THE HORNETS had two competitors named the CAL Open Athlete of the Meet. Madison Vant won the award for the girls’ meet getting 1st in the shot put, 2nd in the 55 meter hurdles and 3rd in the long jump, scoring 24 of the team’s 105 points. Ryan McGuire won it for the boys’ meet, getting 1st place in the 55 meter dash and the long jump while also helping the 4×200 relay team get gold. (NRHS Track Photo)
BOSTON — The NRHS boys’ indoor track team scored 59 points enroute to a 3rd place finish in the Cape Ann League Open Championship last Tuesday evening at the Track at New Balance. League champion Newburyport scored 76 points and runner up Amesbury scored 62 points.
“We performed extremely well tonight,” said Hornets head coach Ryan Spinney. “We stepped up all across the board. Everyone came to compete and we certainly proved we deserved to be in the mix for the team title. Definitely a very proud moment for the program.”
Senior Ryan McGuire was certainly a major contributor as he won 2 individual events and contributed to a third victory as part of the 4 x 200 Meter Relay. McGuire was crowned the fastest sprinter in the CAL with his top time of 6.64 in the 55 Meter Dash, a time that puts him second all time in NRHS history in the event. He also won the Long Jump by breaking the league meet record with a leap of 21′ 2.25″.
The 4 x 200 Meter team of Senior Captain Caleb Sands, McGuire, Senior Brodie Mann and Senior Nathan Miller outkicked the field in a time of 1:33.18 to take home top honors in the event.
“Ryan was absolutely at his best this evening,” said Spinney. “The coaches voted him Meet MVP because very few win multiple events outright and he won two plus contributed in the relay. He is a true talent and a competitor in every sense of the word.”
Nathan Miller rewrote the history books in his own right as he smashed his 300 Meter Dash record by over half a second with his time of 35.49, as he took 2nd overall in the event at the league open in the most competitive race on the track for the day. Miller also took 2nd in the Long Jump to McGuire with his personal season best of 20′ 8.5″.
“Nathan Miller is the definition of a gutsy competitor. No matter what, never count Nathan out in a race or competition. He never quits. He is truly one of the finest athletes we have had during my years with the indoor program.”
Senior Captain Jacob Duval tied for 3rd overall in the High Jump with a leap of 5′ 8″. Senior Michael Hemme had a banner day with two personal records in both the 1 mile and 1000 Meter Run as his 4:49.84 in the mile earned him 5th overall in the meet and his 2:46.18 in the 1000 Meter Run places him 5th all time in NRHS history. “Very few could accomplish what Michael did tonight in a roughly 20 minute span. Two PR’s and a top 10 school all time finish is a testament to his desire to be the best he can be. He is a special runner and person,” said Spinney.
Sophomore Tanner DuPriest took 5th in the Long Jump with a jump of 19′ 7″. The 4 x 800 Meter Relay team of Seniors Christian DaCosta, Rocco Tammaro, Ben Meier and Liam Rodger took 5th overall in the event with their season best time of 9:13.35.
Senior Captain Owen Delano took 6th in the Shot Put with a throw of 37′ 6″ and Junior Logan Lamont took 6th in the 600 Meter Run with his season best time of 1:29.99.
Senior Brodie Mann’s PR in the 300 Meter of 37.11 places him 5th all time in NRHS history for the event and a number of athletes had their personal bests across a number of events.
The Hornets moved on to the MIAA Division 4 State Track Championship on Wednesday after press time.