Canton’s Nathan Cournean (358) finished second in the 110 high hurdles and fourth in the 300 hurdles at Thursday’s Class S championship meet in New Britain.
The team has rarely been big in terms of the number of athletes competing but the Canton High girls track and field team continues to perform with their fourth consecutive top five finish at the Class S championship meet on Thursday at Willow Brook Park in New Britain.
The Warriors only have 14 athletes on the roster but they finished fourth with 48.6 points, just slipping ahead of NCCC champion Somers, who was fifth with 44 points. East Hampton won their first-ever Class S championship with a win in the final event of the day, the 4×400 relay, beating Bloomfield by less than two points, 99.1 to 97.6.
From left, Sadie Barker; coach Devin Glasson, Nick Bendedetti and Julia Lau. (Photo courtesy Barker family)
Junior Sadie Barker became the first Canton girl to win a throwing event with her victory in the shot while Maya Sutton-Hall finished second in the 300 hurdles behind East Hampton’s Jessica Starr, who set a new meet record in the event.
Julie Caputo finished second in the 3,200 meters and third in the 1,600 meters while Julie Lau finished third in the discus.
The Canton boys team finished tenth with Nicholas Benedetti leading the way with a second-place finish in the shot and Nate Cournean finishing second in the 110 high hurdles.
In the shot, Barker took the lead immediately with her first throw of 32-0½. Her winning throw of 32-5¾ came on her second throw of the day.
“She had a solid series,” Canton coach Tim O’Donnell said. “She had a solid series and was able to adjust to a somewhat tricky shot circle (with a very smooth surface) at Willow Brook. She has been steadily improving.”
Sutton-Hall ran a personal-best time of 47.56 seconds to finish second in the 300 hurdles. The only runner in front of her was Starr, who set a new meet record with a winning time of 44.84 seconds. Sutton-Hall did beat NCCC champion Olivia Suter of Somers for the first time. Suter finished fourth in 49.18 seconds.
Sutton-Hall ran into some disappointment in a competitive 100-meter field. She ran a time of 13.203 in the preliminary round fell 0.002 of a second short from qualifying for the final. The top nine runners advanced to the finals.
It didn’t slow her down in the 300 hurdles or the 4×400 relay, one of the meet’s final events. Sutton-Hall ran the anchor leg on Canton’s 4×400 relay that finished fifth with a time of 4:21.93. O’Donnell told the team that if they beat Somers in the race, they would finish ahead of the undefeated NCCC champions.
Teia Tuccillo, Jenna Cuniowski, Kylie Wishnewski and Sutton-Hall each personal bests on their 400-meter legs as the Warriors beat Somers by 10 seconds. The Spartans 4×400 relay finished 12th.
Canton’s Julia Caputo finished second in the 3,200 meters and third in the 1,600 meters at Thursday’s Class S championship meet.
Caputo earned two medals at the meet and broke two school records in the process. She finished third in the 1,600 meters with a time of 5:10.96, eight seconds better than her previous best time and a new school record. Somers’ Rachel St. Germain won in 5:03.92.
Later in the 3,200 meters, Caputo broke her own school record that she set at the 2018 State Open by nearly a second with her time of 11:09.05. The old mark was 11:09.99. Once again, it was St. Germain ahead of Caputo with a winning time of 10:58.46.
Lau finished third in the discus with a throw 98-6 feet.
Cuniowski had a pair of top 10 finishes with a fourth place finish in the triple jump with a leap of 32-5½ feet and an eighth place finish in the 800 meters to pick up some crucial points for the Warriors. It was a day of personal best performances for Cuniowski, who was seeded 23rd in the 800 meters and 18th in the triple jump.
After running in the 800 meter race that she nearly missed, Cuniowski leaped 32-5 ½ on her final jump in the finals to move up from sixth to fourth place and pick up another two points.
Cuniowski was focused and competing in the triple jump when her heat of the 800 was about to begin. Timely reminders from O’Donnell and her teammates alerted Cuniowski and delayed the start of the race for a few seconds – long enough for her to get to the start line. Cuniowski didn’t lead from the start. She slowly tracked down the leaders and by the end, she finished in 2:31.08, beating her previous best by four seconds.
