The spring of 2024.
The way West Warwick coach Jeff Parenteau figured it, that’s the time when he felt his young squad had a chance to make some history. That’s the time he felt his Wizards had the bets opportunity to win a team title in the biggest meet of the outdoor season.
He was off by a year.
In a good way, of course,
A school with a total enrollment of just over 1,000 students needed just three to get the job done on Saturday on a cold and brisk day at Mount Pleasant’s Conley Stadium. The Raye sisters (Lisa and Xenia) combined for 64 points and high-jumper Shane Correia added three more to earn the Wizard’s their first-ever team crown with a 67-58 win over second-place Cumberland.
Lisa Raye, the freshman phenom who caught everyone’s attention during the indoor campaign by winning two state crowns (55-meter dash, 300m), outdid herself this time. She was the recipient of four gold medals, claiming victory in the 100m (12.23 seconds), 200m (24.95), 100m hurdles (14.87), and 300m hurdles (44.08). Xenia Raye, just a sophomore, collected 24 points, courtesy of a victory in the 400m, a bronze in the 100m and a runner-up finish in the 200m where the Wizards all but solidified the crown with the Raye siblings’ 1-2 finish.
“Incredible,” Parenteau said. “They had an incredible day. I knew we could win a championship. I just didn’t know it was going to be this soon. They train hard. They did everything that everyone asked them to do and they put it all together and just had an incredible day.”
In the boys’ competition, Bishop Hendricken won the school’s 27th title with a 113-77 win over La Salle Academy. Midway into the meet, the Hawks were trailing the Rams. Then the throwing events started trickling in and the 3K hit the track. In those five events, the Hawks scored 54 points, thanks to a 2-3-5-6-8 finish in the 3,000m and 32 points outside the oval, highlighted by a victory in the javelin from Damon Buchanan (169 feet, 2 inches).
“What rarely gets noticed is the job that these weight throwers do. They’re always in the background,” said longtime Hendricken coach Jim Doyle. “They’re always constantly working, They’re out there in all sorts of bad weather. This year, even in indoor track, those points have been important. Now in outdoor track, the hammer, the javelin and all those events. These guys did such a great job today.”
Despite the tough conditions with temperature in the low 50s and a headwind on the final stretch, Lisa Raye was able to register PRs in both the hurdle events. In the 300m IH, she came less than two tenths of a second from the state mark of 43.91, set in 2010 by South Kingstown’s Molly Reilly.
“I got our really fast and tried to hold my pace the whole race to try and go over the hurdle smoothly and nice,,” she said.
Raye was able to conclude her day with a win in the 200m with her older sister right behind her.
“I am really glad that happened,” she said. “I told her to really use your arms on the curve and she did it. I’m really glad we were able to go, 1-2.
Even with a comfortable cushion over Cumberland and eventual third- and fourth-place finishers Classical (52 points) and Cranston West (51 points) at that point in the meet, Parenteau still couldn’t relax.
‘I wouldn’t talk to anybody,” he said. “I’m very superstitious, and I was just afraid that there were points out there that I didn’t know about. So I’m just walking around and trying not to talk with anybody.”
Sophia Gorriaran concluded her outstanding high school career, at least on Rhode Island soil, by capturing the 1,500m, 800m and anchoring her team’s first-place 4x100m relay. In the 1,500m, the Moses Brown senior let East Greenwich’s Rylee Shunney do the early pace-setting before taking over the lead late in the race to win with a time of 4:35.24. Shunney held on for second at 4:38.35. Gorriaran established a new meet record in the 800m, which she won by nearly 10 seconds with a season best of 2:06.52, erasing the 2005 mark of 2:10.38 by former Westerly great Samantha Gawrych. Gorriaran finished off her day with a 54.5 split for the final leg of the Quakers’ triumphant 4x400m that was timed in 4:02.08. The remaining quartet included Katheryn Gauvin, Skyler Maxwell and Kylie Eaton.
Surprisingly, her final state meet proved to be her only one during the spring.
“This is my first outdoor state championship ever,” Gorriaran said. “I’m happy I made it to this because past years I have been unable to go. I am really excited to just come out here and race the way I wanted to race and just have fun with my team.”
Saturday’s meet will not be the last time Gorriaran competes as a high-schooler. She has the upcoming nationals and a few other meets on the slate.
