U-32 sweeps the 2022 Division II outdoor track and field championships

Jacob Rousseau, Burlington Free Press
·11 min read

Strikingly different strategies, but the same result.

The U-32 High School boys and girls track and field teams swept the Division II championships for the second straight year on Friday with the former dominating the mid-distance events and the latter using elite depth to pull away from the pack.

The Raider boys secured 64 of their 104 points from the 800-meter, 1500 and 3000 events, while the girls tallied seven combined first and second places finishes.

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"We were much more confident with the girls because we had that real spread," U-32 coach Andrew Tripp said. "But with the boys the points were way more strenuous because it was all riding on like four guys."

Balanced U-32 girls claim title

The Raiders stayed in contention throughout Friday’s events, but never held a significant lead over runner-up Rice Memorial.

But the deeper U-32 (92 points) program overcame the Green Knights (80) as the events neared conclusion. And Tripp and the entire girls outfit held off the celebration until the day’s final event — triple jump — ended.

“Distance runners scored, sprinters scored, relay scored, throwers scored and it was just a truly team win,” Tripp said. “But shout out to Rice because they really made us earn it … it was neck-and-neck with just a couple events to go.”

Freshman Ginger Long (4) of U-32 chases down the lead runner, North Branch School freshman Estella Laird, to win the D-II 1500 state championship with a time of 4:51.35.
Freshman Ginger Long (4) of U-32 chases down the lead runner, North Branch School freshman Estella Laird, to win the D-II 1500 state championship with a time of 4:51.35.

Greta Little placed in the 200, 400 and led the first place 4x400 relay team. Freshman Ginger Long finished first in the 1,500 with a time of 4:51.35 and third in the 800. Cara Richardson won shot put with a 32-foot, 7 inch toss.

Also leading the balanced Raiders to the title was Isabel Moustakas, who snared first place in the 300 hurdles and second-place finishes in 100 hurdles and high jump.

The Raiders placed in all but five events to take home the title.

“We are always about team sports and all season we chase PR’s, season-bests, but we tell the kids this is the only meet where the only thing that matters is points,” Tripp said. “You're going to not run some events you want to run and it doesn't matter. It's that we have figured out how to maximize points.”

Mid-distance pushes Raider boys to title

Less than three points separated U-32 (104) and Peoples (101.5) for the boys championship. Making the painstaking, down-right collapsing distance races by the Raiders ever-so important.

“We got a lot more points than we were projected for,” said U-32 senior Oliver Hansen. “I was ranked fourth (in the 800), I got a second and Wyatt (Malloy) was ranked sixth and got fourth. We had a lot of events like that today where we got more than what were projected for, which really came in handy.”

U-32 high school rounds the final corner in 1st, 2nd and 3rd place in the 800 meter race at the D2 Track & Field State Championships at Burlington High School on Friday afternoon.
U-32 high school rounds the final corner in 1st, 2nd and 3rd place in the 800 meter race at the D2 Track & Field State Championships at Burlington High School on Friday afternoon.

Placing first in the 800 for U-32 was Sargent Burns with a time of 2:07.04 to cap a 22-point event for the Raiders. But the Raiders distance crew wasn’t finished and out-did themselves with 25 points in the 3,000.

This time Hansen was the first to cross the end line with Cyrus Hansen and Wilder Brown on his heels for a 1-2-3 finish. And for good measure, Taggart Schrader rounded out the scoring for U-32 with a sixth-place mark.

“It was honestly a war of attrition, they were ahead or it was tight until the very end,” Tripp said. “I think we just had one or two more horses and our guys are just that much less tired because all the studs on all the teams were doing three-or-four events.”

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Sawyer Beck won the 400, high jump, ran a leg on the winning 4x400 and placed fourth in 200 to lead Peoples' runner-up team finish. Ivan Buczek, who was also on PA's 4x400 squad, won the 300 hurdles and took third in the 110 hurdles.

Carstensen, Brueckner rock individual titles

The 100 hurdles: one wrong step could be an undoing. But two? That means trouble.

Autumn Carstensen’s first two hurdles didn’t go as planned but the Rice senior composed herself to end with a perfect race and won the sprint event with a time of 15.95 to set the tone for her final state championship.

