MARBLEHEAD — It was a rainy, cold meet at the Village Track as Marblehead took on Northeastern Conference opponents Swampscott and Danvers. The Marblehead boys and girls won to begin the spring 2-0.
Jumper Clark Roszell remained undefeated across NEC competition (indoor and outdoor) with a clearance of 5-10. Elian Colon impressed during both horizontal jumps (18-6 long jump – 2nd; 37-6 triple jump – 3rd).
Graham Firestone and Logan McRae-Hughes took home first and second, respectively, in discus. From there came a sweep for the javelin squad with impressive throws from Alex Humphreys, Phineas Jakious, and Graham Firestone: 137-02, 136-10, and 134-11, respectively.
Colin Hart (1:00.8), Nate Jendrysik (1:00.9), and Noah Jackson (1:02.5) swept the 400-meter hurdles. Jendrysik (15.6) set a new personal best in the 110-meter hurdles.
“He’s now a top 10 110-meter hurdler in Marblehead history,” said head coach Nolan Raimo.
Nate Selby (11.2) opened the season with an impressive 100-meter race to finish second. Eben Weed, Voeuncenzo Vorn, and Jack Franklin swept the 400-meter races with finishes of 53.2, 54.1, and 55.0, respectively.
“This group of juniors and a sophomore (Vorn) are poised to score a ton of points in the long sprints,” Raimo said.
Will Cruikshank outkicked the field to win the 800-meter race in 2:07. Nate Bentley, a freshman, closed in style with a time of 2:09.7 “to put down one of the fastest 800-meters we have seen from a freshman in some time,” Raimo said.
After an injury-plagued indoor season, Henrik Adams battled his Swampscott opponent through the final lap of the mile and finished second with a time of 4:44.9.
The 4×100-meter team of Dexter Wynn, Selby, Noah Smerka, and Slater Johnson finished second in 47.2.
On the girls’ side, Izzy Anaya Lanzillo (13-8) finished second in the long jump. Isabella Gonzalez finished third in her first time triple jumping with a leap of 28-3.
“A great way to open the season for the gymnast who is a multi-sport athlete,” Raimo said.
Naomi Goodwin finished second in the shot put with a throw of 24-5, while Lilah Greten (24-1) stepped up to capture third. Senior Liv Carlson, like Greten, stepped up to throw the discus for the first time because of a lack of depth.
“And she won the discus with a throw of 63-7 to earn a varsity letter in a single meet,” Raimo said.
Hailey Gilmore (63-1/2) grabbed silver in the javelin. Noah Walsh took home second place in the 400-meter hurdles with a time of 78.4. Arianna Leahy won the 100-meter hurdles (18.7), while Faith Apostolopoulos captured third place in 20.0.
“We have a lot of depth in the girls 100-meter hurdles and they’ll continue to grow throughout the season,” Raimo said.
Lucy Flynn opened the season with impressive sprints in the 100-meter (12.0) and 200-meter (25.5) races.
“Lucy is the fastest sprinter in school history and she continues to dominate the conference in her two primary events,” Raimo said.
Sarah Munroe completed a remarkable double: second in the 2-mile (11:52), then sprinting to win the 400-meter (62.69).
“This is phenomenal range that is rarely seen in an athlete,” Raimo said.
Marblehead’s outstanding distance duo of Marri O’Connell (11:41) and Munroe (11:52 – 30-second best) went 1-2 in the 2-mile, holding off talented Annabelle Averett, of Swampscott.
O’Connell won her second event with an impressive time of 2:29.5 in the 800-meter race (a five-second personal best that met the Div. 4 state championship standard). Walsh, also on her second event, turned in a solid time of 2:34.3 for second place.
First-time runner Courtney Hitscherich won the mile in 6:02.5.
“Courtney is a successful soccer player who is joining the ranks of the track team,” Raimo said. “Mady Danish, of Danvers, started to pull away after the first lap, but Courtney responded right away and stayed on her shoulder. It was a tight race until Courtney found another gear in the closing lap to seal the win.”
The 4×100-meter unit of Cora Gerson, Greten, Madelyn Terry, and Meghan O’Leary finished second with a time of 55.1 — an impressive time from the squad of seniors and freshmen, according to Raimo.
