ELIJAH BROWN 4th IN INAUGURAL MIAA WEIGHT THROW; GIRLS 4x8 BREAKS THROUGH AT MEET OF CHAMPIONS
Meet Information
MIAA Meet of Champions
February 24, 2024
Reggie Lewis Track & Field Center - Boston, MA
RESULTS
BOSTON, MA - In 2022, the powers that be made the decision to no longer hold a team competition for its biggest meet of the season, the All-State Championships. The rebranded Meet of Champions now focuses all on the individual, and with that has lost a significant amount of intrigue and excitement. This is especially the case in Lexington, where the "team-first" mentality is what fuels the program. With that in mind, The Minutemen looked at this meet as one last chance at qualifying for Nationals, or to end their seasons on a high note. Had the meet been scored the Boys Championship would have gone to Brookline who put up 30 "would-be" points. While the boys from Haverhill would have been runner-ups with 29 points. On the girls' side Wellesley validated their dominance in Massachusetts track & field. After winning their sixth straight Division 2 State Title last week, they put up 31 points, which bested Framingham's 24.
While the MIAA decision makers seem to have lost their way in one aspect, credit is due to them in another. Lexington High School has been the leading voice in expanding the sport of track & field to include more than just three field events during the winter season (Pole Vault, Triple Jump, and Weight Throw are not sanctioned by the MIAA). In fact, LHS Athletic Director and Middlesex League Commissioner Naomi Martin has gone as far as to include the three events in League meets for the past two years. At the urging of LHS, Burlington High School, and others, the decision was made to include the Weight Throw at the MIAA Meet of Champions as an exhibition event. This meant a four round competition for all participants, as opposed to a three round prelims followed by finals, which is the standard format for championship field events. In the historic inaugural Weight Throw competition, LHS senior captain "Downtown" Elijah Brown turned in the best performance of his career. On his first attempt, Brown unleashed the 25lb implement 51'6.50", which broke his previous lifetime best by over two feet. That throw held up through the next three rounds to earn him a fourth place finish. The winner of the event - Peabody junior Alex Jackson - rewrote the state record books with his final throw of the day landing at 67'11". That throw broke the mark set back in 2014 at an out of state meet.
The highlight of the meet for the Lex Girls was undoubtedly turned in by the 4x800m Relay of senior Samara McVey, junior Lucy Kontos, sophomore Rose Neely, and freshman Callie Glenn. The quartet came to the meet with a season best of 9:55, which they set back in January. Things were off to a strong start as McVey kept her team in the mix with a 2:25.4 split. Kontos then got the baton and was left alone to run down a pack that included Weymouth, North Quincy and Newton South. Run them down she did, as she got Neely the baton right along with that pack after a 2:22.9 split. Neely then hung tough over four laps to the tune of a 2:31.7 split that got Glenn the baton right with North Quincy and Newton South. The freshman has proved to have all the grit and fight of a hardened veteran throughout her first season with The Minutemen, and she showed it again on Saturday. Glenn battled every step of the way, and threw everything she had at her opponents as she galloped around the 200m oval. In the end, she crossed the line as the clock read 9:42.30. Her split of 2:22.2 earned her team a sixth place finish in what was a stellar way to put an exclamation point on their 2023-2024 Indoor Seasons.
Other Highlights from the Track
Up Next
Most of the team will be off for two weeks in preparation for the New Balance Indoor Nationals the second weekend of March, but this Tuesday, February 27th sophomore Simon Tandeih will once again try his hand at the multi-events at the MSTCA Boys Pentathlon. The pentathlon will test Tandeih and his competitors with the 55m Hurdles, Long Jump, Shot Put, High Jump, and 1000m. Action starts at 3:30pm at the Reggie Lewis Center.
