We didn’t forget. We’ve just been a little busy. Over the next few days, Ocean State Running will wrap up it’s previews for the indoor season by highlighting the top athletes in the middle to long distance events.
Here’s we feature the top boys in the 1,000-meter run, 1,500m and 3K
1,000m
This is an event that’s often been an extra event for most of our top athletes at the State Meet, another event to score needed point for their respective teams. Fresh legs, or the freshest legs, often win out for individual honors, such as last year when Ponaganset’s Jeremy Roe earned the title in his first event of the day. We could see the same this year with runners like Narragansett’s Cole Francis, who would be seeking his first, and much-deserved, state crown. By the way, the talented senior is our top returnee from last year. Last winter the Mariner standout clocked an all-time best of 2:33.93 from the URI Track Classic and was second to Roe at last year’s states. La Salle junior Marshall Vernon is another runner we expect in the low 2:30s for this event if he runs it relatively fresh. North Kingstown’s Miki Ashenafi, who was sixth in the 800m at the outdoor states with a PR of 1:57.89, and Barrington sophomore Brandon Mello. who went sub-2 for the 800m as a ninth grader last spring, are others to keep an eye on this season.
1,500m
As usual, we have plenty of talent here. It all begins with Vernon, the defending champion. The Ram junior won last year’s State Meet with an indoor best of 4:01.73. Although he did run faster en route to his second-place finish in the mile at the New England’s where he ran the eight-lapper in 4:16.22. Vernon was also second to Cumberland’s Will O’Shea at the outdoor states with a best of 3:57.08. This is an event the La Salle’s distance ace will more than likely split time with throughout the season with the 3K. He has shown the potential to get in the low 3:50 range if concentrating on this event solely. Several more we expect to be in that sub-to-low four-minute range this season are the Mariners’ Francis, Portsmouth’s Sean Gray, Barrington’s Myles Napolitano and Hendricken teammates Jack Moretta and sophomore Colby Flynn. Francis has the No. 2 time among returnees with an indoor best of 4:02.15, an effort that secured him the silver at the states. He also dipped under four minutes during outdoor, placing fourth at the states with a PR of 3:58.33. While Gray’s forte is the longer races, the multiple all-stater is capable of breaking four, or coming very close, on the indoor surface. He brings an all-time best of 4:03.15 from his win at the Hendricken Invitational last May. Flynn is another runner that can’t be ignored. He’s coming off a very-successful cross-country season where he was third to Vernon and Gray at the State Meet. He ran an all-time best of 4:03.81 from outdoor last spring. He currently leads the state with a fast, early-season time of 4:06.13 from a league meet last week. Napolitano and Moretta both have bests of 4:03 from outdoor.
3,000m
In the history of the state, only three runners have broken 8:30 in this event with La Salle’s DJ Principe holding the current state mark of 8:14.51, a time he ran en route to his RI record of 8:47.20 for two miles at the 2017 New Balance Nationals. We don’t expect any of those mark to be challenged this season. Next year may be a different story. As for the 8:30 mark, we think there’s a chance we could have one (or more) under that time this season. Vernon leads the pack here, too. He came close to breaking 8:30 during the spring when he hit the 3K mark in 8:30.18 on his way to a best of 9:01.62 for 3,200m at the Glenn B. Loucks Games. In a high-level meet like Loucks, where he’s facing national-caliber competition, we believe Vernon has the ability to run an all-time best for the 3K and also break nine minutes for two miles. Gray’s another one we feel can achieve those lofty goals this winter with the sub 8:30, sub-9 combo. The Patriots junior ran a solo 8:33.13 to win the outdoor states last spring. Francis and Flynn are among others that should be in that 8:30, 8:40 range.