The top five finishers in each event earned an invitation to the upcoming State Open championships on June 9 in New Britain.
Hannah Sevigny, who has been slowed by an ankle injury in the final weeks of the season, finished five-way tie for seventh place in the high jump with a leap of 4-feet-8. A five-way tie for seventh place earned each of the five teams 0.6 points – which made for some unique scoring totals.
Benedetti earned a silver medal in the shot in just his first outdoor track and field season. He has been in a groove since early May in a dual meet against East Windsor. He finished second in the NCCC behind Coventry’s Alex Krause with a career-best throw of 44-3¼ feet. Again in the Class S meet, he finished behind Krause. This time, Benedetti threw the shot 44-1 feet but coach Devin Glasson likes the progression that Benedetti has made in the event the past few weeks.
Benedetti will get another chance in the State Open and in the upcoming state decathlon.
Cournean will join Benedetti in the decathlon and at the State Open. Cournean had personal-best times in the 110 high hurdles and the 300 hurdles. His time of 16.05 seconds in the 110 hurdles behind Derby’s Massiom Pettire in 15.88. In the 300 hurdles, Cournean finished fourth with a time of 42.96.
Thomas Purcell also qualified for the State Open by finishing fifth in the 1,600 meters with a personal-best time of 4:39.63. He continues to improve having erased his previous PR of 4:44.64 from last week’s NCCC championship meet. He had never broken 5:01 before the NCCC meet.
NCCC champion JR Rottkamp matched his season-high by clearing 11 feet in the pole vault but in a very competitive field, he finished ninth.
2021 CIAC Class S championships
At New Britain (June 3)
BOYS TRACK and FIELD
Team results — 1. Derby 85½; 2. East Hampton 49½; 3. Coventry 46; 4. Coginchaug 41½; 5. Portland 34; 6. Holy Cross 32½; 7. Hale Ray 31.50; 8. Litchfield 28; 9. Griswold 26; 10. Canton 25; 11. Immaculate 24; 12. Westbrook 23; 13. Capital Prep 20; 14. Lyman Memorial 19½; 15. Stafford 18; 16. Bolton 17; 16. Parish Hill 17; 18. Windsor Locks 15; 18. Old Lyme 15; 20. Northwest Catholic 14; 21. Somers 11; 21. Sacred Heart 11; 21. Old Saybrook 11; 24. St. Paul Catholic 10; 25. Nonnewaug 9; 25. East Windsor 9; 27. Hartford Magnet Trinity College Academy (HMTCA) 8; 27. Oxford 8; 29. Gilbert 6; 29. Civic Leadership 6; 29. Terryville 6; 32. Thomaston 5; 32. Valley Regional 5; 34. East Granby 4; 35. Shepaug Valley 3½; 36. Metropolitan 2; 37. Wamogo 1½; 38. Housatonic Regional 1
Individual results
100 meters: 1. Branden McLean, Derby, 11.25; 2. James Millerick, Northwest Ca, 11.31; 3. Jaelyn Butler, HMTCA, 11.32; 4. John-Paul Runte, Portland, 11.38; 5. Kasmir Breedlove, Civic Leader, 11.47; 6. Jack Poland, Coventry, 11.59.
200 meters: 1. John-Paul Runte, Portland, 22.73, 2. Jack Poland, Coventry, 22.84, 3. James Millerick, Northwest Ca, 22.99, 4. Rafael Mahario, Holy Cross, 23.31, 5. Jack Piper, East Hampton, 23.66, 6. Luca Troop, Westbrook, 23.75
400 meters: 1. Aidan Powers, Old Lyme, 51.30; 2. Jaden Astle, Coginchaug, 51.67; 3. Walter Brady, Immaculate, 52.34; 4. Kanye Bailey, Derby, 52.69; 5. Derry Holmes, Capital Prep, 52.74; 6. Jacob Feliciano, East Granby, 53.28.
