STATEN ISLAND – Indoor track and field athletes from four area high schools would seek medals during last Saturday’s New York State Public High School Athletic Association championships at Staten Island’s Ocean Breeze Complex.
Accustomed to excelling in distance races, Fayetteville-Manlius had a serious championship contender in the boys 55-meter dash thanks to Nick Domashenko, whose 6.36 seconds was second in the state going into the meet.
Sure enough, Domashenko found himself right at the finish line, a state title within reach. He finished the final with another 6.36 – and was second by one-hundredth of a second to the 6.35 of Rochester McQuaid’s Rhoan Kaulder while he edged state 55-meter hurdles champion Camron Ingram (Cicero-North Syracuse), who was third in 6.40.
Also, in the 300-meter dash Domashenko, who posted 35.85 seconds this season to qualify, tore to a time of 34.62 in the qualifying round before reaching the finals where he took 12th place in 35.61.
Then there was the girls 3,000-meter run where F-M’s Izzie Sullivan, whose 9:47 flat was the second-quickest time in the state in that race, would improve to 9:33.24 on her way to third place as William Floyd’s Zariel Macchia won in 9:21.73.
Qualifying sixth in the 4×800 relay, Sullivan paired with Camille Ryan, Claire McDonald and Ella Halbig to improve upon 9:29.10 and medal – and the Hornets did so, going 9:27.73 for eighth place though it trailed C-NS’s fourth-place 9:22.88.
In the boys 1,000-meter run, Will Ditre, seeded eighth with 2:31.63 this winter, also earned a spot on the medal podium, quicker by nearly a second at 2:30.65 and sixth overall just behind the 2:30.32 of West Genesee’s Michael Gomes.
Jamesville-DeWitt had medal contenders in the boys and girls throwing events. Kevin Vigneault’s shot put of 57 feet 2 inches made him fifth among qualifiers and a weight throw of 61’6” also fit him within the top 10.
With a top shot put toss of 54’7 3/4” on his second try, Vigneault secured sixth place overall and fifth among public-school competitors as Batavia’s Sheldon Siverling won with 61’5”. In the weight throw Vigenault went 58’5 1/2” and earned 13th place.
On the girls side, J-D’s Skylar Vaught, sixth among qualifiers in the shot put with 38’11 1/4”, could only manage 32’6” here and finished 17th overall, while in the weight throw Vaught’s toss of 44’4 1/2” would improve her to 13th place.
East Syracuse Minoa had just one athlete from its first boys Section III championship team in more than 30 years – Jay-Neil McDuffie, a medal contender in the long jump and 55-meter hurdles.
McDuffie’s 23-foot leap in the long jump this season made him eighth best among state meet qualifiers, and though he fell off to 21’1 1/4” it still landed him in 14th place, while he was disqualified in the 55-meter hurdles after going 7.62 seconds in that event to reach the state meet.
Already a state champion in football last fall, Christian Brothers Academy’s Quinten Lewis competed in the boys triple jump here, having gone 45 feet in the winter and nearly matching it with 44’6 1/4” here for 12th place overall.
