GORHAM — Scarborough junior Molly Murnane set a conference record in the 55 meters and Cheverus sophomore Emma Gallant set two records – in the junior 55 and 200 – to power their teams Saturday in the SMAA indoor track championships at the University of Southern Maine.
The Scarborough girls came out on top in a tight three-way race, and the Red Storm boys again ran away with the title in a convincing win.
Coaches and athletes alike said the Class A girls’ state meet next week will be more of the same.
“Everybody judges you by how you do at states; nobody judges you by how you do at SMAAs,” said Scarborough girls’ coach Ron Kelly.
The Scarborough girls finished with 100 points. Thornton Academy and Cheverus tied for second with 98.
The Scarborough boys, powered by sophomore sprinter Jarett Flaker, won with 176 points, ahead of Deering with 149 and Thornton Academy with 97.
Murnane won the 55 in a conference-record time of 7.27 to erase her previous mark of 7.40. She also won the 200 (26.27) and 400 (60.35).
“I (improved) by a lot. I’m extremely happy to run a tenth of a second faster,” Murnane said.
Scarborough also was fueled by Emily Labbe, who won the 55 hurdles (8.75).
“A lot of people were sick with colds. Hopefully we’ll get them back, and stronger,” Kelly said of his team, which last year won its first state title since 2012.
Gallant set a conference record in the 55 junior division (7.43), breaking the 7.47 mark set by Ella Altidor of Portland in 2016. In the 200, her time of 26.05 broke her own mark of 26.27. She also won the junior 400 junior in 59.20, again breaking her own SMAA record (59.38)
Cheverus also got significant points from Victoria Bossong, who finished second in the junior 55 (7.46), junior 200 (26.18) and junior 400 (59.38). Emma White was second in the 55 hurdles (9.15) and won the long jump (16-31/2).
“They have some stars and we have some stars,” Kelly said. “It will be very close at states. It will come down to the athletes who score one and two points.”
Gallant said after fighting a cold, she feels she can go even faster at the state meet, where she will go head-to-head with Murnane.
In the last event of the meet, Gallant ran away from the pack as the anchor in the 800 relay that Cheverus won (1:49.89) with help from Bossong, White and Evelyn Hanley.
“I wanted to give it everything I had for my team. I know they’re counting on me,” Gallant said. “I know it will be close at states, but I’m looking forward to that. I think we can win. If not, we’ll be in the top three.”
The Thornton girls were fueled by Noelle Michaud’s victory in the shot put (32-111/4), Allie Gross’s second in the high jump (5-2) and Annie Duong’s runner-up finish in the 600 (1:34.74).
In the boys’ meet, Flaker won the senior 55, breaking his own conference record with a time of 6.55 to erase the old mark of 6.58.
Flaker also won the senior 200 in a conference-record time of 22.57, beating his mark of 22.70. The sophomore won the 200 by 5 yards and said he can definitely go faster.
“Coach is training me differently this year to peak at states and at New Englands,” Flaker said of Scarborough Coach Derek Veilleux. “I get lazy in the 200. I have to remember my form, to lift my knees and my arms at the end.”
Westbrook senior Dominic Creegan also set a conference record in the 55 hurdles, winning in 7.77 to lower the mark of 7.79 set by Griffin Madden of Scarborough in 2015.
Deirdre Fleming can be reached at 791-6452 or:
dfleming@pressherald.com
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