800 meters: 1. Alexandre’ McMillian, East Hampton, 2:02.15; 2. Michael Strain, Griswold, 2:02.83; 3. Aidan Knappe, Sacred Heart, 2:03.28; 4. Kevin Brudz, Bolton, 2:03.31; 5. Nathan Reiter, Litchfield, 2:03.35; 6. William Dalles, Coginchaug, 2:03.35.
1,600 meters: 1. Sean Kennedy-Wonneberger, Hale Ray, 4:24.48; 2. Alexandre’ McMillian, East Hampton, 4:27.23; 3. Ryan Kittredge, Windsor Lock, 4:27.59; 4. Michael Kraszewski, Hale Ray, 4:29.79; 5. Thomas Purcell, Canton, 4:39.93; 6. Joe Lauria, Hale Ray, 4:42.68.
3,200 meters: 1. Sean Kennedy-Wonneberger, Hale Ray, 10:10.51; 2. Ryan Kittredge, Windsor Lock, 10:12.39; 3. Nicholas Fusco, Terryville, 10:26.01; 4. Henry Rose, Bolton, 10:31.23; 5. Thomas Lapham, Holy Cross, 10:32.33; 6. Shane Franson, Lyman Memori, 10:35.58.
110 meter Hurdles: 1. Massimo Pettine, Derby, 15.88; 2. Nathan Cournean, Canton, 16.05; 3. David Ives, Stafford, 16.59; 4. Kaiden Dunn, Holy Cross, 16.60; 5. Dylan Lucey, Lyman Memori, 16.84; 6. Carlos Allen, Derby, 17.12.
300 meter Hurdles: 1. Jack Poland, Coventry, 40.65; 2. David Ives, Stafford, 42.02; 3. Ryan VanDyke, Gilbert, 42.54; 4. Nathan Cournean, Canton, 42.96; 5. Jesse Xhuti, Sacred Heart, 43.21; 6. Kaiden Dunn, Holy Cross, 43.37.
4×100 meter Relay: 1. Derby (Kanye Bailey, Zyair Wali, Branden McLean, Bryan McLean), 43.79; 2. Coginchaug (Anthony Toth, AJ DeFilio, Ryan Newberry, Jackson Moore), 45.04; 3. Immaculate (Billy Murphy, Walter Brady, John Gibowicz, Thai Sapenter), 45.15; 4. Capital Prep (Isaiah Arroyo, Isaiah Fontan, Mehki Tyson-Slaughter, Derry Holmes), 45.35; 5. Westbrook (Zachary Boardman, Brandon Naccarato, Brenden Engles, Luca Troop), 45.40; 6. Lyman Memorial (Jacob Palombizio, Justin Thuotte, Nicholas Barrett, Dylan Lucey), 45.63.
4×400 meter Relay: 1. East Hampton (Tyler Weatherwax, Brendan Owen, Alexandre’ McMillian, Jack Piper), 3:31.79; 2. Griswold (Lucas Strain, Devon Chykow, Jacob Strain, Michael Strain), 3:32.21; 3. Coginchaug (Kevin Ryan, Aidan Garcia, William Dalles, Jaden Astle), 3:34.96; 4. Old Lyme (Gabriel Lavoie, Aidan Powers, Nevin Joshy, Dylan Sheehan), 3:34.98; 5. Somers (Gabriel D’Amour, Conner Kocot, Colin MacLeod, Douglas Suter), 3:37.62; 6. Immaculate (Matthew Reeves, Peyton McKenzie, Thai Sapenter, Walter Brady), 3:38.77.
4×800 meter Relay: 1. Griswold (Lucas Strain, Benjamin Jeffs, Michael Strain, Jacob Strain), 8:19.25; 2. Holy Cross (Joseph Dane, Colby Calabrese, Thomas Lapham, Rafael Mahario), 8:29.17; 3. Old Saybrook (Parker Cook, Jacob Schneider, Ryan Stratton, Jack Wiley), 8:29.58; 4. Bolton (George Chakulski, Mason Fox, Henry Rose, Kevin Brudz), 8:31.95; 5. Portland (Owen Delisle, Thomas Stoto, Derek Tewksbury, Bryce Wierkrykas), 8:35.53; 6. Coginchaug (Hayden Gonzales, Alexander Meisenkothen, Aidan Garcia, William Dalles), 8:42.42.
