GIRLS RISE TO THE OCCASION WHILE BOYS STRUGGLE AT DIVISIONALS
Meet Information
MIAA Division 1 Championships
February 14, 2019
Reggie Lewis Track & Field Center - Boston, MA.
RESULTS
BOSTON, MA - Thursday, Lexington's boys and girls had a Valentine's Day date with some of the best the state has to offer at the Division 1 Championships. On the girls side The Minutemen put up a tremendous team effort with ten season or personal bests turned in. LHS scored in four individual events as well as all three relays en route to a 38 point effort. While the girls from Andover took home the title with 61 points, those 38 points landed The Minutemen in a third place tie with Brookline, their highest finish since 2015. The boys title was successfully defended by Lowell who put up an impressive 65 points. Lexington's boys did not fair so well, finishing 11th with just 17 points.
While Lexington's ladies had a many standout performances, senior captain Kesinia Sortor came up with a pair gritty races that helped propel LHS to their third place finish. First in the Mile, Sortor grabbed a sixth place finish running 5:20.06. She then doubled back in the 2 Mile to put up another sixth place finish, this time in a season best 11:46.89. Also running in the 2 Mile was junior Danna Ofek who had the highest finish for The Minutemen on the day. Running with a tightly knit pack of seven runners over the first three quarters of the race, Ofek charged away from the group over the final 400m to grab third place and an automatic bid to the All-State Championships in a personal best time of 11:39.16. Despite pulling out all the stops in the 2 Mile, Ofek's day was not yet done. Less than an hour later she was back with sophomore Lina Jafaar, and fellow classmates Pauline Steines and Lily Sheth to pick up one point with an eighth place finish in the 4x800m relay. Their time of 9:58.63 was a season best. Along with Sortor and Ofek, Sheth had a big day of her own. She began the meet with a personal best time (1:38.46) and a fourth place finish in the 600m. Then after the 4x800m both she and Jafaar returned to help freshman Elana Sabin and sophomore Aleia Gisolfi-McCready place seventh in the 4x400m relay.
Other Highlights for the Girls
Final Girls Team Scores (Top 15)
1. Andover - 61
2. Lowell - 43
3. Lexington - 38
3. Brookline - 38
5. Wachusett - 36.50
6. Newton North - 35
7. Cambridge Rindge & Latin - 33.50
8. Boston Latin School - 25
9. Brockton. 22.50
10. Newton South - 22
11. Shrewsbury - 20
12. Taunton - 14
13. Franklin - 13.50
14. Haverhill - 13
15. Peabody - 12
Point Scorers for the Boys
Final Boys Team Scores (Top 15)
1. Lowell - 65
2. Newton North - 53
3. Brockton - 42
4. Acton-Boxborough - 41
5. Shrewsbury - 35
6. Boston College High - 33
7. Brookline - 26
8. Saint John's Prep - 22
9. Franklin - 19
10. Needham - 18
11. Lexington - 17
12. Wachusett - 13
13. Andover - 12
13. Newton South - 12
13. Xaverian Brothers - 12
Up Next
The rest of The Minutemen will now play the wait and see game while Division 2, 3, and 4 teams compete over the weekend and the All-State meet's competitors are finalized. For those who qualify the state meet will take place next Saturday the 23rd at 10:30am.
MIAA Division 1 Championships
February 14, 2019
Reggie Lewis Track & Field Center - Boston, MA.
RESULTS
BOSTON, MA - Thursday, Lexington's boys and girls had a Valentine's Day date with some of the best the state has to offer at the Division 1 Championships. On the girls side The Minutemen put up a tremendous team effort with ten season or personal bests turned in. LHS scored in four individual events as well as all three relays en route to a 38 point effort. While the girls from Andover took home the title with 61 points, those 38 points landed The Minutemen in a third place tie with Brookline, their highest finish since 2015. The boys title was successfully defended by Lowell who put up an impressive 65 points. Lexington's boys did not fair so well, finishing 11th with just 17 points.
