LYNN — Each year, Lynn’s fifth graders take a field trip to Manning Field for what Joe Abelon calls “the biggest athletic event in the city by far.” The Lynn fifth grade track meet wrapped up Monday with over 900 total participants competing in a range of events.
The fifth grade meet, in its fifth annual edition, started on June 12 and also ran on the 13th before concluding on Monday. The meet was originally scheduled to run through four days of events but inclement weather shortened it to three.
“It’s the entire fifth grade class that gets bussed down,” Abelon, who has organized the event for the past five years, said. “The kids get excited to run and see their classmates run. Unfortunately one of our four days was rained out this year. The kids like it, the principals like it. The kids really enjoy it, especially the one who aren’t involved in team organized sports. Everyone’s involved here.
“I checked through the internet to see if different cities had any meets like this,” Abelon added. “I couldn’t find any.”
While there aren’t many athletic events that give elementary schools students a platform to compete, the fifth grade meet stands as one of the few.
“The meet has grown because the fifth-grade student population has grown,” Abelon said. “The kids like it. The top three teams in each gender get a plaque. The kids get excited about placing in the top three. It’s a big thing.”
With a large group competing, Abelon said the event wouldn’t have been a success without the help of volunteers. Through the first four years, Lynn’s high schools would alternate in sending a group of volunteers to Manning. This year, the meet conflicted with final exam schedules and students from Breed Middle School came to the rescue.
“We sometimes have three to four stations going on at a time,” Abelon said. “We need people timing, putting numbers on the kids and judges. That’s staffed by volunteers from the high schools and they normally alternate. This year, the dates turned out to be during exam week and we had kids come down from Breed Middle School. They were fantastic. You can’t run these events without excellent volunteers.”
Washington Elementary finished in first place in the boys meet, while Ford and Connery finished second and third, respectively. In the girls meet, Shoemaker earned first place and Aborn finished in a close second. Cobbett finished in third place.
Connery took first place in the boys 4×100 while Shoemaker won the same event on the girls side.
In the boys 50 meter run the top three finishers were Connery’s Endrie Chung (8.1 seconds), Washington’s Ryan Mendez (8.4) and Ford’s Joseph Martinez (8.4). On the girls side, the top three were Tracy’s Evelyn Diaz Aquino (8.5), Ford’s Tatiana Lazo (8.6) and Lynn Woods’ Laura Simpson (8.7).
In the boys 100 meter, Washington’s Aaron Wiggins (16.1), Cobbet’s Brayan Chilel Ventu (16.6) and Hood’s Jaden Touy (16.9) were the top three finishers. In the girls 100, the top three were Yhisleidy Aracena (15.9), Marcelina Gomes (16.2) and Shania Warner (17.1)- all from Cobbet.
In the boys 200 meter, Fallon’s Sthiben Valdez (31.0), Shoemaker’s Christian Serino (34.5) and Washington’s Dellin Kuy (35.1) were the top three finishers. The top three finishers in the girls 200 were Shoemaker’s Jessica Howell (34.6), Lynn Woods’ Amanda Hughes (35.4) and Fallon’s Lee Anna Flaherty (36.5).
In the boys 400 meter, the top three finishers were Cobbett’s William Ross Pena (1:22.3), Ford’s Federico Hernandez (1:25.6) and Connery’s Dennis Landaverde (1:25.8). In the girls 400 the top three were Aborn’s Georgia Allaire (1:25.7), Sewell Anderson’s Talia Parker (1:26.2) and Connery’s Leanny Sanchez Ynoa (1:29.9).
In the boys 800 meter, Washington’s Andrew Koroma provided one of the top highlights of the meet. Koroma set the fifth grade meet 800 meter record with a time of 2:57.4. Connery’s Wiljaniel Echandy (also beat the previous record, 2:58.2) and Shoemaker’s Jordan Em (3:25.6) finished in second and third, respectively. In the girls 800, Shoemaker’s Kaydee Rouse (3:25.4), Ford’s Brenda Mejia Garcia (3:28.5) and Hood’s Julis Alix (3:47.6) were the top three.
In the boys long jump, Ford’s Many Lovera Collado and Jael Taveras Jerez tied for first (8 feet, 3 inches). Tracy’s Pedro Bamaca Barrio (8 feet) finished third. In the girls long jump, Washington’s Natalia Silva Costa (6 feet, 11 inches), Connery’s Katherine Guzman (6 feet, 10 inches) and Connery’s Leanny Sanchez Ynoa (6 feet, 8 inches) were the top three.
In the boys mile, the top three were Washington’s Alexander Pojoy (6:49.7), Lynn Woods’ Luke Phelan (6:52.6) and Tracy’s Milton Lopez Mendez (7:20.4). In the girls mile, the top three were Sewell-Anderson’s Melanie Smith (7:43.9), Shoemaker’s Sierra Leon Chhoeun (7:48.1) and Aborn’s Mea Papazoglou (7:53.2).
In the boys softball throw, Ford’s Yefri Mendez (130 feet, 1 inch), Cobbet’s Edwin Valenzuela (123 feet) and Aborn’s Giovanni Batista (121 feet, 8 inches) were the top three. The top three in the girls softball throw were Callahan’s Nsengiyumva Aline (82 feet), Aborn’s Mea Papazoglou (81 feet, 9 inches) and Lincoln-Thomson’s Leanyah Pineiro (81 feet, 1 inch).
