HOLLAND PATENT – Students on the Jordan-Elbridge girls track and field team missed school on Tuesday, which was fine because they did something historic.
The Eagles won its first-ever Section III championship when it claimed first place in the sectional Class B-2 championship meet at Holland Patent High School, getting a bit of payback in the process on Cazenovia.
When these two teams met head-to-head on May 19, the Lakers won big, 93-47, but it was J-E who would prove stronger at the sectional meet, picking up 118 points to Cazenovia’s second-place total of 80 points.
Junior Vassianna Klock led the way for J-E with three wins in distance races. At 800 meters, Klock went two minutes, 26.36 seconds to win that event, and at 1,500 meters Klock pulled away to win in 5:17.03, with Hannah Fichter fifth.
To cap off her remarkable effort, Klock went to the 2,000-meter steeplechase and was the only competitor to break the nine-minute mark, winning in 8:36.84, while Fichter finished fourth in 9:29.74.
The Eagles’ depth was on display in the relays, where it claimed the 4×100 as Kyler Langhorn, Coral Uhle, Olivia Bennett and Jazmyn Stevenson went 52.34 seconds to Cazenovia’s second-place 53.15.
In the 4×400, Tatianna Parkolap joined Stevenson, Uhle and Bennett to go 4:25.40 and finish a close second to Skaneateles, who had Maddie Wright, Alice Spaulding, Grace Conan and Lillian Coleman prevail in 4:25.26. Coleman also finished second in the 800 in 2:29.47 behind Klock.
Uhle, Bennett, Fichter and Ella Jewsbury were third in the 4×800 in 10:53.16, well clear of Skaneateles (11:17.62) in fourth place, to go with the 14 points the Eagles earned in the 3,000-meter run, where Fichter was second in 12:07.13 and Klock finished third.
On her own, Uhle was victorious in the 400-meter dash in 1:01.33 to the 1:02.22 from Onondaga’s Vanessa Woolery, while Parkolap, in the high jump, cleared 5 feet to win that event with the Lakers’ Maddie Wright third by topping 4’10”.
Langhorn also piled up points, winning the triple jump with a best attempt of 32’9 1/2″, three inches ahead of the 32’6 1/2″ from Altmar-Parish-Williamstown’s Isabella Scott.
Elsewhere, Langhorn got third in the long jump, going 15’8 1/4″, and was fourth (13.66 seconds) and Stevenson fifth (13.80) in the 100-meter dash, with Stevenson also fifth in the 200-meter dash in 28.73 seconds.
Later in the day, the boys sectional Class B-2 meet took place and Skaneateles had a strong showing, finishing third with 70 points as Cazenovia (161 points) easily claimed the top spot and Clinton (90 points) was second.
Caleb Bender finished his high school career by giving the Lakers a victory in the 3,200-meter run, his time of 9:53.48 more than a full minute ahead of the field. Bender joined with Joe Norris, Braden Gryzlo and Nick Cerimeli to post a second-place 9:02.50 in the 4×800.
Matt Persampieri nearly won the 800, his 2:05.14 inches behind Cazenovia’s Cooper Hughes (2:04.90) as Norris was fourth in 2:14.56. Jack Phillips had a second-place time of 52.23 seconds in the 400 sprint, with Will Girzadas second in the 1,600-meter run in 4:48.26.
Max Paciorek was second in the high jump, clearing 5’8”, got fourth in the 110 hurdles in 17.55 seconds and also helped Skaneateles take third in the 4×400 in 3:55.58. The Lakers were fifth in the 4×100 in 49.25 seconds as J-E (48.90) got fourth place.
Ben Euto was fourth in the shot put, heaving it 41’1 3/4” as J-E’s Tyler Spencer was fifth with 38’9 1/2”. The Eagles’ Nolan Jackson got fifth place in the triple jump.
