A new state record, a near miss and several performances that climbed high on the all-time list.
Day 1 of the MIAA Meet of Champions at Merrimack College delivered all that and more on Thursday night, providing the perfect opener to the two-day competition.
Catholic Memorial triple-jumper Amar Skeete accounted for the state mark. The gifted junior won his event by nearly four feet with a leap of 51 feet, 2 inches. The defending champion shattered his own state record of 50-5.25, set during his third-place finish at last year’s New Balance Nationals. It was his second jump beyond 50 feet this season and the third of his career.
Sharon’s Nina Kyei-Aboagye, the reigning 200-meter champion, successfully defended her title in a close race with Malden freshman Khadijah Diagne. Kyei-Aboagye blazed to a winning time of 23.56 seconds, holding off Diagne, who clocked 24.02. The Eagles’ standout was just shy of her state record of 23.28 from last year’s meet. Diagne’s time currently ranks No. 6 nationally among freshmen. Six in this race broke 25 seconds.
Two significant milestones were nearly achieved by Reading’s Ryan Pulpi in the boys’ 200m and Brookline’s Harry Flint in the 800m.
Pulpi flirted with a sub-21-second performance, clocking a brilliant 21.06, a time that ties him with former South Hadley star Jonas Hadley for No. 3 on the state’s all-time list. Xaverian Brothers’ Alex Todorov was second in the race at 21.42.
Flint came mere strides from a sub-1:50 in the 800m. Breaking away from Newburyport’s Michael Mohoric in the closing lap, the Warrior senior broke the tape in 1:50.33. Mohoric took runner-up honors in 1:52.41. Flint’s effort moved him to No. 5 on the all-time list. The current state mark of 1:49.68, set by Middlesex School’s Garrett O’Toole in 2014, appears well within the reach of the Brookline runner in meets ahead.
In the girls’ 800m, Canton’s Lauren Raffetto out-dueled Lexington’s Amelia Whorton. winning in 2:09.40. Whorton was second at 2:10.24. Raffetto chopped more than three seconds off her previous best! Nine in this field broke 2:15.
Indoor two-mile champion Greg McGrath of Boston College High made it a clean sweep of the deuce this year, claiming the outdoor crown in 9:12.42. McGrath was a convincing winner, taking the gold medal by more than 12 seconds! Oliver Ames’ Landon Sarney was second at 9:25.13.
Needham’s Greta Hammer successfully defended her title in the girls’ two-mile. The Rockets’ senior crossed the line in 10:34.55. Finishing second at 10:42.59 was Billerica’s Kylie Donahue.
Pre-meet favorites Aiden Calcano-Da Silva of Abington (52.61) and Solana Varela of Weston (1:00.52) won the respective boys’ and girls’ crowns in the 400m hurdles.
Cohasset’s Nicholas Askjaer lived up to his top billing in the discus. Askjaer won his first state title with a nearly five-foot best of 187-1. His performance moved him from No. 8 to No. 6 on the all-time list. Thomas Wood of Stoneham was second with a solid toss of 175-2.
Taunton’s Sophia Olaniyan was dominant in the girls’ discus, taking that crown by 14 feet with a distance of 140-1. Lexington’s Ainsley Cuthbertson was second at 126-2. Olaniyan’s performance ranks No. 6 on the state’s all-time list.
In the girls’ pole vault, Parker Charter’s Kinsley Kline matched her best from last week’s victory at the Division 6 Championships with a height of 12-feet even. Placing second at 11-6 was Ipswich’s Kameya Perron.
The girls’ triple jump created some excitement with the top two finishers leaping more than 40 feet. Cardinal Spellman’s Annaikiah Donahue-Wilfred earned the title with a best of 40-7.25, Lexington’s Aubrey Deardorf grabbed the silver with a distance of 40-1.25.
