Canton’s Matt Graziano won his second straight New England championship and tied the state record in the discus.
NEW BRITAIN – There was no drama like the year before.
A year ago at the New England track and field championships in Maine, a competitor from Simsbury accidentally left the facility with the equipment bag belonging to Canton’s Matt Graziano. Unfazed, Graziano borrowed a competitor’s discus and won the New England championship.
This year, Graziano was focused on making history.
The two-time State Open champion in the discus was facing the best discus competition from across New England. But his mind was on an ancient record – the oldest mark in the Connecticut track and field record book.
Over 44 years ago, Mel Taylor of Hartford Public threw the discus 189 feet and one inch in 1969. It’s a record that Graziano has been chasing all season.
Graziano threw 191 feet, 7 inches in a three-team dual meet against Ellington in April but that isn’t eligible because it thrown during a dual meet and there needs to be at least five teams competing for record book consideration.
At the Greater Hartford Invitational in Simsbury, he threw the discus over the facility’s fence and into the woods three times. One throw hit a tree. Graziano was credited with a throw of 179 feet, 6 inches. At the NCCC championship meet, he set a new meet record with a throw of 173 feet, 5 inches that hit the ground, bounced into the air and sailed into the woods.
With the New England championships at New Britain’s Willow Brook Park, Graziano didn’t focus on the competition. He focused on his technique and tied Taylor’s mark of 189 feet, one inch on his final throw of the competition to win his second straight New England title.
Graziano is just the fourth athlete in Canton history to win a New England title. And he is the only Warrior athlete with a pair of New England championships. Wrestler Kacy O’Connor (1998) and the tennis doubles team of Peter and Matt Spring (1999) each won New England titles.
Graziano began his competition with a throw of 184 feet and continued to improve on his next three throws. His fourth throw went for 185 feet, 8 inches. His fifth throw slipped a bit to 176-1. But on his final throw of the day, Graziano’s discus soared 189 feet, one inch.
Two judges and two tape measures were used to mark the distance.
“That was pretty crazy to get the record on my last throw,” Graziano said. “It felt really good. It was the speed. It was the power. It was there. I could feel it.”
Graziano beat Bloomfield senior Isaiah Brooks by 16 feet. Brooks and Joe Colao of Westerly, R.I., each had season-best performances.
“It was the type of competition that I needed to (make a record-setting) throw,” Graziano said. “I work well under pressure.”
Graziano’s final scholastic performance in Connecticut capped off a stellar high school career. In the discus, he won two Class S titles, two State Open crowns and two New England championships. Only five athletes in school history have won State Open titles.
He will be attending the University of Connecticut in the fall and will be receiving some scholarship funds to throw the discus for the Huskies.
“This is something I can do by myself,” Graziano said of his love for discus. “I can get better by myself. I see the results and improvement and I like that.”
He spent hours researching technique on YouTube and practicing at Simsbury High’s track facility, which is only about 10 minutes away from Graziano’s home in Canton.
“I enjoy the technical part (of throwing the discus),” Graziano said. “It’s all about technique. It’s not only for huge guys. Anyone can throw it.”
Teammate Julian Franklin, who set a new school record of 44 feet in the triple jump a week earlier at the State Open, finished 13th at the New England meet in the triple jump. Franklin leaped 43 feet, 1 inch.
DECATHLON: An exceptional throw in the discus helped Canton sophomore Cam Daley edge Keith Wilson in the CIAC decathlon on June 11-12. Daley finished 16th overall with 5,040 points, just ahead of Wilson with 5,032. Franklin finished 24th with 4,623 points.
Daley finished third in the discus with a throw of 121 feet, 5 inches while Wilson was 27th with a throw of 76 feet. Daley also finished sixth in the javelin with a throw of 135 feet, 1 inches, 11th in the 110 hurdles in 16.55 and 12th in the 1,500 meter run in 4:57.73.
Wilson, who was 11th after the first day of competition and five events, finished in the top 10 in five individual events. He was second in the 400 meters (51.09 seconds), fourth in the 110 hurdles (15.83), fifth in the 100 meters (11.64) and eighth in the javelin (134-02).
All three Canton athletes lost points when they couldn’t clear a height in the pole vault. They all got a zero. Of course, Canton doesn’t have a track and field facility – -yet. There was a ceremonial groundbreaking Tuesday for the track facility that should be operational next spring.
HEPTHALON: Three Canton girls participated in the CIAC hepthalon. They didn’t qualify for the second day of competition because they weren’t among the top 35. Freshman Lucy Tanner did the best, finishing 39th after the first four events of the eight event competition.
Tanner’s best event was the 100 hurdles where she finished 20nd overall with a time of 17.43 seconds. Sarah Allen’s best event an 18th place finish in the high jump (4-8¼). Anna Waite’s best event was in the shot, where she finished 22nd with a throw of 26 feet, 8¼ inches.
You must be logged in to post a comment Login