The 60m race was the most popular event of the day, featuring 90 finishers across 15 heats, including three 1-year-olds who toddled down the track with their parents. Get ’em started early! Overall winner Max Kuwaye certainly wasn’t toddling as he claimed first place in 6.87 seconds. Close behind were Morrisville State College’s Nhlakaniphu Shezi, who finished in 6.90 seconds, and Thomas Eison, in 6.93 seconds. In the women’s race, Piper Hoprich of North Penn-Mansfield dashed to first place with a time of 7.68 seconds. She was followed by Jalasia Demember, who secured second in 8.20 seconds, narrowly edging out Scarlett Graham of North Penn-Mansfield, who crossed in 8.30 seconds. Note that while we are confident in the positions, the limitations of hand timing mean that the precise times might differ from what fully automatic timing would have recorded.

After 16 heats of the 200m, Siyel Bowman of Morrisville State College won the final heat of the day with a time of 23.42 seconds. Riki Sampson of the Cornell Track & Field Club was close behind, finishing at 23.58 seconds, while Brayden Johnson of North Penn-Mansfield secured the third spot with a time of 24.44 seconds. On the women’s side, North Penn-Mansfield’s Piper Hoprich earned her second crown of the day by finishing first in 27.18 seconds. Makenna Keough took second place with a time of 28.30 seconds, and Karson Mackey of the Groton Project finished third in 29.14 seconds.

The outcome of the 800m was never in question, with Ithaca High School and Bucknell College alum Alexander Simpson taking the lead early and gapping the field in the final lap with a ferocious kick to win in 1:55. Riki Sampson of the Cornell Track & Field Club finished second in 2:00, followed by Groton Project’s Ross Bush in 2:03. For the women, 42-year-old Liz Hartman set a grown-up PR to win in 2:39, outrunning teenagers Ava Jones of the Wyoming Elite Track Club and Stella Mason, as well as 12-year-old standout Cora Hayes, who finished in a near dead heat with times of 2:40.00, 2:40.19, and 2:40.29.

In the mile, Michael Ventricelli of Morrisville State College quickly outpaced the field and ran alone for the win with a time of 4:37. The race for second place was much more exciting, as Harry Greene clocked a 4:51.25 to nip Johnny Schellenger’s 4:51.61 at the line. In the women’s race, Sara Bronson took first place with a time of 5:27, while 12-year-old Cora Hayes ran an impressive 5:44 to secure second. Liz Hartman claimed the final podium spot with a time of 5:46.

We always end the meet with a relay, and in the 4x200m relay, Morrisville State College A crossed the line just a nose ahead of an unattached team, 1:39.47 to 1:39.71. The race for third was almost as close, with Kachow just sneaking past Morrisville State College B, 1:44.22 to 1:44.66. Overall, seven teams broke 2 minutes for the 800m race, with three more at 2:00 and 2:01.

The men’s high jump was won by Hunter Heyden, who cleared 6 feet for first place. Rocco Coulibaly followed with a jump of 5 feet, 6 inches, while Nathan Fromme rounded out the top three with a height of 5 feet. On the women’s side, Deborah Ward topped the field by clearing 5 feet, with Nora Furry of North Penn-Mansfield and Makenna Keough both jumping 4 feet, 2 inches.

The men’s long jump was led by Max Kuwaye, who soared to a distance of 19 feet, 1.5 inches. Michael Fetzko of Morrisville State College came in second with a jump of 18 feet, 4.75 inches, and Brayden Johnson of North Penn-Mansfield took third with a jump of 17 feet, 11.5 inches. On the women’s side, Makenna Keough topped the rankings with a leap of 16 feet, 6.75 inches, followed by Megan Wong of the Cornell Track & Field Club at 15 feet, 4.25 inches, and Jenna Morningstar, who jumped 15 feet, 1.75 inches.

Thanks to Our Volunteers

Kudos to our volunteers for slogging through the rain and slush to make the meet a success. Tonya Engst, Alastair Hayden, Bill Begeal, Bob Talda, and Dave Kania arrived early to help with setup. Tonya continued to manage the registration desk and answer questions alongside Rebecca Lambert. Patrick Boyle kept honing his skills as our starter, Bob Talda did a great job as head timer, and Truck Rossiter and Charlie Fay coordinated the heats. Dave Kania and Jesse Koenecke kept HyTek Meet Manager running smoothly for results, Bill Begeal recorded bib numbers for longer races, and Jon Lewis counted laps and ran the backup timer. Our sprint timing team consisted of Tristan Lambert, Kate McCormick, Ian Golden, Sandy Gregorich, Christopher Guillen-Chacon, Jamie Loehr, Isabel Seeley, and Kelly Miller. Paul Houle took photos. Special thanks to Steve Wagner of the SOAR Running Club for overseeing the high jumps with the capable assistance of Jamie Loehr, and to Brett Shelton of SOAR for the long jump with support from Leo Nakaranuruck, Dirk Swart, and Sandy Gregorich.

Our third and final indoor track meet of the year—the new Strides of March—is coming up on March 16. If you’re looking for a final indoor time for the year, want to get the kids running around the track instead of the house, or just want to make up for being stymied by February’s weather, we look forward to seeing you! After that, the next opportunity will be the Sunset Circuits meet at Groton High School, tentatively set for June 17, followed by Trackapalooza, also at Groton, on July 19.