MIAA Meet of Champions
February 24, 2024
Reggie Lewis Track & Field Center - Boston, MA
RESULTS
BOSTON, MA - In 2022, the powers that be made the decision to no longer hold a team competition for its biggest meet of the season, the All-State Championships. The rebranded Meet of Champions now focuses all on the individual, and with that has lost a significant amount of intrigue and excitement. This is especially the case in Lexington, where the "team-first" mentality is what fuels the program. With that in mind, The Minutemen looked at this meet as one last chance at qualifying for Nationals, or to end their seasons on a high note. Had the meet been scored the Boys Championship would have gone to Brookline who put up 30 "would-be" points. While the boys from Haverhill would have been runner-ups with 29 points. On the girls' side Wellesley validated their dominance in Massachusetts track & field. After winning their sixth straight Division 2 State Title last week, they put up 31 points, which bested Framingham's 24.
While the MIAA decision makers seem to have lost their way in one aspect, credit is due to them in another. Lexington High School has been the leading voice in expanding the sport of track & field to include more than just three field events during the winter season (Pole Vault, Triple Jump, and Weight Throw are not sanctioned by the MIAA). In fact, LHS Athletic Director and Middlesex League Commissioner Naomi Martin has gone as far as to include the three events in League meets for the past two years. At the urging of LHS, Burlington High School, and others, the decision was made to include the Weight Throw at the MIAA Meet of Champions as an exhibition event. This meant a four round competition for all participants, as opposed to a three round prelims followed by finals, which is the standard format for championship field events. In the historic inaugural Weight Throw competition, LHS senior captain "Downtown" Elijah Brown turned in the best performance of his career. On his first attempt, Brown unleashed the 25lb implement 51'6.50", which broke his previous lifetime best by over two feet. That throw held up through the next three rounds to earn him a fourth place finish. The winner of the event - Peabody junior Alex Jackson - rewrote the state record books with his final throw of the day landing at 67'11". That throw broke the mark set back in 2014 at an out of state meet.
The highlight of the meet for the Lex Girls was undoubtedly turned in by the 4x800m Relay of senior Samara McVey, junior Lucy Kontos, sophomore Rose Neely, and freshman Callie Glenn. The quartet came to the meet with a season best of 9:55, which they set back in January. Things were off to a strong start as McVey kept her team in the mix with a 2:25.4 split. Kontos then got the baton and was left alone to run down a pack that included Weymouth, North Quincy and Newton South. Run them down she did, as she got Neely the baton right along with that pack after a 2:22.9 split. Neely then hung tough over four laps to the tune of a 2:31.7 split that got Glenn the baton right with North Quincy and Newton South. The freshman has proved to have all the grit and fight of a hardened veteran throughout her first season with The Minutemen, and she showed it again on Saturday. Glenn battled every step of the way, and threw everything she had at her opponents as she galloped around the 200m oval. In the end, she crossed the line as the clock read 9:42.30. Her split of 2:22.2 earned her team a sixth place finish in what was a stellar way to put an exclamation point on their 2023-2024 Indoor Seasons.
Other Highlights from the Track
- Sophomore Ainsley Cuthbertson (36'0") placed eighth overall in the Girls Weight Throw; senior Quin Tandeih was 11th with a throw of 33'4.50".
- Senior captain Jada Solomon, sophomore Aubrey Deardorf, freshman Alyssa McKee, and senior Felice Haverly landed 13th with a time of 1:48.64 in the 4x200m Relay.
- In the 55m Hurdles, senior Amandine Mangon (8.91) was 14th overall.
- Along with his brother, sophomore Christian Brown (43'1") finished 14th in the Boys Weight Throw.
- The Boys 4x4 of freshman Sheryas Hanchinamani and Eli Selsky, along with juniors Tim George and James Joseph were 20th in a time of 3:39.69.
- Deardorf finished 23rd in the 55m Dash with a time of 7.55 seconds.
Up Next
Most of the team will be off for two weeks in preparation for the New Balance Indoor Nationals the second weekend of March, but this Tuesday, February 27th sophomore Simon Tandeih will once again try his hand at the multi-events at the MSTCA Boys Pentathlon. The pentathlon will test Tandeih and his competitors with the 55m Hurdles, Long Jump, Shot Put, High Jump, and 1000m. Action starts at 3:30pm at the Reggie Lewis Center.