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Outdoor T&F Preview: Girls’ Shot & Hammer Throw
Shot
The competition up front should be tight in this event with at least two, maybe three, athletes capable of securing a top podium spot at the State Meet. Defending champion Alyssa Yankee of Cumberland, who claimed indoor gold this past winter, is the favorite. Yankee won last year’s competition with an all-time best of 38 feet, 9 inches. It was an effort she nearly matched during indoor when she took the top prize with a heave of 38-8.75 after missing more than a month of the season due to a fractured ankle. Could we see a 40-footer this spring? It could happen considering what the Clipper senior did after her unscheduled time off. Bay View’s Suraily Sam, a runner-up to Yankee at the indoor states, had a PR of 38-0 at the New Balance Nationals. She certainly could pose a threat for that top position. Class A champion Aviana Rezendes is another athlete you can’t ignore. Rezendes twice exceeded 37 feet with a best of 37-5 to win her class title. She has been somewhat inconsistent in this event with throws ranging in the 32- to 37-foot range. If she can manage that consistency she could be in the conversation. All it takes is one bi throw.
Hammer
Among our returnees, Narragansett’s Kylee Bennett and Lincoln’s Jillian Leahy were the only athletes to exceed 150 feet in 2022. Bennett had a PR of 159-8 to take runner-up honors at the State Meet, while Leahy had her best of 153-9 at the season-opening Knights of Columbus Relays. No doubt confidence will be sky high for the the Leahy, who captured the state and New England titles in the weight throw this winter and nearly won it all at the New Balance Nationals where she was second overall by less than two inches. Bennett, who was fourth in the weight at the indoor states, had a 10-foot best to earn her silver last spring. She came back a few week later to placed third at the New Balance Nationals, an event won by graduating senior Liangie Calderon of Coventry. After a strong indoor season in the weight, we’re expecting Woonsocket’s Isabella Piette to be in that 150-foot range this season. She had her best of 145-5 at the K of C relays. Piette is coming off a winter campaign where she won the divisional crown in the weight and was the runner-up at the Class A Championships and State Meet.
