Sophomore Roniel Foster takes the first of his attempts at the long jump. Foster went on to win the long jump, the triple jump, and the 100-meter dash in the meet against Littleton. (Photo by Lisa Aciukewicz)
The Bromfield boys and girls track teams defeated Littleton Tuesday, April 26, at the McCurdy track. The determined Trojans placed first in all running events and most field events.
The boys team overpowered Littleton, 102-34. The Trojans placed first in the 100-meter, 110-meter high hurdles, 200-meter, 400-meter, 400-meter hurdles, 800-meter, 1-mile, 2-mile, and also earned second and third places in various events.
Sophomore Dan Colony placed first in the 200-meter dash with a time of 24.3 seconds. Although Colony technically ran faster than the previous school record of 24.39 seconds, boys coach David Boisvert has chosen not to count it. Boisvert said, “Dan will need to break the school record on a machine timer, just like the last runner who set the school record. Dan’s performance this meet was recorded using a stop watch, which is not always accurate. I still think that Dan will be able to break the record, just at a later meet.”
Regardless of the school record discrepancies, Colony still feels confident in his running abilities. He said, “It’s fair that they didn’t count my time as the new school record. I was a little disappointed at first, but I think with enough practice, I’ll be able to break the school record with a substantially faster time.”
The Bromfield boys swept several races in which they placed first, second, and third. In the 400-meter, sophomores Patrick Griffin and Brendan Beale, and eighth-grader Price Day placed in the top three, with times of 56.5 seconds, 61.1 seconds, and 61.7 seconds, respectively. Freshman Paul Malloy, sophomore Emmet Norton, and junior Ellis Toll swept the 800-meter, with times of 2 minutes, 16.8 seconds, 2 minutes, 17.0 seconds, and 2 minutes, 24.9 seconds, respectively. In addition, junior Nick Kronauer, Norton, and freshman Sam Dyer placed first, second, and third, respectively, in the 1-mile.
Other first-place achievements were made by sophomore Roniel Foster in the 100-meter dash, sophomore Glenn Steranka in the 110-meter high hurdles, sophomore Nick Walker in the 400-meter hurdles, Malloy in the 800-meter, and Toll, who had an impressive 2-mile time of 11 minutes, 21.5 seconds.
Both the 4×100-meter and 4×400-meter relays ended in victory for the Bromfield boys. As for field events, Bromfield swept the long jump with Foster, sophomore Job Clayburn, and Colony placing first, second, and third, respectively.
Other first-place performances for the field events were made by junior Deji Oyekunle, who threw shot put at a distance of 38 feet, 7.5 inches, and Foster, who jumped the triple jump at a distance of 39 feet, 3.75 inches.
“The boys did very well against Littleton” said Boisvert. “Sometimes success can lead to the boys caring less because they are confident in their abilities. However, as practices progress, the boys put more and more effort into their running.”
The girls also celebrated a clear victory against Littleton with a score of 111 to 25. “The girls did an excellent job running against Littleton,” according to girls coach Ray Dunn. “We made a strong showing. Several of our runners tried to compete at different distances and the results were successful.”
Seventh-grader Amy Hunter led the 100-meter dash, followed closely by sophomore Emma Hall, placing first and second, with times of 13.9 seconds, and 14.0 seconds, respectively.
The 100-meter high hurdles event was also led by Bromfield, as sophomore Moriah Arnold and eighth-grader Amy Jorgensen defeated their Littleton opponents by several seconds. Arnold placed first with a time of 17.0 seconds, while Jorgensen followed close behind in second place, with a time of 18.3 seconds.
The Bromfield girls destroyed their opponents at the 200-meter dash, where senior Kim West and sophomore Alyssa Johnson sprinted neck-and-neck, with eighth-grader Heather Flokos following close behind. West and Johnson placed first and second, respectively, with a shared time of 27.8 seconds, while Flokos placed third with a time of 28.5 seconds.
The girls also swept the 800-meter with freshman Alexia Lipman, and seniors Mimi Narbonne and Margaret Kibbler placing first, second, and third, respectively.
Both the 4×100-meter and 4×400-meter relays were victories claimed by the Bromfield girls.
Other first-place victories went to West for the 400-meter, freshman Sarah Rowse for the 400-meter hurdles, junior Alyssa Swindells for the 1-mile, and senior Sydney Durand for the 2-mile.
In addition to impressive showings for the running events, the Bromfield girls demonstrated skill and technique through victories in most field events. Bromfield swept the long jump with seventh-grader Emily Arnold, sophomore Caroline Turnbull, and sophomore Vishwa Rasania placing in the top three, respectively. The shot put also followed in the same suit, as eighth-grader Brianna Harte, Hunter, and junior Hannah Keaney placing in the top three, respectively.
Other field event victories included junior Molly Papazian for the discus, Turnbull for the high jump, and Emily Arnold for the javelin throw.
According to Dunn, the success of the girls team was largely due to the strong leadership and camaraderie between teammates. He said, “Our seniors are great leaders and help to teach our younger runners about competing at a very high level.”
