Jay Jung ’27 ran the 55-Meter and 300-Meter race on Wednesday.
Wednesday 1/17 – Andover: 81.5, Governor’s: 55.5, Deerfield: 31, Wilbraham & Monson: 27, Landmark: 2
Andover Boys Indoor Track and Field sent a small group of athletes to Boston to compete in the UMass Flagship Invitational on Sunday. The following Wednesday, Andover dominated at home to take first place by 26 points over four other teams.
For many, Sunday was the first time competing against Division I collegiate athletes. According to Vance Fabrizio ’24, although the atmosphere on Sunday was highly focused, there was still a supportive environment, which motivated athletes to perform at their best.
Fabrizio said, “It was a little more serious, it was the first college meet I’d been to so [I was] definitely … around more collegiate runners who took this sport very seriously. I shook hands with all the people on the line before my race which sometimes happens in our meets but not as often and almost planned out as that one was.”
On Sunday, Tam Gavenas ’25 broke the Upper class record in the 1000-Meter, initially held by Co-Captain Max Huang ’24, with a time of 2:31.01. Huang followed closely behind Gavenas in the same race with a time of 2:34.80.
Fabrizio said, “One individual that stood out is Max Huang, he went out at a fast pace, at a skilled pace, and really hit a time he wanted to run. In the last lap, what really stood out to me was that he was able to get around a few guys, and pass a few guys in the last lap, … with like 100 meters to go. He made a move that I hadn’t seen in a long time, since cross country season.”
On Wednesday, Andover hosted Governor’s, Deerfield, Wilbraham & Monson, and Landmark. In preparation for the meet, the team did its normal pre-meet routine the day before, making sure everyone’s legs were fresh, according to Ollie Buckoff ’24
“We had a group of athletes go to the Track at New Balance on Sunday and we got some really competitive races. I think that was very good preparation for today. The distance group had a nice long run on Monday and the whole team did its pre-meet routine yesterday which included strides and making sure our legs were fresh for today. I think everyone felt really good going into today and it definitely showed in the performances that we saw,” said Buckhoff, who placed first in the 1000-Meter race.
Wednesday’s meet also saw another new Upper class record set by Kamen Kaleb ’25, who cleared 6-01 in the high jump. Sami Tokat ’26 highlighted the energetic atmosphere that pushed athletes to compete at their best.
Tokat said, “The atmosphere was really really good, especially towards the end of the meet. There was a whole crowd of people by the bleachers cheering and supporting as their teammates ran by. I had a great time and I know my teammates did too. There were a lot of people there to support and all the races were really exciting.”
Andover Boys Indoor Track and Field will host Austin Preparatory School, Lawrence High School, and North Reading on Wednesday.
