Rarefied air: Kaden Kluth, Morgan Casey win New England track & field titles for Portsmouth

Steve Rogers, Newport Daily News
·3 min read

Portsmouth High School graduate Kaden Kluth — who holds 11 school records on the track — added another accolade to his lengthy resume Saturday at the New England Interscholastic Outdoor Track & Field Championship at Willow Brook Park in New Britain, Connecticut.

Kluth became the first male athlete from his school to win an event at New Englands when he captured the 800-meter race.

“I think it’s pretty cool, definitely,” Kluth told The Daily News in a phone conversation Monday. “I never put too much thought into it. I still want more.”

Kluth, who was runner-up to St. Raphael junior Devan Kipyego in the same event at the state championship meet, did not get to run against him Saturday because Kipyego was prepping to vie in a meet in Seattle, Washington.

“I was looking forward to running with him,” Kluth said. “When we race, I run for a time and he runs to win.”

Portsmouth graduate Kaden Kluth, left, battles David Vandi of Lowell, Mass., down the stretch of the 800 meters at the New England track and field championship meet. Kluth won by less than a second.
Portsmouth graduate Kaden Kluth, left, battles David Vandi of Lowell, Mass., down the stretch of the 800 meters at the New England track and field championship meet. Kluth won by less than a second.

Kluth was on pace to equal or better his top time in the 800 (1 minute, 51. 49 seconds) at Saturday’s race until near the end of the event. Lowell (Massachusetts) High School’s David Vandi and Kluth were ahead of the pack heading to the finish line.

“Coming around the last 200 meters we were running in lanes one and two,” Kluth said. “He kept pushing me out into lanes three and four. So for 20 meters we were running at an angle. Then he tried to grab my hand and pull me backwards.

More:For second straight season, Portsmouth's Casey is state high jump champ

“That impacted my time. It’s happened to me more times in championship meets than I can count. If I didn’t win, they said they were going to (disqualify Vandi).”

Kluth finished with a time of 1:52.48 while Vandi ended with a 1:52.53 time. Kluth will head to the New Balance Outdoor Nationals at the University of Pennsylvania this weekend and compete in the 800. In a couple of months, he’ll run track and cross country at American University in Washington, DC.

High jump champion

Portsmouth High School junior Morgan Casey captured the high jump at the regional meet as she cleared 5 feet, 7 inches to edge Conard High School’s (West Hartford, Connecticut) Audrey Kirkutis, who also jumped 5-7.

“We both made it on our first attempt,” Casey said. “The difference was I cleared 5-3 on my first attempt and she missed.”

Casey, who started high jumping her sophomore year, became just the second Portsmouth female athlete to earn a win at the regional meet. Nikki Merrill won the 600-meter and mile races at the indoor New England meet five years ago.

More: These Portsmouth High track and field athletes can now call themselves All-Americans

“It’s all a little bit crazy since I just started this a little over a year ago,” Casey said.

Casey cleared 5-8, a personal best, in winning at the state championship meet last week. On Saturday, she nearly cleared 5-9.

“My first jump was the closest,” Casey said. “I was way over (the bar) and my calves hit it. I have to kick my feet out faster. It’s a timing thing.”

Like Kluth, Casey will participate at the New Balance Outdoor Nationals, where she hopes to better her personal-best mark.

This article originally appeared on Newport Daily News: Kluth, Casey win New England track and field titles for Portsmouth RI