Cheshire’s Farrell surprise winner at Boys State Open; Sherry shatters record; Bloomfield wins title

NEW HAVEN — Ryan Farrell of Cheshire, the sixth seed in the boys 600-meter run at the CIAC Indoor Track and Field championships, was determined and focused to pull off a win in the event.

“In almost all my 600 races, people pass by me late in the race,” Farrell said. “That wasn’t going to happen today.”

Farrell pushed himself as hard as he could, took his first lead in the race going around the last turn in the last lap, and hung on to win in 1 minute, 23.54 seconds. Tired and feeling a bit nauseous at the end of the race, the excitement of winning the race superseded any physical unpleasantness he felt.

State Open Boys 600 Meter Run Champion:

Ryan Farrell (Cheshire), 1:23.54 #cttrack pic.twitter.com/IYqLduRjMc

— Will Aldam (@AldamWill) February 22, 2020

“This is amazing, this is really amazing,” Farrell said. “As the sixth seed, originally I was content to just finish sixth for a chance to advance to the New England meet. But I had a different thought just before the race.

“I was going to use everything I had to get in position at the end and win this race. As soon as I passed Talib (McBride of Hillhouse) around the last corner to take the lead, I felt like I was going to win. I had something left and in the last 50 (meters) I just had enough left to stay in front of Talib.”

McBride ended up second in 1:23.91 and Nicholas Sivo of Ellington was a close third in 1:23.94.

SHERRY WINS 3200 IN RECORD TIME UNDER 9 MINUTES

State Open Boys 3200 Meter Run Champion:

Gavin Sherry (Conard), 8:54.47 *State Record* #cttrack pic.twitter.com/Xe6CaHvAhw

— Will Aldam (@AldamWill) February 22, 2020

Pushed by Aidan Puffer of Manchester most of the race, Gavin Sherry of Conard pulled away the last two laps to win the 3200 in a State Open meet record 8:54.47. He broke the State Open record of 9:07.63 set by Christian Alvarado of Fairfield Prep in 2014. Peffer also finished under 9 minutes in second place in 8:59.25.

“I am really happy with this, I didn’t expect to have this good a time,” Sherry said. “But Aidan is a really good runner and he always pushes me. He pushed me today, that’s for sure. You always worry about feeling tired during a race. But I try to take that mental part of it out of the equation.

“Today, I felt great the entire race and felt strong at the end. I am so psyched.”

OWEN WINS COMPETITIVE 300

State Open Boys 300 Meter Dash Champion:

Caleb Owen (Wilbur Cross), 35.22 #cttrack pic.twitter.com/UrpbBS96m5

— Will Aldam (@AldamWill) February 22, 2020

The 300 was one one of the most competitive races of the meet with one second separating the top five finishers.

Caleb Owen of Wilbur Cross lunged ahead at the end to come away with the win in 35.22 seconds. Jason Lorent of Shelton was second in 35.45, Keith Berrouet of SMSA was third in 35.74, Kymali Hay of Bloomfield was fourth in 35.76 and Baijeon Bookal of New Britain was fifth in 35.88.

“It was a close race,” Owen said. “I got out fast and the quick start was key for me. There were a lot of very good runners in the race. I used my speed and my technique with my arms to finish as strong as I could.

“This is a big win for me. I’m looking forward to running the 300 at the New England meet where the competition will be even stronger.”

BLOOMFIELD WINS TEAM TITLE

State Open Boys Shot Put Champion:

Michael Campbell (Bloomfield), 58’ 6.5” #cttrack pic.twitter.com/AcYkDdzTvH

— Will Aldam (@AldamWill) February 22, 2020

Bloomfield won its second State Open team title with 56 points and Bristol Central and Wilbur Cross tied for second with 20 points each. The Warhawks also won a State Open team title in 2013.

“We had a lot of PRs (personal best results) the whole meet and everyone stepped up,” Bloomfield coach Garfield White said. “Last year we were the favorites, we didn’t win and there was a lot of crying. We couldn’t wait to get back here and make up for that loss. That’s why this team title means a lot to all of us.

“Everyone worked hard throughout the year to get back here and win.”

Sean Dixon-Bodie of Bloomfield won the high jump (6-4) and was second in the long jump (22-1.5).

In the shot put, Michael Campbell of Bloomfield won (58-6.5). Davon Colon of Xavier was second (54-8), Gary Moore Jr. was third (51-2.75) and Marcus Ramsey of Hall was fourth (51-0).

OTHER SOLID FINISHES

State Open Boys 1000 Meter Run Champion:

Rhys Hammond (Stonington), 2:28.66 #cttrack pic.twitter.com/ozRGCKIAqZ

— Will Aldam (@AldamWill) February 22, 2020

Rhys Hammond of Stonington took an early lead in the 1,000 and ran the entire race with Matthew Jennings of Haddam-Killingworth only an arm length behind. The two runners stayed that way most of the race until Hammond pulled slightly away the last 50 meters to win in 2:28.66. Jennings was second in 2:29.56.

