A lot can get lost in the most competitive weekend of Track and Field within New York State. It's do or die at the State Qualifier, and athletes give it their all for a chance at a birth on the starting line at States. We went through each of the Sections to pick out our favorite marks, ahead of our full State Meet Preview coming out Wednesday. Check out all there is to see below, and tune back this weekend for our live broadcast, straight from Cicero-North Syracuse.
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Section 1
- Boys Highlight - The boys of Briarcliff threw down a D2 State Leading mark in the 4x800m, with their 8:03.86. Remember, their school has just under 500 athletes for their BEDS classification, so it's no small feat knocking on the 8min mark.
- Girls Highlight - Daphne Banino (Ursuline) dominated the 1500m with her 4:33.88, now standing as NY #10 for this year.
Section 2
- Boys Highlight - Carter Cukerstein (Shenendehowa). That's the name to know, as he dropped an All-Time best 10.29 in the 100m. It was wind-aided, but only with a 2.5m/s wind, so this could be a very fast State Meet. He'll also be back in the 200m. Not to be overshadowed, however, is Gitch Hayes (LaSalle Institute) in the 800m, dipping under 1:53.
- Girls Highlight - The times from Zionna Perez-Tucker (Mohonasen) were impressive, but 4.5m/s wind make them misleading. Where the real show was in the 1500m, where Saratoga put four athletes in the Top 5, led by sophomore Alycia Hart.
Section 3
- Boys Highlight - Michael Parks (ESM) dropped a State Leading, wind-legal #11 All-Time mark in the hurdles, a nice bit of redemption after hitting a hurdle in the Indoor Finals. He comes back as the State Favorite, while the Indoor State Champ, his teammate, is also in the field by way of the super standard.
- Girls Highlight - Tamiah Washington (Proctor) put out a huge mark in the Triple Jump, albeit not having a wind-gauge available. Still, 41-2.25 means Washington is the top seed heading into States, and with wind-legal marks on the track, we're betting she can do it again.
Section 4
- Boys Highlight - Clearly one of the top seeds in the 3200m, as he finished runner-up Indoors, Jack Gregorski (Corning) reminded everyone he can also run the mile. He dropped a 4:12.80 solo performance in the 1600m to put the State on notice.
- Girls Highlight - Vicky Mordvinvova (Elmira) swept the middle distances in the 800m/1500m, with her 800m performance being the strongest at 2:14.12.
Section 5
- Boys Highlight - The boys 1600m brought some new faces under 4:20.0 in Section 5, led by John Farrell (Fairport) at 4:15.09, with Nico Valentine (Pittsford-Mendon) right behind at 4:16.14.
- Girls Highlight - Zoe Marcus (Fairport) had a big day in the 800m, going 2:16.36 for the event, and pulling away from the field.
Section 6
- Boys Highlight - Sophomore Roan Kelly (Randolph) is a young athlete on the rise, and his 4:15.91 is the best mark for an underclassmen in the 1600m.
- Girls Highlight - Clearly, Angelina Napoleon (Allegany-Limestone) carries the most headline-grabbing performance, but don't pass up a look at the Triple Jump. Two sisters from the Hall family are both over 39-feet, but neither could topple the winner Madison Francis (Lancaster), who won with 39-7.5.
Section 7
- Girls Highlight - Lizzie Rich (Ticonderoga) threw the shot 38-2 for NY #4 in the D2 competition.
Section 8
- Boys Highlight - Colin Funk (Port Washington) had the double of the day, with a 1:55.06 in the 800m, then coming back with a 4:18.26 in the 1600m.
- Girls Highlight - Speaking of doubles, Tori Daniels (Valley Stream South) showed up in the 200m and the 400m, with impressive marks in both at 24.72 and 56.43.
Section 9
- Boys Highlight - Finally. Cornwall boys becomes the first 4x400m of the year, indoors or out, to crack 4:20.00 in the mid-distance relay. Their mark saves the streak, and makes them the favorite for the State Title.
- Girls Highlight - The marks may have been more conservative than what is capable, but Karrie Baloga (Cornwall) put down respectable times to win the 3k, 2k Steeple, and helped her 4x800m to States.
Section 10
Highlights - Maddie Dinneen (Norwood-Norfolk) led the field in the 1500m with a 4:48.42, heading to the State Meet in the D2 competition.
Section 11
- Boys Highlight - It was a NY #4 performance from Jermaine Thompson (Connetquot) in the 200m that caught our eye, with his 10.81 in the 100m there to bolster his sprint stock.
- Girls Highlight - It was maybe one of the deepest girls' competitions of the entire State, so it was hard to pick which event was the best. Girls Shot Put was a serious contender, but Sofia Condron's 2:10.94 for 800m over Zariel Macchia (Floyd) outshined the field in this instance
PSAL
- Boys Highlight - An impressive double out of Shane Ashton (Franklin K Lane) in the 200m/400H, with a NY #10 performance in the former.
- Girls Highlight - We knew Anissa Moore (Paul Robeson) would be the class of the field in the 400m, but the rest of the PSAL didn't give away the title easy. She pulled two more athletes into the Top 10 in the event in the same race, with even more in the Top 20.
CHSAA
- Boys Highlight - There's a lot to pick from here, not least of which were the strong 4x800m's. But we're looking at the Pole Vault, where Nicholas Lourenco (Saint Anthony's) went 16-9, and two more of 14-feet.
- Girls Highlight - Brinesha Derrick-Bain (Bishop Loughlin) swept the hurdles, with the 400H being the better mark, now at NY #3 in the event.
AIS
- Boys Highlight - Nikhil DeNatale (Trinity School) is one of the stronger distance athletes in the State, so his 9:28.15 in the 3200m was more casual than what's capable, but it sets him up for States.
- Girls Highlight - Skyy Johnson (Ethical Culture Fieldston) put out a jump of 18-5.5 for the Long Jump, the third ranked among the D2-sized school districts.