4x200m
While the 4x400m may get all the attention as the last event, the 4x200m is by far the most intense. Having the four fastest guys isn’t enough. If you can’t execute your handoffs, it’s going to be a tough day out there. That will be the key on Saturday. Execution.
Newton North and Catholic Memorial have both run under 1:30 this year, the Tigers doing so just last week at the Division 1 Championships. Can they duplicate their performance? They won’t be alone either, as Saint John’s Prep and Xaverian are right there having run 1:30.03 and 1:30:06. Four teams under 1:30 would make this the event of the day. It would also mean a lot of traffic during handoffs.
Boston College High School and Revere have both run under 1:31 as well and are capable of pulling off the upset.
4x800m
This one can be tough to predict as you never know who’s going to preserve their legs and run fresh. Based off the entries it looks like it should be a healthy mix of runners going fresh and some doubling back.
Lowell holds the top time in the state so far, at 8:01.69 from their win at the Division 1 Relays. However, it was Brookline who emerged victorious last week with an impressive 8:01.97. Given their performance there, it’s hard to bet against them. Andover enters as the #3 Seed with an 8:03.07, another performance from the Relay meet. Natick was runner up last week, running 8:06.26. Impressive, as most of their athletes were doubling back like Brookline’s.
Concord-Carlisle is one to watch out for. They won D2 Relays with an 8:05.20 and won last week’s Division 2 Championship in 8:09.29. They have yet to face any of their Division 1 counterparts.
The Wildcard may be Xaverian as they appear to be focusing solely on the 4x800m. They enter with a best of 8:16 but should be able to run much faster than that. Their quartet features Division 1 1000m champ Marco Petrino, as well as top 600m runners Jack Weintraub and Scotty Feeney.
4x400m
Brookline enters as the favorite after running a state #1 3:23.51 at last Week’s Division 1 Championship. That was anchor leg Harry Flint’s third race of the day. Newton North and Boston College High School were not far off, running 3:24.38 and 3:24.99. Can one of them make the leap and upset Brookline? Like the 4x800m, if there’s gains to be made, it usually comes from running fresh.
Don’t count out Reading. While they’ve only run 3:27.41, it’s hard to bet against 33 second 300m man, Ryan Pulpi. Brockton is another team that’s been in the 3:25 range since early December. Can they finally breakthrough? The final heat should be fantastic. While there is no team score, there will be a lot of pride on the line.