“The first two hurdles she was four-stepping, but then she pulled it back together — three-stepped the final ones and won,” Rice coach Mark McKenna said. “And afterward I was like, ‘That is a champion,’ she was able to take a bad situation and turn it into a positive.”

Autumn Carstensen of Rice clears a hurdle on her way to winning the 110 meter race at the D2 Track & Field State Championships at Burlington High School on Friday afternoon.
Autumn Carstensen of Rice clears a hurdle on her way to winning the 110 meter race at the D2 Track & Field State Championships at Burlington High School on Friday afternoon.

Carstensen’s opening event success carried over as she finished second in the 300 hurdles, won high jump (5-1) and snagged runner-up honors in long jump.

Ruth Brueckner’s favorite event is the 800, so it’s fitting that in her last state championship the senior took first place and nearly broke her PR with a 2:16.89 finish.

“I just wanted to leave everything out since it's my last meet,” the Missisquoi star said.

And the speedster did with another first-place medal in the 200 (26.76) and second in the 100. Brueckner also finished third in the high jump.

“She came strong right off indoor into outdoor to finish out her senior year,” said Shelley Brueckner, Missisquoi coach and Bruckner’s mother. “She puts the training in and she works on the details. She just loves competing with everybody.”

Milton freshman Olivia Thomas also had a big day, winning the 100 and long jump.

Contact Jacob Rousseau at JRousseau@gannett.com. Follow on Twitter: @ByJacobRousseau

D-II track and field results

Girls team scores

1. U-32, 92; 2. Rice, 80; 3. Peoples, 58; 4. Middlebury, 52 ; 5. Missisquoi, 50; 6. Burr and Burton, 46; 7. Bellows Falls, 44; 8. Lamoille, 38; 9. Milton, 35; 10. Hartford, 25; T11. Lyndon, 12; T11. Harwood, 12; 13. North Branch, 8; 14. Montpelier, 4; 15. Fair Haven, 2.

Boys team scores

1. U-32, 104; 2. Peoples, 101.5; 3. Hartford, 65; 4. Fair Haven, 47; 5. Lyndon, 46; 6. Bellows Falls, 39; 7. Mount Abraham, 38; 8. Middlebury, 28; 9. Burr and Burton, 24; 10. Lamoille, 21; 11. Montpelier, 18; 12. Missisquoi, 13.25; 13. Rice; 10; 14. Spaulding 3; 15. Harwood, .25.

Girls top 6 finishers

100-meter dash: 1. Olivia Thomas, Milton 12.90; 2. Ruth Brueckner, Missisquoi; 3. Barrett Freeman, Lamoille; 4. Sarah Hailey, Peoples; 5. Hadley Gleim, Bellows Falls; 6. Allesandra Leduc, Rice. 

200: 1. Ruth Brueckner, Missisquoi 26.76; 2. Jazmyn Hurley, Middlebury; 3. Sarah Hailey, Peoples; 4. Katie Prive, Peoples; 5. Greta Little, U-32; 6. Madison Pelletier, Lamoille. 

400: 1. Hannah Turner, Middlebury 1:01.36; 2. Katie Prive, Peoples; 3. Jazmyn Hurley, Middlebury; 4. Madison Pelletier, Lamoille; 5. Alexandra Williams, Fair Haven; 6. Greta Little, U-32.

800: 1. Ruth Brueckner, Missisquoi, 2:16.89; 2. Elizabeth Cunningham, Rice; 3. Ginger Long, U-32; 4. Evey Slavik, Rice; 5. Britta Zetterstrom, Harwood; 6. Isabelle Serrano, U-32. 

1,500: 1. Ginger Long, U-32 4:51.35; 2. Estella Laird, North Branch; 3. Elizabeth Cunningham, Rice; 4. Siobhan O'Keefe, Burr and Burton; 5. Ella Landis, Middlebury; 6. Charlie Flint, Harwood. 

3,000: 1. Stephanie Ager, Bellows Falls 10:37.05; 2. Maggie McGee, Lamoille; 3. Siobhan O'Keefe, Burr and Burton; 4. Amy Felice, U-32; 5. Charlie Flint, Harwood; 6. Caelyn McDonough, Harwood. 

100 hurdles: 1. Autumn Carstensen, Rice 15.95; 2. Isabel Moustakas, U-32; 3. Zoe Noble, Middlebury; 4. Toni Levitas, Burr and Burton; 5. Maya Waryas, Bellows Falls; 6. Maia Pasco, U-32. 