High Jump: 1. Daniel Dieck, Litchfield, 6-00; 2. Brett Metcalfe, Westbrook, 5-10; 3. Zyair Wali, Derby, J5-10; 4. Rafael Mahario, Holy Cross, 5-08; 4. Loudon Chupas, Hale Ray, 5-08; 4. Zerion Montgomery, Derby, 5-08; 4. Logan Pacific, Shepaug Vall, 5-08.
Pole Vault: 1. Nicholas Rivard-Lentz, East Hampton, 13-00; 2. Samuel Wolf, Oxford, 12-06; 3. Brendan Owen, East Hampton, 12-00; 3. Gage Rovelli, Coginchaug, 12-00; 5. Nikita Nicholas, Nonnewaug, 11-06; 6. Douglas Suter, Somers, 11-00; 6. Owen Wood, St. Paul Cat, 11-00; 6. Brayden Vicino, East Hampton, 11-00.
Long Jump: 1. Zerion Montgomery, Derby, 22-00.25, 2. Tyler Turner, St. Paul, 20-06.25, 3. Luca Troop, Westbrook, 20-04, 4. Justin Thuotte, Lyman Memori, 19-11, 5. Jackson Moore, Coginchaug, 19-10.25, 6. Simon Kandeke, Portland, 19-05.50
Triple Jump: 1. Zerion Montgomery, Derby, 44-05.50, 2. Mehki Tyson-Slaughter, Capital Prep, 43-00.25, 3. Zyair Wali, Derby, 41-05, 4. Billy Murphy, Immaculate, 40-09.75, 5. Justin Thuotte, Lyman Memori, 40-02.25, 6. Christo Jamo, Nonnewaug, 39-04.50
Shot Put: 1. Alex Krause, Coventry, 48-06.50; 2. Nicholas Benedetti, Canton, 44-01; 3. Nick Canora, East Windsor, 43-07; 4. Connor Lunz, Valley Regio, 42-06.75; 5. Jayden Cordy, Parish Hill, 41-03.50; 6. Ma’hkai Wilson, Holy Cross, 40-11.50.
Discus Throw: 1. Alex Krause, Coventry, 145-11; 2. Jayden Cordy, Parish Hill, 136-06; 3. Giovanni Vicens, Derby, 133-07; 4. Tairique McFarlane, Derby, 130-03; 5. Mark McLaughlin, Stafford, 128-06; 6. Nick Canora, East Windsor, 119-11.
Javelin Throw: 1. Jackson Decker, Portland, 155-10; 2. Zajans Crapo, Litchfield, 149-07; 3. Sage Sobek, Litchfield, 149-00; 4. Alex Krause, Coventry, 146-00; 5. Jayden Cordy, Parish Hill, 140-01; 6. Benjamin DuPerre, Somers, 133-05.
GIRLS TRACK and FIELD
Team results — East Hampton 99.1; 2. Bloomfield 97.6; 3. Old Saybrook 67½; 4. Canton 48.6; 5. Somers 44; 6. Granby Memorial 36; 6. Immaculate 36; 8. Lyman Memorial 32.10; 9. Holy Cross 23½; 10. Weaver 18; 10. Thomaston 18; 10. Stafford 18; 13. Windsor Locks 15; 13. Windham 15; 15. Portland 13½; 16. Coginchaug 13; 17. St. Bernard 12; 18. Litchfield 11; 19. Derby 10; 20. Capital Prep 9; 20. Shepaug Valley 9; 20. Old Lyme 9; 23. Westbrook 8½; 24. Housatonic Regional 7; 25. Kolbe Cathedral 6; 26. Northwest Catholic 5; 26. Morgan 5; 26. Windham Tech 5; 29. East Granby 3; 29. Bolton 3; 31. Cromwell 2.6; 32. St. Paul 2
Individual results
100 Meters: 1. Anna-Sashia Jones, Weaver, 12.82; 2. D’Jior Delisser, Bloomfield, 12.86; 3. Alisia Munoz, Kolbe Cathed, 13.00; 4. Sianna Lloyd, Bloomfield, 13.00; 5. Lea Marie Dupont-Perriolat, Windham Tech, 13.07; 6. Nicole Gallacher, Bolton, 13.16.