While Lexington's ladies had a many standout performances, senior captain Kesinia Sortor came up with a pair gritty races that helped propel LHS to their third place finish. First in the Mile, Sortor grabbed a sixth place finish running 5:20.06. She then doubled back in the 2 Mile to put up another sixth place finish, this time in a season best 11:46.89. Also running in the 2 Mile was junior Danna Ofek who had the highest finish for The Minutemen on the day. Running with a tightly knit pack of seven runners over the first three quarters of the race, Ofek charged away from the group over the final 400m to grab third place and an automatic bid to the All-State Championships in a personal best time of 11:39.16. Despite pulling out all the stops in the 2 Mile, Ofek's day was not yet done. Less than an hour later she was back with sophomore Lina Jafaar, and fellow classmates Pauline Steines and Lily Sheth to pick up one point with an eighth place finish in the 4x800m relay. Their time of 9:58.63 was a season best. Along with Sortor and Ofek, Sheth had a big day of her own. She began the meet with a personal best time (1:38.46) and a fourth place finish in the 600m. Then after the 4x800m both she and Jafaar returned to help freshman Elana Sabin and sophomore Aleia Gisolfi-McCready place seventh in the 4x400m relay.
Other Highlights for the Girls
- Along with the 4x800m and the 4x400m, Jafaar began her triple by running a personal best time of 3:06.65 in the 1000m to place fourth.
- Junior Keena Gao, sophomore Eileen Cannon, and freshman Mari McBride teamed up with Gisolfi-McCready to run a season best 1:47.32 in the 4x200m. The team placed fourth from the unseeded heat.
- Completing LHS's 1-2 punch in the 1000m, Steines placed fifth in 3:09.40.
- Gisolfi-McCready placed fifth in the 300m in 41.86 seconds.
- In addition to her leg on the relay, Gao turned in a season best 16'0.5" in the Long Jump, which was good enough for ninth.
- McBride finished tenth in the High Jump clearing 5'0" for the first time.
- One of only two freshman competing in the event, Carolyn Lane turned in a personal best 9.72 seconds in the 55m High Hurdles. She finished 26th.
Final Girls Team Scores (Top 15)
1. Andover - 61
2. Lowell - 43
3. Lexington - 38
3. Brookline - 38
5. Wachusett - 36.50
6. Newton North - 35
7. Cambridge Rindge & Latin - 33.50
8. Boston Latin School - 25
9. Brockton. 22.50
10. Newton South - 22
11. Shrewsbury - 20
12. Taunton - 14
13. Franklin - 13.50
14. Haverhill - 13
15. Peabody - 12
Point Scorers for the Boys
- The boys highest finisher on the day was junior Micah Benson who placed fourth in the 2 Mile with a personal best 9:45.73.
- Also in the 2 Mile, senior captain Eli Gappelberg placed seventh in 9:50.18.
- Senior captain Kazu Uda-Thach placed fifth in the 300m in 35.63 seconds.
- In the 600m, junior Josh Backert ran 1:24.48 to place sixth.
- The 4x400m relay squad of seniors Joe Tibbles and Riley Walsh as well as junior Selvin Backert and brother Josh placed sixth in a season best 3:29.81.
Final Boys Team Scores (Top 15)
1. Lowell - 65
2. Newton North - 53
3. Brockton - 42
4. Acton-Boxborough - 41
5. Shrewsbury - 35
6. Boston College High - 33
7. Brookline - 26
8. Saint John's Prep - 22
9. Franklin - 19
10. Needham - 18
11. Lexington - 17
12. Wachusett - 13
13. Andover - 12
13. Newton South - 12
13. Xaverian Brothers - 12
Up Next
The rest of The Minutemen will now play the wait and see game while Division 2, 3, and 4 teams compete over the weekend and the All-State meet's competitors are finalized. For those who qualify the state meet will take place next Saturday the 23rd at 10:30am.