300 hurdles: 1. Isabel Moustakas, U-32 46.26; 2. Autumn Carstensen, Rice; 3.Toni Levitas, Burr and Burton; 4. Maia Pasco, U-32; 5. Olivia Mara, Peoples; 6. Ellie Zimmerman, Peoples.

4x100: 1. Peoples (Baranyay, Prive, Nigro, Zimmerman) 52.39; 2. Lamoille, 53.23; 3. Burr and Burton, 53.88; 4. Middlebury, 53.93; 5. Bellows Falls, 54.47; 6. Milton, 55.47.

4x400: 1. U-32 (Little, Serrano, Moustakas, Pasco) 4:18.68; 2. Lamoille, 4:20.91; 3. Middlebury, 4:27.55; 4. Peoples, 4:41.41; 5. Rice, 4:43.55; 6. Hartford, 4:46.85.

4x800: 1. Middlebury (Dowgiewicz, McIntosh, Landis, Turner) 10:16.97; 2. U-32, 10:30.55; 3. Harwood, 10:43.86; 4. Rice, 10:50.24; 5. Peoples, 10:50.55; 6. Lamoille, 10:58.75.

High jump: 1. Autumn Carstensen, Rice 5-1; 2. Isabel Moustakas, U-32; 3. Ruth Brueckner, Missisquoi; 4. Alexandra Bourdeau, Missisquoi; 5. Clare Pritchard, Montpelier; 6. Marketa Pittinaro, Peoples.

Pole vault: 1. Olivia Chase, Hartford 8-6; 2. Sofia Troland, Milton; 3. Nora Hedman, Milton; 4. Jamie Fenoff, Lyndon; 5. Ashylnn Boucher, Bellows Falls; 6. Clare Pritchard, Montpelier.

Long jump: 1. Olivia Thomas, Milton 15-7.50; 2. Autumn Carstensen, Rice; 3. Amelia Maier, Burr and Burton; 4. Haley Stefaniak, Missisquoi; 5. Megan Carson, Burr and Burton; 6. Katie Prive, Peoples. 

Triple jump: 1. Tristan Prescott, Burr and Burton 33-50"; 2. Haley Stefaniak, Missisquoi; 3. Olivia Chase, Hartford; 4. Hadley Gleim, Bellows Falls; 5. Alaina Beauregard, U-32; 6. Abigail Kopeck, Burr and Burton.

Shot put: 1. Cara Richardson, U-32 32-7; 2. Laura Hoak, Rice; 3. Anika Wagner, Peoples; 4. Victoria Young, Lyndon; 5. Hannah Cleary, Peoples; 6. Avery Knauss, U-32.

Discus: 1. Laura Kamel, Bellows Falls 106-9; 2. Olivia Chase, Hartford; 3. Avery Knauss, U-32; 4. Anika Wagner, Peoples; 5. Nola Sciacca, Bellows Falls; 6. Laura Hoak, Rice.

Javelin: 1. Laura Hoak, Rice 113-10; 2. Breanna Stockman, Bellows Falls; 3. Ariana Keene, Peoples; 4. Streeter Middleton, Lyndon; 5. Laura Kamel, Bellows Falls; 6. Alexandra Bourdeau, Missisquoi.

Boys top 6 finishers

100-meter dash: 1. Noah Beayon, Fair Haven 11.35; 2. Kenique Josephs, Peoples; 3. Reilly Flanders, Fair Haven; 4. Gabe Guillette, Hartford; 5. Simon Brown, Spaulding; 6. Austin Defelice, Hartford. 

200: 1. Noah Beayon, Fair Haven 23.51; 2. Kenique Josephs, Peoples; 3. Gabe Guillette, Hartford; 4. Sawyer Beck, Peoples; 5. Adrian Bryan, Peoples; 6. Brandon Keller, Bellows Falls. 

400: 1. Sawyer Beck, Peoples 51.46; 2. Luke Page, U-32; 3. Adrian Bryan, Peoples; 4. Eliot Schneider, Middlebury; 5. Elliot Rowe, Lamoille; 6. Michael Hornby, Burr and Burton. 

800: 1. Sargent Burns, U-32 2:07.04; 2. Oliver Hansen, U-32; 3. Eliot Schneider, Middlebury; 4. Wyatt Malloy, U-32; 5. Gabriel Cole, Lyndon; 6. Matthew Toborg, Spaulding.

