4 x 800m relay

Orono ran away with this one early and did not look back.  Clara White spilt a 2:32 opening leg, handed off 8 seconds clear of the new team, and Orono only extended that lead throughout the rest of the relay, running 10:29.68 to win.  The Coop relay team of NYA and Maine Coast Waldorf was the next team to finish, also handing off clear of the other teams and easily maintaining the silver position throughout the race, taking second in 10:42.08.  Early on, it was Traip in third due to Rowan Rhodes speedy lead-off leg, but unfortunately their second leg faded towards the back of the pack, and they had to do some work in the second half to grab eighth, the final scoring spot.  Interestingly, it was the Boothbay/Wiscasset team that took third despite being completely out of it after leg one.  Their second runner moved up several spots and they ended up third in 11:06.04.  The fourth place team came out of the first heat narrowly edging out three teams from the “fast” heat by less than a second!  George Stevens Academy/Blue Hill was fourth, Winslow fifth, MCI sixth, and Lisbon/Oak Hill seventh.  All of those teams ran 11:19!

1600m

This race was fairly straightforward as favorites Teanne Ewings and Ruth White went ran from the front and went through 400m at just under 5:00 pace.  Over the next three laps, Ewings drifted away from White, winning in a meet record 4:58.65.  White was eight seconds back in a solid 5:06.84, with Soren Stark-Chessa right behind in 5:10.08.  The race was more interesting further back, as freshman Leah Harper went out hard in 1:20 for the first lap, followed by a pack that included Leanne Ross, Clara White, and Haley Williams. By the 800m mark, Ross had moved up to fourth and would not relinquish that spot, finishing in 5:29.03.  Williams was the next finisher, taking fifth due to a big kick of 1:17.97 for her last lap, edging out sixth place finisher Harper, 5:34.44 to 5:35.87.  Clara White held on for seventh in 5:42.04 and Elise Abbott took eighth in 5:47.43. 

800m

As expected, the two top seeded athletes got out well ahead of the rest of the field, with Soren Stark-Chessa and Natalie Johnson both hitting the 400m mark in right about 1:10.  Behind them, Orono freshman Nina Mitchell found herself alone in the early going, running through the first lap in 1:13.67.  The rest of the field settled into a more comfortable pace, hitting the bell in about 1:17. Stark-Chessa was able to maintain the pace and take the individual win in 2:19.72.  Natalie Johnson struggled on lap two but was able to rally on the home stretch to hold off a strong bid from Mitchell.  Johnson’s second place time was 2:29.84 to Mitchell’s 2:30.46.  Next, it was Leanne Ross from Houlton crossing the line in fourth, just as she did in the 1600m.  Other scorers were Alexa Johnson, Haley Williams, Maddie Orchard, and Maya Boyington.  

3200m

Just like the 1600m, it was Ewings and White well ahead of the rest of the field in this one.  The two superstars hit halfway in just 5:15, a whole 45 seconds ahead of the chase pack.  On lap six, Ewings was finally able to break away from White, and her lead continued to grow throughout the final kilometer, winning in 10:33.65, her second meet record of the day,  White had to settle for second in 10:48.92.  The race for third was unfolding much further back, and it was Johnson, Ross, Stark-Chessa, and Higgins all in the mix with one to go.   It was Stark-Chessa who was third in 12:11.08, followed by Johnson in 12:13.53 and Ross in 12:20.43.  The scoring positions were rounded out by Karen Higgins in 12:30.12, Clara White in 12:49.11, and Elise Abbott in 12:50.14.