200 Meters: 1. Raquel Rosa, Holy Cross, 25.86; 2. Anna-Sashia Jones, Weaver, 26.28, 3. D’Jior Delisser, Bloomfield, 26.29, 4. Ashley Nicoletti, Immaculate, 26.64; 5. Avery Rueckert, Old Saybrook, 26.72, 6. Sianna Lloyd, Bloomfield, 26.82
400 Meters: 1. Raquel Rosa, Holy Cross, 57.03; 2. Anna Brodeur, Old Saybrook, 59.12; 3. Katie Farr, Coginchaug, 1:00.69; 4. Jacquelynn Kenna, Litchfield, 1:00.79; 5. Dara Salka, Somers, 1:01.34; 6. Damani Reynolds, Bloomfield, 1:01.46.
800 Meters: 1. Kaylee Gravel, East Hampton, 2:21.66; 2. Danielle Adams, East Hampton, 2:22.43; 3. Cassidy Ngaopraseutsack, Derby, 2:26.11; 4. Rachel St. Germain, Somers, 2:29.84; 5. Kate Anderson, Lyman Mem, 2:30.49; 6. Liv Blasko, Thomaston, 2:30.51.
1600 Meters: 1. Rachel St. Germain, Somers, 5:03.92; 2. Danielle Adams, East Hampton, 5:08.88; 3. Julia Caputo, Canton, 5:10.96; 4. Kaitlyn Segreti, Immaculate, 5:20.60; 5. Kaylee Gravel, East Hampton, 5:24.25; 6. Shawn Laverty, Portland, 5:31.81.
3200 Meters: 1. Rachel St. Germain, Somers, 10:58.46; 2. Julia Caputo, Canton, 11:09.05; 3. Charlotte Clulow, Housatonic, 11:36.90; 4. Keelin Bremmer, Immaculate, 11:53.49; 5. Kaitlyn Segreti, Immaculate, 11:53.82; 6. Serena Britner, St. Bernard, 12:06.96.
100 Meter Hurdles: 1. Brylee Montanari, East Hampton, 15.29; 2. Jessica Starr, East Hampton, 15.71; 3. Hannah Barrientos, East Hampton, 16.40; 4. Olivia Suter, Somers, 16.58; 5. Rachel Larsen, Granby Memor, 16.98; 6. Taylor Benaitis, Northwest Catholic, 17.26.
300 Meter Hurdles: 1. Jessica Starr, East Hampton, 44.84; 2. Maya Sutton-Hall, Canton, 47.56; 3. Abigail Colella, Old Saybrook, 48.61; 4. Olivia Suter, Somers, 49.18; 5. Laniyah Henderson, Bloomfield, 49.55; 6. Brylee Montanari, East Hampton, 49.70.
4×100 Meter Relay: 1. Bloomfield (Nevaeh Penns, Jahmiha Lindo, Damani Reynolds, Sianna Lloyd), 50.12; 2. Old Saybrook (Abigail Colella, Avery Rueckert, Anna Brodeur, Priscilla Gumkowski), 50.73; 3. Lyman Memorial (Gabriela Dinisoe, Ella Caplet, Leah Comeroski, Elizabeth Scala), 52.19; 4. Morgan (Caeley Ayer, Logan Pernal, Glenda Zhiminaicela, Alexandra Wolf), 52.28; 5. Coginchaug (Noelle Sorenson, Katie Farr, Cali Beebe, Madeline Climie), 52.30; 6. Thomaston (Ariana Komanaj, Claire Saunders, Elyse Krasnowski, Stevilynn Fox), 52.36.
