From left, Saranac Lake’s Cadence Kennedy, Lila Zobel, Ally Bourgeouis and Nelle Aaron land in the water during the steeplechase event following Tuesday’s meet.
(Enterprise photo — Parker O’Brien)
SARANAC LAKE — With sectionals and state qualifiers on the horizon the Saranac Lake boys and girls track and field teams were swept by the Saranac Central Spartans in their final meet of the regular season on Tuesday.
On the boys side, the host Red Storm were defeated 85-47, while Saranac Lake’s girls suffered an 84-42 loss on a night that honored 14 seniors — nine boys and five girls.
“(They) have given so much to our athletics department over the years,” Saranac Lake boys head coach Cy Ellsworth said. “They have all worked hard to keep the bar high within our program not just from a performance level, but they are all leaders in our high school and are involved in multiple things within our school community. I am very fortunate to have worked with them.”
Despite honoring the seniors, the night was dominated by Saranac Lake’s junior class with Liam Nobles, Jake Kollmer, Elijah Schenk and Dustin Burke winning eight of 16 events.
“(Nobles, Kollmer and Burke) performed well last weekend at two high stakes meets at Shenendehowa High School and Queensbury,” Ellsworth said. “They know what we expect from them as coaches going into sectionals and state qualifiers.”
Saranac Lake’s Jake Kollmer, left, leads Saranac Central’s Andrew Denial in the 1,600 event during Tuesday’s meet.(Enterprise photo — Parker O’Brien)
Nobles was his usual self, winning four events — the 200, 110 hurdles, long jump and triple jump. Kollmer won the 800 and 1,600. Burke topped the shot put field and Schenk won the 400.
The Red Storm’s Soren Wolford, a senior, tied the Spartans’ Zander Daniels in the 100-meter dash.
“Saranac performed better than we did tonight,” Ellsworth said. “They beat us in every single relay, and swept us in the 3,200 and beat us in the discus. We gave up too many points in those events to win a meet of this magnitude.”
On the girls side, Saranac Central won 13 of the 16 events to defeat the Red Storm for the second time this season. The Spartans previously topped Saranac Lake on April 18.
Despite falling, Saranac Lake girls track coach Jason Wamsganz said he was pleased with how his girls squad performed.
Saranac Lake’s Ally Bourgeouis soars through the air during Tuesday’s meet.
(Enterprise photo — Parker O’Brien)
“Saranac is the top team in the section and they are just so deep and talented at the front end,” he said.
The Red Storm picked up victories from Muna Kujabi in the high jump event, Cadence Kennedy in the 3,000 and from its 400 relay team of Ally Bourgeois, Raiana Baumann, Madeline Stavenhagen and Zuleyka Oliveras.
Saranac Central swept the throwing events, vertical jumps, hurdles and sprints en route to the win.
Following the conclusion of Monday’s meet, both the Red Storm and the Spartans held a non-timed steeplechase event — a race that takes runners through fixed barriers and water jumps. It was the first time the event has been held in Saranac Lake.
“It was an exciting venue this evening for everyone with the inauguration of the steeplechase event here in Saranac Lake,” Wamsganz said. “There must have been over a few hundred spectators. It was a great experience for the Saranac and Saranac Lake athletes and spectators.”
Saranac Lake’s Dustin Burke competes in the shot put event during Tuesday’s meet. (Enterprise photo — Parker O’Brien)
With both teams sitting by the water jump and spectators lined up alongside the fence, 35 track athletes — 18 girls and 17 boys — took part in the event, most of which had never competed in the event. Despite a couple of big splashes and tumbles into the water, the athletes completed the event with a smile.
“Everyone just cheered, regardless of team affiliation,” Wamsganz said. “It’s exactly the kind of sportsmanship we appreciate and expect from our athletes. It’s really nice to watch a new school facility bring community members together, a lot of pride and camaraderie were exhibited this evening.”
The steeplechase event will be held during the Section VII state qualifiers event, which will be hosted by Saranac Lake on May 31.
“(It will) begin a tradition offering the steeplechase for our area track and field student-athletes,” Wamsganz said. “This wouldn’t be possible without the new facility, our school district and community members work hard to provide our students opportunities, and it’s really valued and appreciated.”
Prior the state qualifiers, the Red Storm track teams will compete in the Section VII championships in Lake Placid on Wednesday. The event will kick off at 2 p.m.
“This part of the season is when it gets fun,” Wamsganz said. “The girls will have about a week to focus their attention on specific details for their events and with some hard work, they should be performing their best at sectionals. I look for us to continue improving and hitting personal bests.”
