Yes, it’s early and, as we all know, a lot can occur over the next three-plus months. Still, what happened during the indoor season last year and the subsequent outdoor campaign, and even cross country this past fall for our distance runners, can provide us enough background to make some good ole’ fashion predictions. So what will happen this season by our talented athletes?
Here we begin with the girls’ weight events.
Weight Throw
There’s no doubt a lot of familiar faces will among our leading throwers this season. From 2023-24, the top eight finishers from the State Meet are all returning, including individual winner Adelaide Caron of Woonsocket. Caron exceeded the 50-foot mark four times last year with a best of 51-8 from her victory at the Millrose Games. She earned her crown at the states with an equally impressive 51-3.25. The Villa Novan standout was red-hot at the tail end of the season last year with distances of 48-9 or further in six of her final seven meets. Caron went on to capture the hammer during the outdoor season and also struck gold in the event at the New Balance Nationals. She’ll be tough to beat from behind the cage, but that doesn’t mean she’ll runaway with this one. Not at all. There’s plenty of strong throwers behind her that will not make it easy. Coventry’s Mia Hoskins, a runner-up to Caron at the states, is certainly a contender. Hoskins, who earned her silver medal with a toss of 48-2.5, is the only other athlete that went further than 50 feet, achieving the milestone in her final meet of the season with a toss of 50-10.25, an effort that placed her second overall at the adidas Indoor Nationals. The next five returnees in this event all went further than 48 feet last year with Classical’s Gifty Bediako (49-6), Woonsocket’s Isabella Piette (48-11), Woonsocket’s Angeliea Ortiz (48-5.5), Toll Gate’s Vanessa Jones (48-3.75) and Ponaganset’s Jillian Waters (48-3.25). Do the math. A little more than three feet separates seven of our athletes in this event. While our early favorite is Caron based on what she did during indoor and outdoor, it’s not a guarantee that this gifted senior will be standing at the top of the podium at the championship meet in mid February.
Shot
You never know what can happen during the course of a season, but right know it appears evident that this event could come down to two athletes, the Purple’s Bediako and Cumberland’s Payton Goulding. Bediako gets the favorite nod here. She is the defending indoor and outdoor state titlist. She attained a season best of 38-2.75 on the indoor surface and claimed gold in the spring where she unleashed an all-time best of 42-2. She followed that effort with another 40-footer at the New England’s where she placed third with a distance of 40-10.5. Goulding is the only other returnee that exceeded 40 feet last year with a mammoth three-foot PR of 40-3.75 at the outdoor states to take runner-up honors. The Clipper senior, who was fourth at the indoor states, was one of our most improved athletes in the field events. She was generally in the 34-foot range during the winter season, and achieved a SB of 36-8.25 at the New England’s on March 2. Cumberland’s Lacie Grenier, Ponaganset’s Giana DeCesare and North Kingstown’s Tayla Schneider all went 36-plus and could make an impact. In particular, keep an eye on Schneider. She was only a ninth-grader last year and had a best of 36-11.75 from the USATF New England Championships on June 22, the last competition of her frosh campaign.
