With the Beeman Trophy up for grabs again this spring, the Londonderry High and Pinkerton Academy boys’ and girls’ track and field squads faced off at LHS on Tuesday, May 6, with potential bragging rights at stake.
And when the races had been run and the field events had been completed, the rival schools had to call the whole thing a draw, with Pinkerton winning the boys’ competition handily (82-53) and the host Lady Lancers winning their competition even more handily (93-51).
GIRLS
Veteran coach Sue Johnson’s LHS girls were impressive in besting the visiting Lady Astros, with Natalie Howes, Patty Driscoll, Yorgelis Ortiz, and Kristen Bourque leading the way by each winning multiple events for the victors.
Howes proved unbeatable in the javelin (109 feet, 5 inches), the 100-meter hurdles (17.4 seconds), and the pole vault (10 feet). Driscoll was first in the shot put (35’2 1/4”) and the discus (96’6”), Ortiz was the best in the long jump (15’9 1/2”) and the high jump (4’10”), and Bourque was the winner in the 100-meter dash (13.6) and the 200 dash (27.1).
Individual wins were bagged by Lady Lancers Gretchen McGrath in the 400-meter dash (59.7), Lexy Freire in the 300 hurdles (50.5), and Courtney Guay in the 800-meter run (2:28.3).
The hosts also claimed first places in the 4×100 relay (51.8) and the 4×400 (4:30.5).
BOYS
As has been the case all spring, the Londonderry High boys’ effort in this meet was led by junior standout Starlin Ortiz.
The Lancers won only three events in the meet against Pinkerton, and multiple-event stalwart Ortiz took two of them by starring in the 100 hurdles (16.1) and the 200 dash (23.6). Kyle Foden took the only other LHS first by winning the shot (44’1 1/4”).
Beyond those few firsts, the host Lancers also had Trevor Guay and Nick Lafond each take a pair of second places, and Eric Fairweather snared two third places for his crew.