For the next few months, it’s all about the outdoor track & field season as our RI athletes look to achieve PRs, individual and/or team titles this spring on the state level and, for some, even beyond the borders. Who are some of the top individuals we should keep an eye on this spring? Here we preview what we consider some of the best in the girls’ hurdling events.
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100m HH
There’s no argument who’s the favorite in this event. West Warwick’s Lisa Raye should, and likely will, dominant this event once again in her final season as a high-schooler. Raye broke a more than two-decade-old state record in this event several times last spring, including capturing the individual crown at the State Meet with the current mark of 14.06 seconds. The question isn’t whether or not Raye will come out on top come championship time, it’s whether or not she’ll break 14 seconds. Behind the Wizards’ junior is where it’s going to get tricky, where it will get interesting. There’s at least three hurdlers that we feel are capable of prospering this spring, the 3-4-5 finishers from last year’s states – Chariho’s Emily Brown, Cranston West’s Reece Vitale and Exeter/West Greenwich’s Nini Olawuyi. All three dipped under 16 seconds last year. Brown, a senior, ran her current best of 15.34 to earn her bronze medal at the State Meet, Vitale, a junior, clocked 15.52 at the New England’s and Olawuyi, a junior. was second to Brown at the Mount Pleasant Invitational with a PR of 15.76
300m IH
Again, Raye holds the No. 1 spot and is the overwhelming favorite here to win her third straight state title. But the question is will she be doing this event at the State Meet like she’s done the last two years or maybe the long jump, an event she set the current indoor mark of 19 feet, 7.5 inches? With a limit of just four events, it’s pretty much a given that Raye is competing in the 100m, 200m and 100m HH. She currently holds the state records in the three events as well as the 300m IH with her PR of 42.53 from last year’s states. Who are some of the others that could secure top placements on the podium at the states, including a possible victory, if Raye decides to go the long jump route? The Chargers’ Brown, Portsmouth’s Emily Deconto and the Falcons’ Vitale appear to be the leading contenders with PRs in the 45- to 46-second range.
