BUCKLAND — It was an all-around effort from the Frontier girls track team to get the job done on Saturday at the Western Mass. Division 2 Track & Field Championships at Mohawk Trail High School.
Eleven different Redhawk girls scored points, with Frontier totaling 93 on the day to run away with a first-place team finish.
Lenox took second as a team with 69 points followed by Pope Francis in third with 65 points.
“This was a total surprise,” Redhawks senior Alena Maes-Polan said. “I’m so proud of the girls. They did amazing today. We have so much young potential and it’s amazing that they’re coming out here and doing their jobs. It’s amazing. Everybody did their part and we rose to the challenge.”
A pair of first place finishes helped get the job done for Frontier. Sadie Ross won the javelin with a toss of 99 feet, seven inches while Caroline Crocker pulled out a first-place finish in the 100-meter hurdles with a time of 15.34 seconds.
Hannah Mackin took third in the mile (5:54.77), Abigail Howard earned second in the high jump (5-0) and Maes-Polan took second in the pole vault (9-6) to round of the Redhawk medalists on the day.
Frontier took second as a team in the 4×800 relay (11:07.04).
Crocker said getting to race against top competition brought out her best She took fourth in the long jump (15-6.5) and competed in the 4×100 relay to go along with her win in the 100 hurdles.
“It was a very good day,” Crocker said. “I didn’t have any competition this season so coming here was stressful. There were a ton of teams I haven’t gone against yet.”
The junior had to turn it on late to assure a win in the 100 hurdles. South Hadley’s Emma Sanford was right on her trail, with Crocker edging her out by just 0.11 seconds to earn the victory.
“I knew it was going to be close,” Crocker said. “I could see her in the corner of my eye so I knew I had to go. It’s a stressful race because there’s a lot to focus on.”
Mahar’s Sienna Moore took home more than just a medal on Saturday. She was awarded the Vincent Falardeau Award, given out by the Western Massachusetts Track and Field Officials Association to an outstanding senior female track and field athlete who demonstrates sportsmanship, is a leader and has a great work ethic.
“I had no idea I was getting that beforehand,” Moore said. “I came off my hurdle final race, [Mahar coach Sarah Woodward] pulled me over and told me to rest by the truck. It’s nice that all my hard work put in has paid off and I got recognized for it.”
Along with the Vincent Falardeau Award, Moore earned a first place finish in the pole vault with a leap of 10-5. The senior also took sixth in the 100 hurdles (17.5) and eighth in the triple jump (31-6) in what was a busy day. Mahar’s Stellina Moore was third in the pole vault (8-0).
“Before I jumped in pole vault I had done six jumps in triple, a round of hurdle prelims and hurdle finals,” Sienna Moore said. “Today was about getting ready before the meet to make sure I was hydrated enough. I never stopped stretching. I had a really good time for myself in the hurdles. Pole vault is my favorite and most important. I need some consistency with my higher jumps. That’s going to come with practice.”
Greenfield’s Lillia Kachelmeyer finished Saturday in first place in the discus, but with the toss area not big enough for all contestants (some were hitting trees and going into the woods) some contestants have to finish the competition on Monday. Kachelmeyer was still pleased with her top toss of 101-11.
“Discus was tricky because of the tree line,” Kachelmeyer said. “It’s 150 feet as far as it can go without hitting the trees. We had a lot of medalists on our team today which is awesome.”
Greenfield’s Tess Rancourt came away with a second place finish in the shot put (36-10.5).
Pioneer eighth grader Nina St. Clair continues to shine on the track, finishing second in the 100 with a sprint of 13.05 seconds. She also took 11th in the high jump (4-6).
“It was a good day,” St. Clair said. “High jump went OK but the relay was fun. I hope I can get first next week at states in the 100, I’ll be practicing all week.”
Ellie Pinkham of the host Warriors was busy on Saturday, coming in second in the 200 (27.18) and fourth in the 100 (13.48). She was pleased with both times.
“I ran the 200, was really tired then had to run the 100, then hop back over to the 200,” Pinkham said. “I didn’t expect to do as well as I did in the 200. I’m happy with how I did today.”
Liviu Mihailicenco continues to break Greenfield school records.
Already holding the Green Wave record in the high jump, the senior came across the finish line in a time of 15.16 seconds in the 110 hurdles which was good for first place while also setting a Greenfield school record on Saturday.
He was able to accomplish that despite not getting off to the start he wanted.
“My downside is when I start, I’m slightly slower,” Mihailicenco said. “I knew that my starts were slightly off. I’m able to pick up the pace and my form is just natural with hurdles. I’m able to just beat everyone at the end because I’m consistent.”
Mihailicenco also took first in the high jump with a mark of 6-2, which narrowly beat out Frontier’s Erich Brown (6-0). He also took fifth in the long jump (19-0) to help lead the Green Wave to a third place finish with 62 points, just behind Mt. Greylock in first (69 points) and Pittsfield in second (66 points).
It was the big race feel that kept Mihailicenco going through the extreme heat on Saturday.
“Going into today my shin has been killing me at practice,” Mihailicenco said. “The feeling I get with the atmosphere here gets me going. I kept pushing. If I was at a normal meet at the high school I’d be really tired. Here I just went everywhere.”
Fellow Green Wave competitor Theo Popusoi surprised himself with his mark in the triple jump. The senior took second with a leap of 41-4.5, which was two feet better than his previous best.
“A couple weeks ago, 40 feet on triple jump was insane to me,” Popusoi said. “I was just feeling so good. My first jump was 39-6 and I thought that was it. They told me to get my last two [jumps] in so it was quick. I was on my toes and my number just kept going up.”
That got the momentum going for Popusoi, as he also won the 400 hurdles with a time of 59.29 seconds and took second in the pole vault (13-0).
“I was ready to go after the triple jump,” Popusoi said. “Next up was the 400 hurdles and I was ready for that. I used to hate that race when I first started but I got good at it. I was expected to win that one. If I just did good I would have won and that’s what I did. I was happy with the time. Sub one minute is hard to hit. I was pretty tired by the time pole vault came around.”
Keegan Doty-Smith took third in the pole vault (10-0) and Deion Brewington came in third in shot put (40-9) to round out the Greenfield medalists.
Like many athletes, it was a day of running from event-to-event for Frontier’s Jack Vecellio. The senior took first in the pole vault (16-0), competed in the 4×400 and came in second in the 100 with a time of 11.54. He was only beat by South Hadley star and Harvard-bound Jonas Clark in the 100.
“It was a marathon,” Vecellio said. “Got here, warmed up for pole vault, did my 100 trial before entering. Once I got the first event done it was go-go-go from there. It was a good day. I’ve been friends with Jonas for a long time so finally getting to race against him was fun. We’ve never competed with each other.”
At the MIAA Division 6 state meet next week, Vecellio is hoping for a record-breaking day in the pole vault.
“I want to break the state meet record,” Vecellio said. “[The current mark of] 17-2 is a good mark. We’re getting new poles and are trying to get on a new run. I think I’ll be able to knock that out.”
Franklin Tech’s Brayden McCord set a personal record in the triple jump with a mark of 36-10, a mark he was satisfied with en route to a 15th-place finish.
“It was good. I could have done better but it was really hot out,” McCord said.
Other top local finishers included Mohawk Trail’s Dennis Simmons, who took fourth in the 2 mile (10:33.74), and Athol’s Joseph Gray, who came in fourth in the shot put (40-04.5).