DEARDORF DELIVERS STATE TITLE AS LHS FINISHES MEET OF CHAMPIONS IN STYLE
Meet Information
MIAA Meet of Champions Day 2
June 5, 2025
Elliott Athletic Complex - Fitchburg, MA
RESULTS
FITCHBURG, MA - After torrential downpours postponed Day 2 of the Meet of Champions on Saturday, the Bay State's best track & field athletes gathered for the final time during the 2024-2025 school year. The Minutemen had a number of strong performances on the day, but none rose to the level of the Middlesex League MVP, and now state champion, superstar Aubrey Deardorf.
Competing in her signature event, the LHS junior, and the rest of her competitors were having a tough time navigating the runway at the Fitchburg State. In fact, not a single jumper in the field - Deardorf included - managed to achieve a personal best on Sunday. In the prelims, the LHS record holder in the event, with a best of 19'4.50", only got out to 17'8". Luckily, that was still good enough to get her into the finals. With Lincoln-Sudbury's Gabrielle Pierre in the lead after prelims with a jump of 18'5.25", Deardorf stepped up for her first attempt in finals. The LHS junior charged down the runway and exploded cleanly off the board, landing 19'0" into the pit to take the lead. After Deardorf was unable to improve her mark on her final two attempts, the waiting game began. However, her 19-foot jump proved to be a fait accompli as no one was able to approach that distance and Deardorf was crowned state champion. Along with Deardorf's performance, freshman sensation Amelia Whorton turned in a tremendous performance of her own. In the Mile, Whorton got a front row seat to watch Westford Academy's Abigail Hennessy break the state record with a US #4 time of 4:37.11. Meanwhile, she was locked in a pack with the top harriers in Massachusetts as the race approached the bell. As they came down the backstretch, Whorton moved away from the pack with only Newton North senior Ciara Evans in front of her. When the two turned for home, it appeared Evans was pulling away, but then the LHS freshman found another gear and powered past her to cross the line with a new personal best of 4:53.91. In the end, Whorton used a 67-second final lap to earn herself the silver medal.
The top finisher on the day for the LHS boys was junior captain Simon Tandeih. After a strong run in the prelims that saw him turn in a personal best of 14.52 to qualify 8th for the finals, Tandeih nearly matched that effort with a 14.54-second performance in those finals. That mark moved him up one spot to earn a 7th place medal in a talented field. While Tandeih brought home some hardware, senior Max Zhang was able to punch his ticket to Nationals. In a race that was won by Brookline's Altamo Aschkenasy in 4:08.31, Zhang hung tough and ran a personal best of 4:17.72 to finish 11th overall. His time ranks him #3 in LHS history in the event and was the fastest run by an LHS harrier since 2016.
Other Highlights
Up Next
It is New Englands week as The Minutemen will have athletes competing at 3 separate New England championship meets this week. On Wednesday, junior Franz Schroeder will attack the circle at Conely Stadium in Providence for the New England Hammer Throw Championship. Action begins on June 11th at 4pm. Then on Saturday, fellow classmate Aidan Raney will travel to New Britain, Connecticut to compete in the Pole Vault at the New England Championships. Competition begins on June 14th at 10am. Later that afternoon, sophomore Erin Ehmann will get one final shot at the 2000m Steeplechase as she competes at the USATF-NE Junior Olympic Championships, which begin at 4:30pm at Gordon College.
MIAA Meet of Champions Day 2
June 5, 2025
Elliott Athletic Complex - Fitchburg, MA
RESULTS
FITCHBURG, MA - After torrential downpours postponed Day 2 of the Meet of Champions on Saturday, the Bay State's best track & field athletes gathered for the final time during the 2024-2025 school year. The Minutemen had a number of strong performances on the day, but none rose to the level of the Middlesex League MVP, and now state champion, superstar Aubrey Deardorf.
Competing in her signature event, the LHS junior, and the rest of her competitors were having a tough time navigating the runway at the Fitchburg State. In fact, not a single jumper in the field - Deardorf included - managed to achieve a personal best on Sunday. In the prelims, the LHS record holder in the event, with a best of 19'4.50", only got out to 17'8". Luckily, that was still good enough to get her into the finals. With Lincoln-Sudbury's Gabrielle Pierre in the lead after prelims with a jump of 18'5.25", Deardorf stepped up for her first attempt in finals. The LHS junior charged down the runway and exploded cleanly off the board, landing 19'0" into the pit to take the lead. After Deardorf was unable to improve her mark on her final two attempts, the waiting game began. However, her 19-foot jump proved to be a fait accompli as no one was able to approach that distance and Deardorf was crowned state champion. Along with Deardorf's performance, freshman sensation Amelia Whorton turned in a tremendous performance of her own. In the Mile, Whorton got a front row seat to watch Westford Academy's Abigail Hennessy break the state record with a US #4 time of 4:37.11. Meanwhile, she was locked in a pack with the top harriers in Massachusetts as the race approached the bell. As they came down the backstretch, Whorton moved away from the pack with only Newton North senior Ciara Evans in front of her. When the two turned for home, it appeared Evans was pulling away, but then the LHS freshman found another gear and powered past her to cross the line with a new personal best of 4:53.91. In the end, Whorton used a 67-second final lap to earn herself the silver medal.
The top finisher on the day for the LHS boys was junior captain Simon Tandeih. After a strong run in the prelims that saw him turn in a personal best of 14.52 to qualify 8th for the finals, Tandeih nearly matched that effort with a 14.54-second performance in those finals. That mark moved him up one spot to earn a 7th place medal in a talented field. While Tandeih brought home some hardware, senior Max Zhang was able to punch his ticket to Nationals. In a race that was won by Brookline's Altamo Aschkenasy in 4:08.31, Zhang hung tough and ran a personal best of 4:17.72 to finish 11th overall. His time ranks him #3 in LHS history in the event and was the fastest run by an LHS harrier since 2016.
Other Highlights
- The Boys 4x100m Relay of sophomores Cayden Chambers and Luis Linares Gutierrez, as well as Tandeih and junior captain Amari Mow ran a season best of 42.78 seconds to place 8th overall.
- Mow finished 11th in the Boys 100m with a time of 11.06 seconds.
- In the Girls 400m, junior Felice Haverly (59.30) finished 13th.
- Junior Sam Myerberg (154'11") earned a 13th place finish of his own in the Boys Javelin.
- Senior Will Fletcher anchored the Boys 4x800m Relay with a 1:59.3-split to bring home the team of sophomores Arjun Raha, Eric House, and Patrick Noonan in a season best 8:04.99 to finish 15th.
- The Girls 4x100m Relay of Deardorf, freshman Sabina Green, and sophomores Natalie Seed and Marissa Hao finished 17th in 51.21 seconds.
Up Next
It is New Englands week as The Minutemen will have athletes competing at 3 separate New England championship meets this week. On Wednesday, junior Franz Schroeder will attack the circle at Conely Stadium in Providence for the New England Hammer Throw Championship. Action begins on June 11th at 4pm. Then on Saturday, fellow classmate Aidan Raney will travel to New Britain, Connecticut to compete in the Pole Vault at the New England Championships. Competition begins on June 14th at 10am. Later that afternoon, sophomore Erin Ehmann will get one final shot at the 2000m Steeplechase as she competes at the USATF-NE Junior Olympic Championships, which begin at 4:30pm at Gordon College.