NEK – The Craftsbury Academy (CA) and Hazen Union high school track and field teams were back in action last week, posting several personal bests with their young teams.
The Chargers kicked off a busy week at U-32 with sophomore Natalie Hill leading the way on Wednesday with a pair of top-ten finishes in the field events. Hill finished fifth in the discus with her best throw of the season measuring 18.93m. Christin Haynes of U-32 took first place honors, also posting a ninth-place finish in the shot put, with a personal record toss that traveled 6.56m. North Country’s Morgan Shaffer bested the field.
Sophomore teammate Theo Alexander finished sixth in the javelin, improving his personal best distance by over three meters. Oxbow’s Oden Schlager was the event winner.
Alexander also cut over six seconds off his personal best time in the 800m event.
Freshman Nora Van Gulden beat her personal record in the 1500m by an eye-popping 16 seconds, finishing behind event winner Isobel Koger of U-32.
Junior Soren Stelma-Leonard was six seconds faster than his personal best in the 800m, with U-32’s Cole Page besting the field. Sophomore Arwen Alexander wrapped up the Charger highlights with a personal best in the 1500m by over 5 seconds.
At the South Burlington Twilight Invitational on Saturday, Stelma-Leonard led the way with a personal record time in the 1500m. The junior bested more than two-thirds of a field of more than 70 competitors.
St. Johnsbury Academy’s (SJA) Emmett Johnson took home the hardware on the heels of his Division I cross-country title this past fall.
Sophomore Raz Mille beat his personal best by more than three feet in the shot put, with Alex Johnson of Essex besting all competitors in the event.
Van Gulden capped off her strong week for CA by breaking the three-minute barrier in the 800m with a time of 2:54.18. Thetford Academy’s Ava Hayden took home first place honors. Theo Alexander (1500m) and Arwen Alexander (800m) wrapped up the weekend with personal best times.
“It was an amazing week. Everyone continues to improve and set high expectations for themselves. They’re all working hard to chase down times and distances to qualify for States, and it’s clearly paying off. Everyone is excited to see how far they can push themselves in our upcoming weeks and it was a great week for Craftsbury Academy against stacked fields from all divisions,” said head coach Kyle Anderson.
Hazen Union traveled to Lyndon Institute on Wednesday and junior Alex Bowley led the Wildcats with a top ten finish and personal best in the 100m. Lake Region’s Jericho Thatcher bested the field. Fellow junior Lewis LaPierre ran his best time of the season in the 1500m, finishing behind event winner Zachary Taylor of Lyndon. Junior Chloe Dyer also posted personal bests in both the 100m and javelin for the Wildcats.
Former Craftsbury Academy state champion Charlie Kehler posted a top five finish for SJA in the 1500m at South Burlington on Saturday. Sophomore teammate and former Hazen Union standout Manny Fliegelman posted a top twenty finish in the 800m. The Hilltoppers decimated the field with a team score of 124 and look poised to capture their fifth straight Division I state title in June.
CA was scheduled to travel to North Country on Tuesday, and the Wildcats will head back to Lyndon Institute on Wednesday. The Middle School programs are scheduled to open up their season at Lyndon on Wednesday and Colchester on Friday.
