Four days of national meets got off to a rousing start Thursday.
After finishing second at the state meet and fourth at the New England Championships, Toll Gate’s Vanessa Jones showed she was right where she belongs in the weight throw on the opening day of Nike Indoor Nationals. Inside The Armory Track & Field Center in New York, Jones defended her title with the best throw of her career, launching the 20-pound weight a personal-best 59 feet, 5 inches.
The Titan senior was just a quarter of an inch further than runner-up Kim Beard of Get Strong First TC (WA). Placing third was previous nation-leader Ainsley Cuthbertson with a toss of 56-8.75. Woonsocket’s Avaree Caron was 11th at 49-11.25
With her effort, Jones moved to No. 1 in the national rankings and is just seven inches away from becoming the first Rhode Island athlete to surpass 60 feet since state record-holder and former Ponaganset standout Gianna Rao did it in 2018.
On Day 1 of the New Balance Nationals in Boston, Portsmouth’s Sean Gray earned All-American honors and broke the state record in the 5,000-meter run. Gray secured both by placing fourth overall in 14 minutes, 27.50 seconds. The Virginia-bound senior shattered his previous indoor state mark of 14:43.48, set in 2025.
“I wasn’t feeling the best after the race,” Gray admitted. “I am very happy with my results, especially with the minimal training I’ve had this season. I’m really excited for what’s to come in the outdoor season.”
The Portsmouth standout had been dealing with a slight injury this winter that limited both his training and racing.
That injury now appears to be behind him as evident by his performance at The TRACK at New Balance.
“I’ve been able to increase my mileage from about 30 miles per week because of the injury to about 40 to 45,” he said. “I’ve been feeling pretty good. I was hoping for maybe a little faster today, but you really can’t complain with a PR.”
Barrington moved to No. 2 in the state rankings in the 4×800-meter relay. The Eagles were timed in 8:02.06 (40th overall) with the quartet of Henry Stockwell, Colby Napolitano, Sam Spencer and Brooks Mello. Stockwell (1:59.22) and Mello (1:58.07) bookended the relay with their respective sub two-minute opening and closing legs. Napolitano clocked 2:00.17, while Spencer was timed in 2:04.39.
St. Raphael Academy raced to a season best of 8:13.59 (83rd overall) with the foursome of Joseph McFarland, Elias Wilson, Cameron McVeigh, and Arthur Ferris. As the anchor, Ferris posted the fastest time of the day for the Ocean State with a 1:57.22 leg.
In the girls’ 4x800m, La Salle’s All New England squad of Alyssa Parenteau, Layne Stevens, Olivia Wahlberg and Carolina Terlato were 11th over with a season best of 9:20.14.
