By BRENDAN McGAIR, Special to Ocean State Running
Blue Streaks could be spotted everywhere you looked Saturday afternoon at Ponaganset High School.
With summer-like conditions challenging the competitors, Cumberland High rode its tremendous advantage in the depth department as the Clipper boys and girls made it a clean sweep of the Northern Division team hardware. Two plaques accompanied Cumberland back to the Mendon Road campus, as the CHS boys racked up 173 points and enjoyed a 71-point margin of victory, while the Clipper girls enjoyed a similar easy romp – 186 points that bested the runner-up finished by 88 points.
There’s a Latin saying that springs to mind when describing Cumberland’s barnstorming efforts: “Veni, vidi, vici.” Translation: “They came, they saw, they conquered.”
The Clipper boys racked up eight gold medals, with senior/Bryant University commit Matt Fontaine finishing first in three events. Led by the usual cast of strong distance runners coupled with a few surprise performances, the Clipper girls also took home eight first-place finishes.
“What’s it going to look like to win championships? In the past, it’s been about a handful of kids scoring a ton of points. Sometimes, it’s been about really deep teams,” said Cumberland head coach Ricky Goodreau. “We knew we had a lot of pieces and just played the chess game right, and it ended up paying off.”
Cumberland set the tone for a Blue Wave of sheer dominance right off the bat, with the boys and girls winning their respective 4x800m relay. By seizing the available 10-point allotment on each side, the Clippers sent a strong message to the rest of the Northern Division field concerning their deep roster.
“We really didn’t know the plan for the 4×800. It’s the first event, and you really can’t expect too much from it, but we all ran great,” said Cumberland senior Colin Peterson, who served as the opening leg and teamed up with Tyler Pinch, Jake Schonhoff and Brayden Rivello to produce a time of 8:35.40.
Big things were anticipated from Fontaine going into Saturday, and he proved to deliver and then some. He claimed the 110 hurdles (14.5 seconds) and 300 hurdles (40.32) before a strong push helped him achieve a triple-gold status courtesy of his win in the 200 dash (22.77).
“Our goal was to win. We just missed it last year,” said Fontaine, referring to the Cumberland boys falling short against St. Raphael during last year’s Northern Division Championship.
A strong start proved vital in Peterson’s ability to defend his Northern Division title in the 800, as St. Raphael senior Arthur Ferris made a push that created some excitement as the pair glided down the final straightaway.
“I got a second wind going into the last 100 meters and knew [Ferris] was gaining on me. It was a great finish,” said Peterson.
Schonhoff also tasted the thrill of individual gold, winning the 3K in 9:41.84. The depth that Goodreau referenced was on full display in the 3K, with additional points coming from Jonathan Stowik (second, 9:51.46) and Rivello (fourth, 10:02.65).
More first-place points came in the 4x100m as the Cumberland quartet of Maxim Vongvilay, Jayden Rabbitt, Davonte Rubiano and Brady DiRobbio clocked in at 44.67 seconds.
There were standouts from other schools, with Smithfield’s Kaeden Manni taking home first in the shot put (51-3) and discus (155-1). Another double-gold winner was Woonsocket’s Isaiah Faublas, who won the high jump (5-8) and long jump (22-6). SRA’s Ferris won the 1,500m in 4:12.53, while Woonsocket standout Shamrock Thoun easily rolled to victory in the hammer (218-6).
The Cumberland long-distance duo of Charli McCue and Anna Bianchi had already enjoyed banner days when they teamed up for the last event of the day – the girls’ 4x400m. Each proved they still had plenty to give as the Clippers’ time of 4:19.05 was more than 10 seconds in the clear of the next closest finisher.
“It’s just one lap as hard as you can,” said McCue, who went 2:19.98 en route to winning the girls’ 800m.
“For divisionals, our coaches tell us not to focus on time. Just focus on place,” said Bianchi, a winner in the girls’ 1,500m (5:04.10) – an event that saw Cumberland grab the first four spots.
Cumberland’s Gulianna Hasenfus contributed to the cause with wins in the high jump – her mark of 4-9 actually tied Ponaganset’s Zoe Glover – and the triple jump (34-9.25). Other first-place finishers for the Clippers included Alaina DeMellis in the long jump (16-0.25) and Elena Pacheco in the 300 hurdles (48.98).
St. Raphael sophomore Francesca Justin made her presence felt by sweeping the sprint events, winning the 100m (12.24) and 200m (25.74). Justin actually finished sixth in the 100m preliminaries but bounced back in a major way with gold on the line.
“I gave it my all and just kept moving my arms,” said Justin.
