It’s time to start readjusting those pre-season goals.
That was on the to-do list for several of our winners, and we’re sure a lot more, at Saturday’s Freshmen-Sophomore Large School Invitational. PRs, often huge PRs, came in bunches during the five-hour meet at the Reggie Lewis Center.
“This changes my goals a lot,” said Whitinsville Christian’s Emily Flagg after her dominating victory in the two mile run. The Crusader sophomore went into the race with a goal of breaking the meet record of 10:58.94 by former Natick great Grace Connolly in 2017. In a solo effort, Flagg didn’t just break Connolly’s eight-year-old mark, she simply destroyed it with a runaway victory and PR of 10:45.38. She won the race by nearly 75 seconds and improved on her previous all-time best from outdoor by 20 seconds!
“Today, I was going for a time around 10:56,” she admitted. “When I saw the time (on the clock) when I crossed the finish, I was shocked.”
Flagg, who was already far ahead of the field after the first lap, passed through her opening mile at 5:20. That was a time that was just a few seconds from her mile PR of 5:16.25, set last week at the Boston Holiday Challenge.
“I actually felt really good,” she said. “I didn’t think I would feel that good going out that fast. I was surprised with how I felt, and was able to keep going.”
It was all about PRs (and team unity) for Andover teammates Landon Zoos, Charlie Gallaudet and Zain Shah. The Golden Warrior tenth-graders swept the top three placements in the boys’ 1,000-meter run with Zoos earning the victory by edging Gallaudet by .37 with his time of 2:41.06. Shah finished third at 2:44.38.
“We wanted to finish all three together, so we just stuck close to each other.” Zoos said.
“The race plan, (Zoos) likes to go out hard, we were going to stick with him and just finish,” Gallaudet said. “Just grind it out.”
Plymouth North’s Dylan Monteiro broke the 1:30 barrier for the first time to capture the boys’ 600m. Monteiro was nearly three seconds faster than his previous best with a winning time of 1:27.56. He beat a talented field that saw four more under 1:30, including runner-up Scott Feeney of Xaverian Brothers, who was just strides behind Monteiro with his time of 1:28.11. Acton Boxborough’s Ian Hurlbut-Lesk was third in 1:28.43.
“I just kind of ran my race,” Monteiro said. “I was shooting for first, and I got it. I put my heart and soul into it.”
Newton North sophomore Blake MacNeal was a double-winner, taking gold in the 55m hurdles (9.20) and the long jump (17 feet, 2 inches). Her effort in the 55m HH was a best by two tenths of a seconds. She had a season best in the long jump.
“Like, wow! This is such a huge PR,” said MacNeal, after her hurdle win. “Throughout my freshman year, I really struggled with my emotions and my nerves so I have been practicing positive self talk, and stuff like that. I feel like having those mindsets, having a good mindset and knowing you can do it, (helps). Someone beat my PR in the prelims. You just have to breathe and know you can do it. I think that’s what got me to the finish.”
Braintree’s Robert Nuvoli took home the shot title with a PR toss of 46-0.75. Nuvoli trailed eventual second-place finisher Jaeden Thompson (44-11.25) after his first two throws in the prelims and unleashed what would be his winning distance on his third attempt of the day. Five of his six throws exceeded 40 feet.
“My coaches behind me said go up high,” said Nuvoli, about his winning toss. “I knew I needed to go up high. I was focused, locked in, I threw it as far as I could and (got) as much power as I could, and threw 46 (feet).”
In the 55m dash, Durfee’s Presley Yentz and St. John’s Prep’s Dayviian Sullivan were the fastest in their respective girls’ and boys’ races. Yentz, a freshman, out-leaned fellow ninth-grader, Bridgewater-Raynham’s Allie Dubreus, at the line with a best of 7.54. Dubrues was timed in 7.56. Sullivan also won a close race, breaking the tape in 6.70. Bishop Feehan’s Xavier Baker clocked 6.74 for second. Along with teammates Jordon Toribio, Riley Selvais and Kai Danoff, Sullivan also ran a leg on Eagles’ triumphant 4x200m squad that combined for a time of 1:33.02.
Utilizing a patient approach in the boys’ mile, St. John’s Prep’s Henry McDonnell hung back with the leaders for the first half. He did most of his damage in the closing stages and won with a time of 4:38.25. Brookline’s Liam Hartmann was second at 4:39.59. Natick’s Callum Doyle also dipped under 4:40, placing third at 4:39.94.
“I kind of just want to stay with the pack the first 800 meters, see how fast it goes out and see how things play out,’ he said. “Then, after that, just trust my training, use my work, and see how it went from there. That’s kind of how it went today. It was perfect.”
