Submitted by Kurt Wheeler
After more than a month of practice, waiting for the snow to recede, the Cazenovia girls track and field team got the spring season off to a victorious start, posting a decisive 113 to 28 victory over CBA on April 11. Eighteen different girls scored for the Lakers as they won 16 of 17 events to overwhelm the visiting league rivals.
Jamie Joseph and Chloe Smith led the team, winning four events each. Joseph led off the winning 4×400 meter relay and captured first in the 800-meter run and shot put while Smith won the long jump (15-9.75), 100-meter dash and 200-meter dash. Both girls contributed to the winning 4×100 meter relay.
Despite the cold weather and lingering snow piles along the edge of the track, both girls turned in impressive performances for an early-season meet, highlighted by Joseph’s 2:31 in the 800 and Smith’s 13.2 second time in the 100.
Meggie Hart was also impressive for Cazenovia, winning the 1,500 in a strong 5:11.9. She also anchored the winning 4×800 and scored in the 800- and 3,000-meter runs. Clara Rowles, Kelly Frost and Cavy Monahan also contributed to the first place 4×800 with Rowles adding points in the 1,500 and 400 hurdles. Frost won the 400-meter hurdle race in her first-ever track competition while Monahan added a leg in the winning 4×400.
Peyton Basic and Captain Julia Barrett were also triple scorers on the track as Basic won the 400-meter dash (1:09.5) with Barrett second, with each returning to help win the 4×400. Basic also scored in the 100 and Barrett added a leg in the 4×100.
Some of the Lakers’ newest stars also shined as Freshmen Lili Gavitt (100 hurdles winner in 18.0, third in high jump), Grace Degeilh (100 hurdles), Mia Chesbrough (400 hurdles) and Christina Brown (pole vault) all scored in their first varsity spring track competition. In total, Cazenovia outpaced CBA 67 to 20 in the running events.
The Lakers also dominated the field, outscoring their rivals 46 to 8 as they won all six events. Paige Hunt led the way with victories in the pole vault (7-6) and high jump (4-8) in addition to her 4×100 meter leg. Maddy Gavitt won the triple jump (32-7) and added second place finishes in the high jump and 100-meter hurdles.
Claire Edwards won the discus (75-7.5) and added points in the shot put behind event winner Joseph while Eva Salzman contributed a second place in the discus at 70-0.5 and Kenzie Yates a third in the pole vault. Captain Katie added points in three events with career-best performances in both the long jump (14-11.75) and triple jump (31-3.75).
The win raised the Lady Lakers’ cumulative record to 54-3 since the 2010 season. The girls have won three sectional titles and six league titles during that span and hope to add to their totals during the 2018 campaign. They will travel to Solvay on April 18 and the Tully Invitational on April 20 this week.
