It's finally that time of year again where we get to pile onto a small, cramped bus (and cars, for one day) and ride it for hours just to get the opportunity to score some points. That's right, ladies and germs, Sectionals Weekend is just a day away to kick off the beautiful chaos that is the journey to MOCs. This year, we're sending 27 athletes to the meet at Delsea HS, the most that Immaculata has ever sent to Sectionals. This is also a great opportunity to score points and possibly podium -- or, if the stars align, win the meet altogether.
"In which events? I have a hard time believing that our team could do anything at the state level."
I'm glad you asked! Going down the performance lists should provide us with some hints.
Boys 400m Hurdles, 400m, 800m
Now, I don't think any of us expected this, but after a surprisingly impressive event debut, our very own senior Mark Schwalm leads the field with a 61.05 performance from the Somerset County Championships just last Tuesday. He also retains a .43 gap on the field, a formidable margin in an event that can come down to a simple graze of the hurdle. If Schwalm can stay honed in on his form and his raw speed, the title will be his -- as long as he's willing to fight for it.
Schwalm will face tougher competition in his favorite event, as he comes into the field as only the 6th seed in a field that includes 50-second 400m runner Rakim Coyle of Wildwood Catholic. Schwalm's 53.04 from the Skyland Conference Championships is a strong time to bring to this meet, but he will have to run even stronger from the gun if he wants to medal.
In the 800m, Schwalm is the 4th seed overall with his 2:05.88 from the Somerset County Championships. Although his entry is a few seconds off Mater Dei's Patrick Osborn, who comes into the meet with a 2:01.80, Schwalm should still be in the mix. He's split 2:03 and change in previous relays, and his ability to contend no matter the event is his greatest strength. Keep on the lookout for a new school record as well.
Boys 1600m, 3200m
Coming into the meet with a personal record of 4:43, set at the Ridge Night of 1600s earlier this May, is junior Mike Paustian with the seventh fastest seed in the 1600m event. Paustian ran his 4:43 with "more in the tank" per his own account, so it's no doubt that he's ready to run fast. Paustian will face tough competition up front, as Mater Dei's John Spinelli leads the field with a 4:32.67. It's probable that the race will go out quickly with Gill-St. Bernards boys Mathieu Petit (4:33.29) and Bobby D'Angelo (4:37.56) pushing the pace, but it's nothing Mr. Paustian can't handle -- control is his game.
Also in contention for points is freshman TJ Harkins as the 11th seed with a 4:54.41 from the Skyland Conference Championships. Harkins has shown great improvement over the season with room for more, so it's not impossible to say that he could scare 6th place to squeeze out some extra points. If the performance lists hold true, then Harkins will face the challenge of running 4:45 or faster, a mark that will take "pure guts" to approach.
The 3200m could potentially unfold as one of the most exciting battles of the weekend. Although John Spinelli's 9:45.47 seed represents a nearly 27-second gap on third seed Paustian, and close to a minute for fourth seed Harkins, it will likely be an real race up front among Spinelli, Paustian, and Bobby D'Angelo, entering the meet with a 9:59.23; and in the chase pack, which Harkins leads with a 10:51.31.
Boys 100m, 200m, Long Jump
With third seed junior Avery Lawrence (11.55) not probable to race at Sectionals with a hamstring injury, the task of scoring points goes to junior Gianni Riga, the Non-Public B champ in the 55m dash. Riga enters the fray as the 5th seed with an 11.71 from the Skyland Conference Championships. Riga will have no problem navigating through the prelim -- his ability to keep his composure under pressure is his greatest asset. His greatest challenge, however, will be trying to come close to Wildwood Catholic's Charles Fields, who leads the event with a 10.88.
Riga also must face the might of Fields in the 200m, as his fourth-seeded 23.48 is nearly a second behind Fields' 22.34 lead. However, Riga always seems to perform best when he has stiff competition, and with six other runners in the 23-second range, he'll surely have a fantastic race.
Also slated to run the 200m is senior Christian Bryson, who's seeded 10th with a 24.24 clocking from the Somerset County Championships. Bryson has proved himself to be a true underdog with real talent on the track and in the jumps, and his ability to surprise us each meet could mean that he squeezes out the quarter second needed to steal the 6th spot.
Bryson's aforementioned long jumping ability has tied him for the 9th seed with St. Rose's Sean Breuche (18-03.50). It will take another 6.5 inches to get the 8th spot, which will surely be difficult for both Bryson and Breuche. We're counting on him to rise to the occasion and get as close to that mark as possible.
Girls 100m, 200m
Freshman standout Chinonso Morsindi enters as the 12th seed with a 13.58 clocking from the NJCTC Frosh-Soph Championship. Morsindi's performance shows promise for points, given her rapid improvement over the course of the year. Not to mention the 2.7-meter headwind she faced at the CTC meet, which, given better conditions, could mean she shaves some fractions of a second off her PR.
Morsindi also has a decent chance to move on in the 200m, where her 27.84 places her in 12th, just .3 seconds off the 8th seed.
As Morsindi's first appearance at an outdoor state meet, she'll be up against strong competition, but the opportunity to score points is within reach.
Girls 1600m, 800m, 3200m
Sophomore Ali Wehrhahn is the 11th seed in this event, entering with a 5:48.61 set at the Skyland Conference Championships. The stiff competition of Holy Spirit's Angela Bannan's 5:19.36 seed will surely string out the field, but Wehrhahn will have a close race of about eight other girls fighting for that eighth spot. Wehrhahn has rounded into much better form as of late, running impressive 800m races in the past month. She'll have to carry out that speed over the four laps of the 1600m race to be in contention for points.
Wehrhahn faces a much deeper field in the 800m. Although the gap between Wehrhahn's performance and the top seeded time is only 6 seconds, there are 12 other runners within the same time range that she needs to compete against. While the 8th place seed is only 3 seconds ahead, it's important to remember that anything can happen on race day. This will surely mean an aggressive approach is needed by Wehrhahn to come out on top.
Her greatest challenge may come in the 3200m race, where she must make up a 9-second deficit over eight laps to touch 8th place. However, given Wehrhahn's rapid improvement in the past month, it's not out of the realm of reality. She's sure to give us a good performance, and hopefully she can snag some points along the way.
Auto Qualifiers (and the Girls 4x100m)
Most of the relays are going to give us some free points along the way, as long as all of these teams finish the race and don't do anything to get disqualified. These include the Boys and Girls 4x800m, the Boys 4x100m, and the Boys and Girls 4x400m.
The Girls 4x100m team, however, is only less than a second off the 8th spot -- time that can be simply made up with fast running and good hand-offs. We're hoping this is the case.
And for those of you that aren't mentioned in this article: surprise us.
With these highlights in mind, it's going to be an exciting weekend for everyone. We sincerely encourage that you attend both meets to cheer on your runners to give them every edge they may need to perform at their best.
If we're going to do something special, it's going to have to be a team effort.
See you at Sectionals.
