One of the main headliners, the finale of the New Balance Nationals, is the 4×400-meter relay. As always, it didn’t disappoint on Sunday with top-seed Bullis (MD) and Olympic gold-medalist Quincy Wilson capturing the featured event in a meet record of 3 minutes, 8.28 seconds.
Not to be overlooked, at least here in Rhode Island and throughout the region, was the performance of La Salle Academy inside the University of Pennsylvania’s Franklin Field. For the third time in the last four days of the national competition, the Rams established a new state record.
But this one was perhaps the most impressive of them all.
With each member of the quartet running sub 50-second legs, the Rams simply annihilated their eight-day-old record from last weekend’s New England’s Championships by more than three seconds!!! The quartet of Joshua Aceto, Thaden Leomensah, Eamon O’Brien, and Garrett Giroux-Pezzullo combined for an eye-popping time of 3:14.56 to win their heat and take tenth overall. The Rams’ effort is believed to be the third fastest in New England, according to Larry Newman, who compiles all the records for Massachusetts and New England. Garrett-Pezzullo anchored the squad with a sizzling 47.72 leg. The other splits were 49.06 for Aceto, 48.26 for Leomensah, and 49.52 for O’Brien.
The Rams other two state marks came on Friday with their same foursome placing seventh in the Sprint Medley with a time of 3:26.64 and the 4x200m team of Aceto, Giroux-Pezzullo, Leomensah and Amari Monteiro clocking 1:26.38 in the 4x200m.
In other action…
State champion and New England runner-up Mackenzie Cleary of Burrillville placed tenth in the javelin with a PR of 133 feet, 8 inches. Cumberland’s Kiley DeFusco was the lone R.I., runner in the 800m. She was 55th among 123 finishers with a time of 2:13.06. Two hours prior to his race in the 4x400m, the Rams’ O’Brien clocked 1:55.33 for the 800m.
