We’re ready for another exciting season on the indoor track & field season. To get you pumped up for the winter campaign, Ocean State Running will preview some of the top athletes that we expect will make an impact over the next few months.
Here we begin our previews with the boys’ throwing and jumping events.
WEIGHT THROW
Judging by top returnees from last year, Barrington’s Brett White and Lincoln’s Tyler Durang appear to be our two leaders in this event. White, who did not compete at the State Meet, had a top throw of 60 feet at the East Coast Invitational. Durang achieved a best and near 60-footer at the New Balance Nationals where he tossed a PR of 59-5.75. In an event where seniors dominated 10 of the first 12 placements at the states in 2023, Durang was top non-senior, placing tenth overall. Could we see Narragansett’s Owen Degnan in the weight throw this winter? After competing as a sophomore, the Mariner standout missed last year. But he demonstrated during outdoor last spring that he could be a factor if he returns this season based on what he did in the hammer. Degnan finished fourth overall at the State Meet with an impressive heave of 192-0. We expect several others to be vying for podium placements at the championship meet, such as Exeter/West Greenwich’s Owen Spira, Woonsocket’s Adam Beaudry, Coventry’s Zack Delsasso and Lincoln’s Mitchell Murtha, to name a few.
SHOT
Will we have a 50-footer this season? Right now, our top returnee is on the cusp of hitting that milestone with Lincoln’s Tyler Durang coming back this season. The Lincoln senior was second at last year’s State Meet where he had a toss of 48 feet, 0.75 inches. That effort was just under a foot from his all-time best of 48-11.75 from his win at the Northern Division Championships. Durang, who had an outdoor best of 46-3.5, demonstrated consistency last winter where he unleashed the medal ball more than 46 feet nine times throughout the season. You can’t ignore Pilgrim’s Brandon Wolfernden, too. While he ranks No. 5 among returning throwers with an indoor PR of 42-8.75 from his win at the JV state meet, he’s coming off an outdoor season where he came on strong at the end with a bronze at the Class A Championships and a fifth-place finish at the states where he tossed an all-time best of 47-3.5. Rogers’ Kaden Roger is another athlete to keep an eye on this season. Thomas was sixth at the State Meet last February with a PR of 46-0.5 and was the Class B winner during outdoor where he unleashed an all-time best of 46-6.75. The Lions’ Murtha and Pilgrim’s Cole Menning are among others that could be vying for those podium placements.
HIGH JUMP
This is an event that could get very competitive. Among our early favorites for gold at the State Meet are Hendricken’s Jakob Reyes and Central’s Demetrius Outland. Based on success at the championship meet, Outland appears to be the favorite. He was a runner-up at the indoor states and won it all during the outdoor season. Both times he matched his all-time best of 6-4. Reyes, who also competes on the Hawks’ basketball team, finished the winter campaign with the top leap in the state of 6-7, an effort that earned him the Class A title. There’s plenty more coming back that were in the 6-1 to 6-2 range with East Providence’s Kenaz Ochgwu, Moses Brown’s Gabe Lane, Portsmouth’s Aidan Chen, and East Providence’s Dylan Slavick among that group.
LONG JUMP
Take you pick. There is no clear-cut favorite in this event with a plethora of athletes capable of being the last one standing come February. Among returnees, we have seven athletes that have bests within seven inches of each other. North Smithfield’s Nick Lamoureux comes into the winter season with the No. 1 leap of his peers from last year of 21-4. The Quakers’ Lane is also coming back and was the only non-senior to finish among the top six at the states last year, taking the final position with a best of 21-1.75. There’s also 21-footers such as La Salle’s Ryan Bacon (21-0.5), Hendricken’s Cooper Maher and Classical’s Joshua Dabanka (21-0) that are coming back. Could we see Middletown’s Cam Miller competing in this event this winter? In his first year of track & field last spring, the versatile senior, a basketball player and star receiver for the Islanders’ football team, won the St. Germain Invitational with a PR of 21-8.25. He was also third at the Class C meet with a 21-5 effort.
