by Kurt Wheeler
CICERO – The Cazenovia girls track and field team concluded its stellar 2022 campaign with a series of season best performances at last Thursday’s Section III state qualifying meet at Cicero-North Syracuse’s Bragman Stadium..
Seventeen members of the squad advanced to the elite event as competitors or alternates one week after winning the Section III class B-2 championship.
The 4×800 meter relay led off the competition for Cazenovia, finishing third among all Division II teams.
For the New York State Public High School Athletic Association meet, schools are divided into two categories: Division 1 (enrollment of 600 or more) and Division 2 (under 600).
Among the 100 schools in Section III, 21 are Division 1 and 79 are Division II, creating fierce competition among the many small schools to advance as only the top individual or relay qualifies in each event.
Senior Claire Braaten led off the 4×800 with a strong 2:32.83 leg before passing the baton to Faith Wheeler, who ran her fastest 800 of the season in 2:31.21.
Senior Nadia Segall kept the Lakers in a strong position with a 2:38.12 leg before handing off to Dinah Gifford who finished with a 2:33.25 effort to cap Cazenovia’s best overall time of 2022 at 10:15.38.
The 4×100 team also ran their fastest time of the spring with seniors Melanie Michael and Katie Whitney starting and finishing the face and juniors Grace Dolan and Corinne Albicker running the middle legs. The foursome executed three perfect exchanges to earn a time of 51.88 and finish fourth in Division II.
The Laker 4×400 team also put on their best performance of the season to post their fastest time of 4:16.05 and earn third place in Division II Ironically, their time would have put them first among the larger Division 1 teams as West Genesee won that race in 4:16.83.
Grace Dolan led of the relay with her fastest time of the season in 1:01.2 before passing to senior Mary Williams, who also achieved a personal best time during her leg at 1:06.3.
Olivia Ruddy ran an outstanding third leg in 1:04.4, just a fraction of second from her all-time best before passing to anchor Meghan Mehlbaum who saved .2 off her best time to finish in 1:03.6.
Gifford returned to compete individually for the Lakers in the 2,000-meter steeplechase, her signature event during the season. She earned fourth place among all Division 2 athletes with an excellent time of 8:11.94, just off her season best of 8:03.0.
Susie Pittman led the Lakers’ field event athletes, competing in the pole vault one week after tying the school record in that event at 9 feet 6 inches. She was just off her record-setting height at the qualifier, clearing 9 feet to earn fourth place in her division.
Captain Katie Whitney closed out the Lakers’ 2022 campaign with strong performances in both the semis and finals of the 100-meter dash. She earned her way into the finals with a 13.16 effort in the semis and capped her distinguished career with a 13.15 effort to earn fifth among all small school sprinters.
The series of outstanding performances was a fitting conclusion for Cazenovia’s season which saw them complete an undefeated run to capture the regular season league title and achieve first place finishes at the Onondaga and Clinton Invitationals and impressive wins at both the OHSL Liberty and sectional meets.
