By just a few points, the Baldwinsville boys indoor track and field team missed having an ideal start to its 2012-13 campaign.
The Bees were a central figure in Wednesday’s Jack Morse Relays at Onondaga Community College’s SRC Arena, picking up 47 points. That beat everyone except Cicero-North Syracuse, who prevailed with 51.83 points.
Two races, in particular stick out. In the 4×400 relay, B’ville wiped out the field as Brennan LaQue, Jeff Mahar, Nate Wicks and Dan Walker finished in three minutes, 35.18 seconds, with the runner-up (East Syracuse-Minoa) at 3:52.39, more than 17 seconds back.
Then there was the 1,600 sprint medley, an instant classic. Mahar and Wicks, teamed with Tyler Rouse and Ricky Sparks, managed to hold off Jordan-Elbridge by inches, hitting the line in 3:52.31, just two-hundredths of a second ahead of the Eagles (3:52.33) in the runner-up spot.
It was nearly as close in the 4×200 relay, which proved a key event. Sparks, Walker, Mahar and Shay Sargeant got to the line in 1:35.53, barely behind C-NS, who prevailed in 1:53.16 for two extra (and crucial) points.
On his own, Rouse, fresh off a football season that garnered him Gatorade State Player of the Year honors, won the individual long jump, going 20 feet 7 ½ inches to edge Phoenix’s Zach Manzer (20’ 4 ¾”) as he and Brent Grippe were second in the team event with 37’ 11 ½” behind the Firebirds, who won in 39’ 2 ½”.
Rouse and Grippe also were third in the 55-meter dash, going 14.04 seconds between them as Nottingham (13.67 seconds) prevailed. Cody Young and Kirk Anderson were fourth in the shot put, throwing 78’ 10 ¾” between them. Greg Lefancheck and Sean Marr shared sixth place in the 55 hurdles.
B’ville also was close to the top on Friday in the girls edition of the Jack Morse Relays, making its way to fifth place with 33 points. Liverpool and Fayetteville-Manlius (41 points) tied for first, with C-NS and West Genesee (38 points) sharing third place.
Competing in the 1,600 sprint medley, B’ville’s quartet of Angelica Tomasello, Marissa Lathrop, Ceira Allen and Mackenzie Ross had a time of 4:32.88, which put them in second place, just behind F-M (4:31.75) at the wire.
Stephanie Vasteno was fourth among individuals in the 55 sprint and, with Tomasello, got to second in the team standings with 15.82 seconds to Mexico’s winning total of 15.62 seconds. Later, Vasteno and Lauren Fisher, combining to clear 13’6” in the pole vault, gained second place again.
Emily Soeder cleared 5’ for second in the individual high jump, getting third on the team side with Kayleigh Bates with a combined 9’4”. Mia Bolton, Kelley Hull, Kim Cushman and Emily McComb got to fifth in the 4×800 in 10:41.11.
Hannah Wood and Ashley Pesano were sixth (21.46 seconds) in the 55 hurdles. Melissa Voyer and Liz Wisely took sixth (27’ 1 ¼”) in the long jump, with Lauren Schmidt and Ashley Pesano sixth in the triple jump. The Bees were also seventh in the distance medley and ninth in both the 4×200 and 4×400.