“I’ll be doing the high school nationals,. I’m not sure which one yet,” she said, making reference to the New Balance Nationals and Nike Outdoor Nationals. “Then, probably, the U20 trials for the Pan Am Games and also maybe the (USATF) Nationals.”
At the high school nationals she’ll be competing in the mile and the 800m. She’ll be focusing on the 800m in the latter two where a milestone effort is still on her mind.
“I’m always hoping for sub-2,” she said.
Pilgrim’s Dasani Stewart was also a double champion. The Patriots’ talented senior captured the long jump with a distance of 17 feet, 7.50 inches and the triple jump at 37-3.
“She showed up to compete,” said head coach Mike Daniels. “The long jump she got some great pops. The triple jump was great where she was going back-and-forth with Nini (Olawuyi) of Exeter/West Greenwich. It was fun to watch. She was laser focused.”
Olawuyi, who is just a ninth-grader, leaped 35-4.5 for second in the triple. Smithfield’s Lauren Boyd was right behind Stewart in the long jump, taking the silver with a distance of 17-6.5.
Cumberland’s second-place showing was highlighted by a victory from its 4x800m squad (9:42.59) of Kiley DeFusco, Charli McCue, Rose Tuomisto and Grace Carr. Carr was also second in the 800m (2:16.27 and DeFusco was third in the 3K (school record, 10:18.42). Alyssa Yankee collected 18 points by taking the discus (127-1) and finishing as a runner-up in the shot (38.9). The shot was won by Suraiy Sam of Bay View with a heave of 39-0.75.
Lincoln’s Jillian Leahy claimed the hammer with a near best of 167-0. In the 3K, Chariho junior Erin Von Housen took the lead late in the race and held off a fast-charging Shunney down the final straightaway en route to a time of 10:05.31 to the EG senior’s 10;06.76 effort.
In addition to Buchanan in the javelin, Hendricken also had first-place finishes from sophomore Carson Dean in the pole vault (12-0), junior Xavier Wilkens in the 200m (22.46) and its 4x800m squad of Edmund Lok, Anthony Mann, Jacob Coates and Elliiot Gauvin that combined for a time of 3:31.08, just eight hundredths of a second ahead of Portsmouth (3:31.16), Barrington was third at 3:31.71.
Saint Raphael’s Devan Kipyego was business as usual in his final State Meet. The SRA senior captured the 800m by more than three seconds with a winning time of 1:54.70. Moses Brown’s Thomas Speltz was second at 1:57.76. Kipyego also anchored his squad’s first-place 4x800m squad (8:08.42) with a 1:59 split. His two victories makes 16 state crowns that he’s attained in cross country and track, including relays.
“He will certainly be missed at St. Raphael, but his legacy will live on forever,” said SRA coach Chris Magill.
The Saints, who were fifth overall with 45 points, also had a big day from Ethan McCann Carter. The gifted senior collected 17 points by taking the long jump with a distance of 22-6.75 and tied for second with Portsmouth’s Aiden Chen in the high jump by clearing 6-2. The event was won by Central’s Demetrius Outlandw with a 6-4 best.
“Ethan is the best jumper in St. Raphael Academy history,” Magill said. “(He’s) a tremendous competitor that I have seen come through under pressure many times. He was the high scorer for the jumps at the state meet with his 17 points.”
East Greenwich’s Nick Martin was impressive in sweeping the two distance events. Martin clocked 3:58.47 in the 1,500m and 8:42.59 for the 3K. In the shorter race, Martin’s intention from the beginning was to run a fast time.
“That was really my main focus,” he said. “I went out really fast and got out of my comfort space the first few laps.”
Central won a close race in the 4x100m with a time of 42.89. The Knights were in a tight battle with Hendricken and La Salle and were able to gain an edge on the final baton exchange.
Lincoln’s Christian Toro unleashed an all-time best of 229-3 to capture the hammer. North Kingstown’s Ethan Wordell was second at 220-1. Hendricken’s Keith Daigneau was third with a toss of 207-6. Toro was als second in the discus (152-5). Middletown’s Jason Hayes won that event at 169-6.
Cumberland’s Patrick Conserve won a tight battle in the shot with a heave of 49-11.25. Less than a foot separated the top three with Hayes placing second at 49-9.5 and Hendricken’s Alex Morin placing third with a 49-2 effort.