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BOYS
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Scores
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Saranac Central 85, Saranac Lake 47
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Individual results
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3,200 relay — Dorman,Denial, Cayea and Thayer (SC), 8:40; 110 hurdles — Nobles (SL), 15.8; 100 — Daniels (SC) and Wolford (SL), 11.5; 1,600 — Kollmer (SL), 4:26.3; 400 relay — Strack, Ducatte, Hutchinson and Homburger (SC), 46.2; 400 — Schenk (SL), 53.9; 400 hurdles — Huckon (SC), 1:02.8; 800 — Kollmer (SL) 2:09.3; 200 — Nobles (SL), 23.0; 3,200 — Dorman (SC),10:50.9; 1,600 relay — Cayea, Hutchinson, Hulrow and Gaboriault (SC), 3:39.05; High Jump — Powers (SC), 5’6“; Long Jump — Nobles (SL), 21’4.25”; Triple Jump — Nobles (SL), 44’4“; Shot Put — Burke (SL), 41’8”; Discus — Webber (SC), 128’1″.
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GIRLS
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Saranac Central 84, Saranac Lake 42
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Individual results
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3,200 relay — Wynnik, Miner, Norcross and Mesec (SC), 10:32; 100 hurdles — McDonald (SC), 18.2; 100 — Liberty (SC), 12.4; 1,500 — Boulds (SC), 4:48; 400 relay — Bourgeois, Baumann, Stavenhagen and Oliveras (SL), 56.9; 400 — Liberty (SC), 1:01.6; 400 hurdles — Hanson (SC), 1:02.8; 800 — Norcross (SC), 2:39; 200 — Lavigne (SC), 26.2; 3,000 — Kennedy (SL), 11:45.0; 1,600 relay — Hanson, Rabideau, Wynnik and Lavigne (SC), 4:26.3; High Jump — Kujabi (SL), 4’4“; Long Jump — Wynnik (SC), 15’10”; Triple Jump — Saranac Central athlete; Shot Put — Jean-Pierre (SC), 35’6“; Discus — Jean-Pierre (SC), 107’5”.
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LAKE PLACID
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The Lake Placid track and field teams split with the Seton Catholic Knights in the team’s final meet of the regular season on their home track Tuesday evening. The Blue Bomber boys topped Seton Catholic 84-40, while the girls squad fell 80-40.
Lake Placid’s Sean Roth and Jesse Marshall led the way for the boys team, winning two individual events each. Roth won the 100 and the 200, while Marshall won the 400 hurdles and long jump.
The Blue Bombers also picked up wins from Jim Guglielmi in the 400, Aidan Fay in the 3,200, Colin Francis in the triple jump and Theo Harris in the high jump. The team also swept all three relay events to improve to to 2-5 overall.
Kai McKinnon and Ashe Gagnon paced the Lake Placid girls by winning two events each. McKinnon won the 800 and the 1,500, while Gagnon was victorious in the 100 and 400 hurdles.
Alexandria Smith won the 200. The team also swept the throwing events with Harley Cohen winning the shot put and Lily Fisher topping the discus field. The Lake Placid girls fell to 1-6 overall.
The Blue Bombers will host the Section VII Championships on Wednesday, May 22. The event will kick off at 2 p.m.
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Top Lake Placid results
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BOYS
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3,200 relay — Carlson, Mariano, Guglielmi and Francis, 11:16; 110 hurdles — N/A; 100 — Roth, 11.9; 1,600 — Carlson, 5:47.0; 400 relay — Casey, Guglielmi, Roth and Kondrat, 52.6; 400 — Guglielmi, 1:02.0; 400 hurdles — Kondrat, 1:08.0; 800 — A. Fay, 2:03.0; 200 — Roth, 27.6; 3,200 — A. Fay, 10:31.0; 1,600 relay — J. Marshall, Guglielmi, Cash and A. Fay, 4:15; High Jump — Harris, 5’0“; Long Jump — J. Marshall, 17’9”; Triple Jump — Francis, 29’9“; Shot Put — Harris, 26’9.5”; Discus — S. Marshall, 61′.
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GIRLS
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3,200 relay — Cohen, Erenstone, J. Fay and McKinnon, 11:58; 100 hurdles — Gagnon, 22.0; 100 — Boutelle and Fisher, 14.4; 1,500 — McKinnon, 5:29; 400 relay — M. Marshall, Boutelle, Fisher and Smith, 58.6; 400 — N/A; 400 hurdles — Gagnon, 1:32.4; 800 — McKinnon, 2:47; 200 — Smith, 29.5; 3,000 — Cohen, 14:05.0; 1,600 relay — N/A; High Jump — N/A; Long Jump — Smith, 8’11“; Triple Jump — N/A; Shot Put — Cohen, 19’1”; Discus — Fisher, 57’3″.