While it’s his primary event during the indoor season, Sean Johnson will readily admit he’s not a fan of the 600-meter run. In fact, in his words, “it’s s super rough race. I hate it. Every time I do it I don’t want to.”
Hate, in this sense, may have a somewhat different meaning for the Westfield’s Sean Johnson than most when referring to the grueling three-lapper. He may hate the pain he often has to endure in competing in the event, but no doubt he loves the positive results it often produces, like Saturday’s Small School race at the MSTCA Winter Festival.
Coming on strong the final lap of the seeded 600m, Johnson was able power his way to an early-season victory inside the Reggie Lewis Track & Athletic Center. The Bombers talented senior finished with a time of 1 minutes, 26.60 seconds. Johnson was just a few strides ahead of runner-up Ashvin Baker of Wilmington, who was timed in 1:27.51.
The Westfield upperclassman, who has a best of 1:24.33 from his fourth-place finish at the Div. 3 Championships last year, trailed for the first two laps of the race. He did the most damage the last 200 meters of the race.
“I just ran my race and didn’t let it get to me,” he said. “Once I got to the last lap, whatever was left in the tank I just went all out.”
Wilmington sophomore Alexis LeBlanc (7.49) and Clinton’s Sean Blaze (6.64) won the respective girls’ and boys’ 55m titles.
“I tried to PR, tried to win it all It worked out,” Blaze said. “I have been working out all summer, and clearly it paid off.”
Coming off a mega-successful season in cross-country where she was virtually untouchable on the trails, Whitinsville Christian sophomore Emily Flagg won the girls’ mile. Displaying a similar strategy as her fall season, Flagg pushed the pace from the beginning and was never seriously challenged throughout the 10-lap race, winning with a time of 5:23.19. She was nearly 50m ahead of her next two rivals, Westfield’s Megan Moran (second, 5:31.37) and Littleton’s Erin Regan (third, 5:31,96).
“Today was just getting back to doing that shorter, faster stuff,” said the Crusader tenth-grader, who won individual crowns in the Div. 2C and Meet of Champions last month. “It felt good.”
In the boys’ mile, it was a 1-2-3 sweep by Parker Charter with the trio of Danny Garrison (4:34.78). Henry Jacobsen (second, 4:56.64) and Nataniel Henshaw (third, 4:39.73). Jacobsen led through most of the race only to be passed by a fast-charging Garrison on the last stretch of the race.
“Honestly, I was just trying to beat this guy, he was my main competition,” siad Garrison, while turning his head in the direction of Henshaw, while talking about his PR effort. “But, I’m definitely a kicker. I saw Henry and I was like, ‘Dude, this guy is really fast, I got to go get him.’ He’s definitely one of the fastest guys I know. We have a good dynamics.”
“He caught me off guard,” admitted Jacobsen. “He’s definitely has better end speed. He does the 800m a lot. he’s really good at that. I really think my strong suit is more distance so I tried to get a gap that he couldn’t close. But obviously, that didn’t go as good as planned.”
Henry, Jacobsen and Johnson, along with teammate Jeff Johnson combined for a time of 8:43.42 to take the 4x800m relay.
Para-Athlete Delmace Mayo got his winter campaign off to a strong start by finishing in front of the pack with a seven-second indoor best of 4:26.42. Mayo, one of the nation’s best para-athletes, was competing a day after committing to the University of Arizona where plans to continue his athletic career the next four years.
“(They) have one of the best programs for para-track and I can get to the Para-Olympics,” he said. “That’s been a goal of mine since I was ten, to get to the Para Olympics.”
Junior Katelyn Massey of Advanced Math and Science Academy cruised to the two-mile title with a time of 11:42.42, nearly a full lap ahead of second-place finisher Emily Oliver of Hopedale (12:14.64).
Massey generally competes in the mile where she has a PR of 5:29.83 from the Coaches Invitational last winter. It was her first time competing in the event.
‘I really like the two mile,” she said. “The mile is very fast. I think this is more a pacing-sort of strategy. It’s still very fast. But I think I have a lot more to improve in this one. I’m excited to see what I can do.”
Shepherd Hill’s Anthony Graves blazed to an all-time best of 35.87 to capture the boys’ 300m dash. He was eighth at the Division 3 Championships last year with a previous best of 36.15.
Hopedale’s Ari Levine, the state’s early shot-put leader, unleashed his second 50-footer of the season with a toss of 52 feet, 1 Inch.
