championship with a throw of 103’9″, and earned fourth in the shot put at 29’5 1/4″.
Lili Gavitt was runner-up in the grueling pentathlon event, earning 2,219 points to finish just 17 points from the title-winning total of 2,236 from Lowville’s Caroline St. Croix.
Gavitt was tops in the 100 hurdles (17.55 seconds) and high jump (4’5″) among the ten competitors in the event. Teammate Jackie Gamlen finished seventh including the second fastest 800 meter time of 2:47.80.
Savannah Johnson had a super day in the sprints, earning her way to the state qualifying meet.
Johnson was third in the 100-meter dash (13.51 seconds), third in the 200 in a career-best time of 27.38 seconds and anchored the 4×100 meter relay to a season best time of 52.30 secondsfor third place. Grace Dolan, Caryn Gagnon and Paige Hunt also contributed to the relay.
Peyton Basic ran her fastest 400-meter race ever (1:02.71) to claim third with Dolan close behind in her best time of the year, going 1:05.72. The speedy duo was joined by Cavy Monahan and Ella Huftalen to place fifth in the 4×400 relay in 4:28.83.
Kelly Frost led the Lakers in the distance events, placing fourth in the 2,000-meter steeplechase in a personal best time of 8:30.50 and leading the 4×800 team of Claire Braaten, Mary Williams and Finlay Stover to a sixth place finish. Molly Hart captured fifth in the 1,500 (5:19.62) and Isla Stover earned sixth in the 3,000 (12:13.60).
Melanie Michael placed fourth in both hurdle events, including a career best time of 1:12.61 in the 400 meters hurdles. Michael ran 17.65 seconds in the 100 meter event with teammate Caryn Gagnon one step behind at 17.81 for fifth.
Paige Hunt and Chloe Smith rounded at the Lakers’ scoring in the field events as Hunt placed in both the high jump (4’8″, tied for fifth and pole vault (8’6″, sixth place) and Smith earned fourth in the long jump at 15’3″.
The runner-up finish at the sectional meet capped Cazenovia’s team season which included an undefeated regular season and OHSL Liberty National league title and a first-place finish at the OHSL Liberty division meet.
Twelve girls from the squad will advance to next Friday’s state qualifying meet at Cicero-North Syracuse’s Bragman Stadium to vie for the privilege of representing Central New York at the June 7-8 state meet at Middletown.
