Class B Athletics: Boys from York, girls sweep state titles

BAR HARBOR — Lexi Brent, a senior at York High School, crossed the finish line after completing only the second 300-meter hurdles of her life.

She turned and hugged runner-up Charlotte Williamson, another senior from York, and within moments expanded the group hug to include her classmate Olive Gaetano. Finishing 1-2-6, the Wildcats trio clinched the Class B Outdoor State Athletics Championship at Mt. Desert Island High School on Saturday afternoon.

“We were really hungry for a win,” said Brent, who also went 1-2 with Williamson in the 100 hurdles and led two winning relays. “Every single international match, it seems like we’re second or third and the boys are winning. It was hard to watch.”

Saturday proved to be a standout day for the Wildcats, who won both the girls’ and boys’ state titles for the first time in school history. Both teams had become runners-up a year ago. On the indoor track that winter, York’s girls finished second while the Wildcat boys won a state title.

“We have a really great group of seniors, so helping them make that happen is very special,” said York-based student Cary Drake, who won the 1,600 and 3,200, placed third in the 800 and on the victorious 4-by Wildcats contest. 800 relays. “I’m glad I was able to contribute to my painful crowd of events.”

Of the 24 schools that participated in the Girls’ Reunion, York finished 113 to 70 points for runner-up Cape Elizabeth. Host MDI was third with 57, followed by Old Town (50), Cony of Augusta (46) and Gardiner (39).

Brent’s hurdle win times were 15.30s in the 100 and 47.23 in the 300. She came from behind on the backstretch on the final lap of the 4×400 relay and handed York a one-second win over York Cape Elizabeth at 4:13.64.

“I’m so happy,” Brent said. “I’ll probably cry.”

The York Boys passed runners-up Leavitt of Turner by a similarly lopsided margin, 97-57. Freeport was third with 47.5, followed by Greely of Cumberland (43), Yarmouth (40), MDI (39) and Old Town (36).

“We had 11 girls and 19 boys who all scored,” said York coach Ted Hutch. “So it was definitely a shared experience.”

Junior Matt Charpentier led the York boys with two individual wins in the shot put and discus. His final throw in the shot sailed 59 feet, one inch — and landed three-quarters of an inch short of the meet’s 43-year-old standard set by Lawrence’s Jim Dawson. No one else threw within 10 feet of Charpentier, whose 162-11 discus shot won by more than 30 feet.

The Wildcats also received individual wins from Christian Burke in the pole vault (12 feet, 9 inches) and Hunter Pruett in the 800 (2:02.07).

Miles Burr, a sophomore from Mt. Desert Island, set the only competitive record of the day by winning his 100-meter dash in 10.95 seconds. He won the finals in 11.03 and later added the 200 title in 22.41.

This story will be updated.

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