1,500: 1. Avery Smart, Montpelier 4:14.40; 2. Sargent Burns, U-32; 3. Oliver Hansen, U-32; 4. Ben Seaton, Middlebury; 5. Wilder Brown, U-32; 6. Cyrus Hansen, U-32. 

3,000: 1. Oliver Hansen, U-32 9:24.30; 2. Cyrus Hansen, U-32; 3. Wilder Brown, U-32; 4. Baxter Harrington, Middlebury; 5. Ezra Merrill-Triplett, Montpelier; 6. Taggart Schrader, U-32. 

110 hurdles: 1. Noah Burnham, Lamoille 15.80; 2. Gavin Bannister, Mount Abraham; 3. Ivan Buczek, Peoples; 4. Nathan Kessler, Peoples; 5. Quinn Olney, U-32; 6. Max Hooke, Bellows Falls. 

300 hurdles: 1. Ivan Buczek, Peoples 42.21; 2. Gavin Bannister, Mount Abraham; 3. Nathan Kessler, Peoples; 4. Nathaniel Young, Fair Haven; 5. Quinn Olney, U-32; 6. Mack Ross, Bellows Falls. 

4x100: 1. Fair Haven (Stone, Flanders, Williams, Beayon) 44.43; 2. Hartford, 46.66; 3. Peoples, 46.89; 4. Bellows Falls, 47.46; 5. Middlebury, 47.55; 6. Burr and Burton, 48.61.

4x400: 1.Peoples ( Beck, Bryan, Buczek, Kessler) 3:36.39; 2. U-32, 3:39.17; 3. Middlebury, 3:48.05; 4. Bellows Falls, 3:49.48; 5. Hartford, 3:49.96; 6. Lamoille, 3:51.99.

4x800: 1. U-32( Malloy, Mckinstry, Page, Schrader) 8:39.21; 2. Lamoille, 8:44.07; 3. Montpelier, 8:46.95; 4. Hartford, 8:50.79; 5. Middlebury, 8:57.31; 6. Peoples, 9:23.33.

High jump: 1. Sawyer Beck, Peoples 5-7.75; 2. Hayzen Luneau, Missisquoi; 3. Max Hooke, Bellows Falls; 4. Ed Sayers, U-32; 5. James Tudor, Burr and Burton; 6. Ivan Buczek, Peoples. 

Pole vault: 1. John Cassell, Hartford 11-5.25; 2. Logan Currier, Lyndon; 3. Charlie Rowe, Hartford; 4. Mack Ross, Bellows Falls; 5. Jordan Davis, Hartford; 6. Caleb Ploof, Missisquoi.

Long jump: 1. Joseph Darling, Mount Abraham 20-7.25; 2. Aiden McKenzie, Lyndon; 3. Ayodele Lowe, Hartford; 4. Hayzen Luneau, Missisquoi; 5. Kenique Josephs, Peoples; 6. Luke Williams, Fair Haven. 

Triple jump: 1. Jon Terry, Bellows Falls 40-9; 2. Carson Gordon, Burr and Burton; 3. Joseph Darling, Mount Abraham; 4. Logan Currier, Lyndon; 5. Rayheed Clayton, Burr and Burton; 6. Gavin Bannister, Mount Abraham.

Shot put: 1. Maxime Makuza, Rice 48-3.50; 2. Bryon Noyes, Lyndon; 3. Ed Sayers, U-32; 4. Josh Walker, Lyndon; 5. Jordan Davis, Hartford; 6. Alan Aldrich, Hartford. 

Discus: 1. Bryon Noyes, Lyndon 144-9; 2. Jon Terry, Bellows Falls; 3. Jordan Davis, Hartford; 4. Joseph Darling, Mount Abraham; 5. Kole Matta, Fair Haven; 6. Alan Aldrich, Hartford. 

Javelin: 1. Eric Mulroy, Burr and Burton 152-2; 2. Miles Mitchell, Peoples; 3. Jordan Davis, Hartford; 4. Kole Matta, Fair Haven; 5. Bryon Noyes, Lyndon; 6. Alex Yaggy, Mount Abraham.

This article originally appeared on Burlington Free Press: VT high school Track & Field: U-32 sweeps outdoor titles