ZHANG, BRACKEN, AND CUTHBERTSON MAKE THE PODIUM, HIGHLIGHT FROSH/SOPH MEET
Meet Information
MSTCA Auerbach Freshmen/Sophomore Meet
January 7, 2023
Reggie Lewis Center - Boston, MA
RESULTS
BOSTON, MA - On Saturday The Minutemen made their first trip as a team to the Reggie Lewis Center in Roxbury, as the team's best underclassmen competed at the annual Freshmen/Sophomore Meet. The meet features the top 9th and 10th graders from the largest schools around Massachusetts, and serves as a preview of likely matchups in State Meets to come. The Minutemen had a strong day across the board, turning in a number of PRs and medal winning performances throughout the meet.
While many members of the LHS Boys' and Girls' Teams had strong days, no one stood taller than sophomore Max Zhang. Coming into the meet seeded second in the 1000m behind Newton South's Alex Friedman, he gave his fellow classmate everything he could handle over the five laps of the Reggie oval. The two cruised through the 600 in a brisk 1:35, and were stride-for-stride down the backstretch before Zhang made a hard charge with 300 to go. Friedman held strong around the turn, but as the two passed the finish line going onto the bell lap, Zhang fired another shot trying to get the lead. Friedman once again held position, and would go on to take the win. For Zhang's efforts, he managed a PR of 2:39.55, and a well earned silver medal. In the final event of the day, the Boys 4x400m Relay, Zhang was back to anchor his team of sophomore James Joseph, freshman Colin Smith, and fellow classmate Nathan Cunningham. After strong legs by the first three athletes, Zhang grabbed the baton in second place behind Lowell. He wasted no time charging to the lead 100m into the race, and would only build on that lead for The Minutemen over the final lap and half. Zhang crossed the line victorious with an unofficial split of 52.7, which gave his team a time of 3:42.88 to earn the gold medal. That was the fastest time run by an LHS freshman/sophomore team since 2018. Along with Zhang's big day, freshman Phoebe Bracken had the breakout performance of all breakout performances on the day. Coming into the meet seeded 12th, and the last entry in the unseeded section, she fearlessly took the race out in a quick 67-second 400. Bracken then continued to pour it on over the final lap of the race to cross the line in 1:43.54. That time earned her the silver medal and the first MIAA Division 1 qualifying mark of her young career. The final podium finish for The Minutemen came from freshman Ainsley Cuthbertson in the Shot Put. On her first throw of the competition, the 9th grader put the field on notice with a throw of 30'7.75", which gave her the early lead. That throw would go on to hold up for the bronze medal after six rounds, and would best every other freshman in the field by over three feet. Clearly, the future looks bright for the youngest member of LHS's Bomb Squad.
Other Highlights for the Girls
Other Highlights for the Boys
Up Next
LHS's Boys 4x400m Relay will be competing at an invite-only meet on Sunday, January 8th at The Track at New Balance. The Youth Pre-Nationals Showcase will pit The Minutemen up against the top prep talent in the region. The race is set to go off at 3pm.
MSTCA Auerbach Freshmen/Sophomore Meet
January 7, 2023
Reggie Lewis Center - Boston, MA
RESULTS
BOSTON, MA - On Saturday The Minutemen made their first trip as a team to the Reggie Lewis Center in Roxbury, as the team's best underclassmen competed at the annual Freshmen/Sophomore Meet. The meet features the top 9th and 10th graders from the largest schools around Massachusetts, and serves as a preview of likely matchups in State Meets to come. The Minutemen had a strong day across the board, turning in a number of PRs and medal winning performances throughout the meet.
While many members of the LHS Boys' and Girls' Teams had strong days, no one stood taller than sophomore Max Zhang. Coming into the meet seeded second in the 1000m behind Newton South's Alex Friedman, he gave his fellow classmate everything he could handle over the five laps of the Reggie oval. The two cruised through the 600 in a brisk 1:35, and were stride-for-stride down the backstretch before Zhang made a hard charge with 300 to go. Friedman held strong around the turn, but as the two passed the finish line going onto the bell lap, Zhang fired another shot trying to get the lead. Friedman once again held position, and would go on to take the win. For Zhang's efforts, he managed a PR of 2:39.55, and a well earned silver medal. In the final event of the day, the Boys 4x400m Relay, Zhang was back to anchor his team of sophomore James Joseph, freshman Colin Smith, and fellow classmate Nathan Cunningham. After strong legs by the first three athletes, Zhang grabbed the baton in second place behind Lowell. He wasted no time charging to the lead 100m into the race, and would only build on that lead for The Minutemen over the final lap and half. Zhang crossed the line victorious with an unofficial split of 52.7, which gave his team a time of 3:42.88 to earn the gold medal. That was the fastest time run by an LHS freshman/sophomore team since 2018. Along with Zhang's big day, freshman Phoebe Bracken had the breakout performance of all breakout performances on the day. Coming into the meet seeded 12th, and the last entry in the unseeded section, she fearlessly took the race out in a quick 67-second 400. Bracken then continued to pour it on over the final lap of the race to cross the line in 1:43.54. That time earned her the silver medal and the first MIAA Division 1 qualifying mark of her young career. The final podium finish for The Minutemen came from freshman Ainsley Cuthbertson in the Shot Put. On her first throw of the competition, the 9th grader put the field on notice with a throw of 30'7.75", which gave her the early lead. That throw would go on to hold up for the bronze medal after six rounds, and would best every other freshman in the field by over three feet. Clearly, the future looks bright for the youngest member of LHS's Bomb Squad.
Other Highlights for the Girls
- Sophomore Tanvi Samavedam qualified for the Middlesex League Championships for the second time in as many meets; this time in the Mile with a PR time of 5:50.06.
- Along with Bracken's big day, freshman Morgan Wipke turned in a massive PR of her own by running 1:46.39 to finish 11th and qualify for Divisionals in the 600m.
- In the 300m, freshman Felice Haverly (45.15) finished 10th, while sophomore Caroline Kvaal ran a PR of 46.69 finishing in 25th place overall.
- Despite miscounting laps, freshman Meghan Caldera pushed herself to an eighth place finish with a time of 12:39.00 in the 2 Mile.
- The 4x200m Relay of freshman Annika Steinbrecher and Bruguers Sagues, and sophomores Laya Barghuthi and Heidi Alexanderian ran their way to a fifth place finish with a time of 1:54.07.
- Kvaal, Wipke, Bracken, and sophomore Claire Cunningham managed an 8th place finish with a time of 4:32.33 in the 4x400m Relay.
- Steinbrecher turned in a solid PR of 8.14 seconds to finish 27th in the 55m Dash.
- Clearing the bar at 4'6", Haverly finished tied for eighth place in the High Jump.
Other Highlights for the Boys
- Both Nathan Cunningham (1:30.88) and Colin Smith (1:31.03) ran PRs in the 600m to finish 10th and 11th respectively.
- Freshman Will Parker (11:14.13) turned in a PR of 12 seconds in the 2 Mile to finish second in the unseeded section - 17th overall - in the event.
- The 55m Dash saw freshman Andrew Gu's fleet feet take him to a new PR of 7.02 seconds; that time is just one-hundredth of a second off the League Championship standard.
- In the Shot Put, it was sophomore Colin Maguire who turned in a PR of 36'11" to finish 12th.
Up Next
LHS's Boys 4x400m Relay will be competing at an invite-only meet on Sunday, January 8th at The Track at New Balance. The Youth Pre-Nationals Showcase will pit The Minutemen up against the top prep talent in the region. The race is set to go off at 3pm.