4×400 Meter Relay: 1. East Hampton (Jessica Starr, Kaylee Gravel, Kyla Norton, Danielle Adams), 4:06.79; 2. Old Saybrook (Avery Rueckert, Abigail Colella, Libby Stuart, Anna Brodeur), 4:11.80; 3. Bloomfield (Jahmiha Lindo, Jadyn Gibson, Mauricea Francis, Laniyah Henderson), 4:14.16; 4. Old Lyme (Madeleine Morgado, Olivia Powers, Alyssa Spooner, Emily DeRoehn), 4:20.10; 5. Canton (Teia Tuccillo, Jenna Cuniowski, Kylie Wishneski, Maya Sutton-Hall), 4:21.93; 6. Derby (Cassidy Ngaopraseutsack, Alyssa Caruso, Kelsey Picheco, Kylin Santamaria), 4:24.44.
4×800 Meter Relay: 1. Immaculate (Lauren Manning, Alyssa Suarez, Keelin Bremmer, Ailene Doherty), 10:04.84; 2. Old Saybrook (Libby Stuart, Emily Stratton, Caitlin Wiley, Catherine Minegar), 10:08.14; 3. Lyman Memorial (Jessica Casey, Magda Carpenter, Allyssa Judd, Kate Anderson), 10:22.29; 4. Portland (Julia Berthiaume, Shawn Laverty, Jodie Pickel, Lillian Tabellione), 10:29.30; 5. Somers (Gracie Flynn, Keeley Joyal, Grace McGuinness, Treena Pitts), 10:30.20; 6. Thomaston (Cierra O’Sullivan, Liv Blasko, Payton Mozelak, Maegan Desmarais), 10:40.66.
High Jump: 1. D’Jior Delisser, Bloomfield, 5-04; 2. Jordan Murphy, East Hampton, 5-00; 3. Lauren Roy, Granby Memor, 4-10; 4. Ashley Nicoletti, Immaculate, J4-10; 5. Callie Nanos, Lyman Memori, 4-08; 5. Alyssa Hebb, Holy Cross, 4-08.
Pole Vault: 1. Hannah Sumby, Old Saybrook, 9-06; 2. Resia Baran, Windham, 9-00; 3. Katherine Wright, Portland, 8-00; 3. Amber Murphy, East Hampton, 8-00; 5. Amyra Ettienne-Modeste, Bloomfield, J8-00; 6. Ava Smoliga, Old Saybrook, 7-06.
Long Jump: 1. Lauren Roy, Granby Memor, 17-02.25, 2. Saryah Winborne, Capital Prep, 17-00, 3. Damani Reynolds, Bloomfield, 16-02.25, 4. Hannah Sumby, Old Saybrook, 16-00.75, 5. Leah Comeroski, Lyman Memori, 15-11, 6. Amyra Ettienne-Modeste, Bloomfield, 15-05.75
Triple Jump: 1. Laniyah Henderson, Bloomfield, 35-04, 2. Lauren Roy, Granby Memor, 33-11.50, 3. Cassandra Zimmerman, East Hampton, 33-06, 4. Jenna Cuniowski, Canton, 32-05.50, 5. Kristen Goodrich, Lyman Memori, 32-02, 6. Hannah Sumby, Old Saybrook, 32-02.
Shot Put: 1. Sadie Barker, Canton, 32-5¾; 2. Tristian Haugabook, Granby Memor, 31-6½; 3. Dejanelle Johnson, Bloomfield, 31-5½; 4. Mauricea Francis, Bloomfield, 30-7¾; 5. Caitlyn Waterman, Windham, 30-5½; 6. Tristin Oberg, Windsor Lock, 30-0½
Discus Throw: 1. Tristin Oberg, Windsor Lock, 120-01; 2. Sydney Dolbier, Stafford, 105-00; 3. Julia Lau, Canton, 98-06; 4. Mauricea Francis, Bloomfield, 95-02; 5. Courtney LeClair, Thomaston, 91-04; 6. Dejanelle Johnson, Bloomfield, 90-11.
Javelin Throw: 1. Sydney Dolbier, Stafford, 105-07; 2. Claire Kersten, Shepaug Vall, 102-02; 3. Kadija Crapo, Litchfield, 97-03; 4. Lauren Horne, Westbrook, 94-08; 5. Emily DeRoehn, Old Lyme, 93-02; 6. Courtney LeClair, Thomaston, 92-11.
