Andover Indoor Track boasted several incredible performances and personal bests on Saturday but could not overcome a talented and nationally ranked Andover High School (AHS) team.
Boys Captain James Lim ’12 said, “I will not hesitate in telling you that this was one of the most impressive meets I have been to as a member of PA Track and Field,” who sat out on Saturday due to injury. Although Andover suffered an extremely close overall point total loss, the team came out pleased with its improvement in all events.
To begin the meet, Anoush Shehadeh ’15 ran a blazing 5:23 mile and edged her AHS opponent by a split second. “[Shehadeh] amped up the entire team with her incredible mile race,” Lim added, “one of the best I have ever seen.”
Another impressive distance runner, James Hamilton ’12, paced the boys 2-mile run to capture first place.
Cassie Naranjo ’15, Victoria Naranjo ’15, Katherine Tobeason ’14 and Girls Shannon Adams ’12 dominated in the high jump; they swept the competition and set many records.
In the long jump, Kinsey Yost ’15 snagged first place for the second meet in a row.
Both boys and girls dominated the 600 yard run. Zoe Chazen ’14, Becca Wagman ’13, Izzy Davila ’12, Matt Fischetti ’14 and Demetrius Papageorgiou ’13 all placed in their respective heats.
Adams demonstrated her versatility during the meet, by filling in for vacancies in the 300 yard run and finishing with Andover’s best time in the event.
In the shot put, Jack Ward ’13 had another incredible performance with a monster throw of 49’ 6”, destroying his competition. Charles Guan ’12 has also been making significant progress this year and has broken his personal vaulting record of 9’6” twice. Recording a high height of 10’6” on Saturday, Guan “is already proving himself to be a huge contender for interschols,” according Lim.
To close out the meet, the girls’ 4×440 yard relay team, made up of Yost, Adams, Wagman and Diana Tchadi ’14, fought AHS to the wire. Andover trailed the fast AHS squad by several seconds until the final leg when Wagman made an incredible sprint to the finish, stretching her arm across the line and securing the victory by inches.
“[Wagman] ran one of the fastest relay splits ever seen in the Cage to pass the AHS anchor just before an electrifying finish that made the entire team euphoric,” said Lim.
Adams summed up Saturday’s meet, saying, “Yet again we really proved just what we’re made of as a team.”
Indoor Track’s next home meet is on Wednesday, January 25 against Chelmsford High School.
