Nearly 50 schools spread out at three different locations this weekend. Hundreds of track & field athletes from those schools, competing in 19 different events all with one common goal. To proudly represent their respective teams at this weekend’s RIIL Class Championships. For some it will be to achieve a PR and/or earn a qualifier or improve their seedings for the State Meet in two weeks. For others, an additional goal of helping their school win a team title is the main focus.
(Above photo by Sterling Vernon @rhodeandtrack)
With all the being said, what are the events that we expect will generate the most excitement? Who are some of those athletes that were anticipating will be part of it?
Here’s what we consider the must-see events of the Class A Championships, to be held Saturday at Coventry, beginning at 10 a.m.
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Class A Championships – Girls
Day/Time: Sunday, 10 a.m.
Site: Coventry High
Teams: Central, East Providence, Woonsocket, Cranston West, Cranston East, Mount Pleasant, Cumberland, North Kingstown, Toll Gate, Coventry, La Salle Academy, Hope, Pilgrim
Events to Watch: The hammer throw could be one of the most exciting events of the day. It includes four throwers that have gone further than 170 feet this season and rank among the top five in the country. Defending class and state champion Adelaide Caron leads the charge. Caron, last year’s New Balance Nationals champion, has been all about consistency this spring and own a season best and nation-leading 178 feet. She’ll be matched against familiar foes – Coventry’s Mia Hoskins (175-9), Woonsocket’s Isabella Piette (174-4) and Toll Gate’s Vanessa Jones (169-11) – who rank No. 2, 3 and 4 in the country…In the discus, we could have quite the battle with Jones and returning state titlist Piette. Jones is seeded at No. 1 with a distance of 124-11. Piette is at No. 2 with a PR of 120-6…The 1,500m features our top three runners in the state with Cumberland’s Kiley DeFusco (4:31.8), Pilgrim’s Keaney Bayha (4:41.60) and La Salle’s Alyssa Parenteau (4:46.01). DeFusco and Bayha are two runners that like to do the pace-setting so it will be interesting to see who takes charge in this one. We don’t expect it to be tactical, although you might see DeFusco nestling herself behind Bayha with hopes of conserving some energy for later in the meet where she’s also entered in the 800m to score additional points for the Clippers in their quest to upset NK. She’s the top seed there, too…The 100m hurdles, 300m hurdles and the triple jump. These are the events that Cranston West’s Reece Vitale is entered in this weekend and events she holds the No. 1 seeds with bests of 16.14, 48.57 and 36-10, respectively. Things could get interesting in the pole vault where North Kingstown’s Abigail Nicolopoulos is the top seed. The North Kingstown junior brings a season best of 10-0 to the meet. La Salle has a trio of athletes that could be in striking distance with Megan Daniels (9-6), Lauren Horrigan (9-0) and Sydney Brightman (9-0).
Team Outlook: With outstanding depth and the ability to score high in several events, North Kingstown is the favorite here. La Salle and Cumberland are among the contenders, but will certainly need more than a few athletes to step up to defeat the Skippers.
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Class A Championships – Boys
Day/Time: Sunday, 10 a.m.
Site: Coventry High
Teams: Central, East Providence, Woonsocket, Cranston West, Cranston East, Mount Pleasant, Cumberland, North Kingstown, Toll Gate, Coventry, La Salle Academy, Hope, Pilgrim, Bishop Hendricken
Events to Watch: We could have some lightning in the 200m. There are a plethora of runners in this field that we believe have a chance at winning this race, one that could come down to the last few meters between a number of them. If the weather cooperates, this one has a chance to be under 22 seconds. The top seed is La Salle’s Joshua Aceto, who won the Classical Classic a couple of weeks ago with a PR of 22.34. Among others we expect to be in this race are La Salle’s Jalen Moseley, East Providence’s Jack Pawlik, and the Townies’ Justin Jardine. Look out for Pawlik, who is having a breakthrough season that’s also included a state-leading 10.81 for the 100m from this past Saturday’s divisional championships…The triple jump could get interesting with the the top three seeds holding bests of 41 feet or further. Pilgrim’s Hunter Schobel is the No. 1 seed with his PR of 45-2.5 from his win at the St. Germain Invitational on May 3. Since that performance, he’s remained consistent with wins at the Classical Classic (45-1.5) and the Central Division Championships (44-4)…Could we have our first 60-footer of the outdoor season? It could happen in the shot with Brandon Wolfenden inside the circle. The Pilgrim senior was our only one to do it during the indoor season when he finished second at the New England’s with an all-time best of 61-3.75. Wolfenden’s best this spring is 58-4, which he did two weeks ago at the Classical Classic…State records are always possible with La Salle’s 4x100m and 4x400m teams entered in a meet. The marks to look at are 41.86 for the 4×2 and 3:18.09 for the 4×4 by Central in 2016. The Rams have a PR of 41.94 for the 4x200m from last year’s states and 3:18.32 from last month’s Penn Relays Carnival. The biggest challenge for La Salle will come in the 4x200m where their season best of 42.38 is just a half second behind No. 2 seed East Providence, who won the St. Germain Classic in 42.87…La Salle rested Eamon O’Brien from last weekend’s divisional championships so that the Ram junior was fresh and ready for this week’s meet. That could make a difference in the outcome for the team title. O’Brien is the No. 1 seed in the 1,500m and the 800m. In particular, the 1,500m could turn into a down-to-the-wire affair with mere seconds, perhaps less, determining the winner. The La Salle standout owns a top seed of 4:03.23. The next three seeds all wear the green and yellow singlet of Hendricken with David Hayes (4:04.50, Colby Flynn (4:06.20) and BJ Kerachsky (4:06.42). While these guys have other races on the slate this Saturday, we do expect this one to be fast, perhaps under four minutes. Flynn’s seed time is a bit deceiving. He has already go under the mark with a 1,500m in the 3:56 range en route to his best of 4:14.54 for the mile at the BSR Elite Scholastic Mile on May 2. O’Brien should have enough rest to come back and win the 800m. In that race, the talented runner owns a best of 1:52.81, which he did at the BSR Elite Scholastic 800m…Fast times are expected in the 400m where our top three seeds are all under 50 seconds and the No. 4 is right on the cusp. Don’t be surprised to see a time in the 48-second range if the conditions are good. La Salle’s Thaden Leomensah (49.62), Garrett Giroux-Pezzullo (49.83), Andrew McCarthy (49.89) and East Providence’s Justin Jardine (50.09) are the four that should make this race one of the more exciting of the day…The pole vault features out state’s top two athletes with Hendricken’s Carson Dean and La Salle’s Alexander Campbell. Dean beat Campbell convincingly at last weekend’s Central Division Championships where he soared to a PR of 15-3, more than a foot higher than his rival. There’s chance it could be closer on Saturday. Campbell does have a best of 14-6 from a league meet this spring.
Team Outlook: Can you say grinder? That’s what this one should turn into with La Salle and Hendricken battling each other, two teams we expect will be back at it again in two more weeks at the State Meet. As always, both squads have outstanding depth. We’re giving a slight nod to La Salle with the difference-maker coming in the sprints where the Rams have a definitive edge over their rival. North Kingstown does appear to have the best chance to nab the bronze, while Cumberland, East Providence, and Pilgrim are all legit top-five contenders.