“I knew he (Hammond) would take an early lead and I knew he had a nasty late kick,” Jennings said. “So I kept close to him for as long as I could the last two laps.

“I’m happy with this finish and I’m looking forward to running the 1000 at the New England meet (Saturday at Reggie Lewis Athletic Center in Boston).”

Javan Guervara-Cragwell of Derby won the long jump with a distance of 22-2.5.

State Open Boys Pole Vault Champion:

Matthew Bigelow (Weston), 15’ #cttrack pic.twitter.com/Et3uuvxDzP

— Will Aldam (@AldamWill) February 22, 2020

Weston junior Matthew Bigelow won the pole vault by clearing 15 feet, six inches higher than his seeded vault and four inches off the State Open record set by Joseph Fogarasi in 2014.

Lewis Mills Aidan O’Connor also cleared 15 feet, but took three tries to clear 14-6. Both vaulters missed three tries at 15-6. Bigelow cleared on his first tries at 13-6, 14, 14-6 and 15 feet.

State Open Boys 55 Meter Dash Champion:

Keith Berrouet (SMSA), 6.42 #cttrack pic.twitter.com/U1Ir7ognpT

— Will Aldam (@AldamWill) February 22, 2020

Korey Martin of McMahon came in second in the 55 dash in 6.46 and Azaan Dawson of Fairfield Prep was third in the 1600 in 4:22.75.

State Open Boys 4×200 Meter Relay Champion:

Wilbur Cross, 1:32.18 #cttrack pic.twitter.com/qlju9oCLZw

— Will Aldam (@AldamWill) February 22, 2020

State Open Boys 4×800 Meter Relay Champion:

Bristol Central, 8:04.19 #cttrack pic.twitter.com/RjlUNGL20e

— Will Aldam (@AldamWill) February 22, 2020

2020 CIAC BOYS STATE OPEN

TEAM SCORES

1) Bloomfield 56; 2) Bristol Central 20; 2) Wilbur Cross 20; 4) Glastonbury 18; 4) Haddam-Killingworth 18; 4) Conard 18; 7) Smsa 16; 8) Shelton 15; 9) Manchester 14; 9) Hillhouse 14; 9) Fairfield Prep 14; 12) Norwich Free Academy 13; 13) Brien McMahon 12; 13) Ellington 12; 13) Tolland 12; 13) Hall 12; 13) Stonington 12; 18) Avon 10; 18) Windham 10; 18) Cheshire 10; 18) Derby 10; 18) Weston 10; 23) Masuk 9; 24) New Britain 8; 24) Xavier 8; 24) Lewis Mills 8; 27) Jonathan Law 7; 27) Simsbury 7; 29) East Hampton 6; 29) Darien 6; 29) Canton 6; 29) Wolcott 6; 29) Danbury 6; 34) Suffield 5; 35) Wethersfield 4; 35) Rham 4; 35) Fairfield Warde 4; 35) Northwest Catholic 4; 35) Daniel Hand 4; 40) Norwalk 2; 40) Wilby 2; 40) Hamden 2; 40) Old Saybrook 2; 40) St. Joseph 2; 40) E.O. Smith 2; 40) Trinity Academy 2; 40) Staples 2; 48) Rocky Hill 1.

INDIVIDUAL RESULTS

55 Meter Dash: 1. Keith Berrouet, SMSA, 6.42; 2. Korey Morton, McMahon, 6.46; 3. Baijeon Bookal, New Britain, 6.49; 4. Michael Rodia, Shelton, 6.52; 5. Jaelyn Butler, Trinity Academy, 6.54; 6. Christopher Pigatt, Hamden, 6.54.

300: 1. Caleb Owen, Wilbur Cross, 35.22; 2. Jason Lorent, Shelton, 35.45; 3. Keith Berrouet, Smsa, 35.74; 4. Kymali Hay, Bloomfield, 35.76; 5. Baijeon Bookal, New Britain, 35.88; 6. Rayshon Jacobs, Jonathan Law, 36.27.

600: 1. Ryan Farrell, Cheshire, 1:23.54; 2. Talib McBride, Hillhouse, 1:23.91; 3. Nicholas Sivo, Ellington, 1:23.94; 4. Jack Olender, Ellington, 1:24.11; 5. Chase Flynn, Stonington, 1:24.18; 6. Andrew Cote, Norwich Free Academy, 1:24.53.

1000: 1. Rhys Hammond, Stonington, 2:28.66; 2. Matthew Jennings, Haddam-Killingworth, 2:29.56; 3. Jacob Ireland, East Hampton, 2:31.97; 4. Nick Sinofsky, Suffield, 2:32.41; 5. Nathan Paolangeli, Tolland, 2:33.79; 6. Jack Thurz, Rocky Hill, 2:34.43.

1600: 1. Jack Martin, Avon, 4:19.16; 2. Alec Sauter, Tolland, 4:20.44; 3. Azaan Dawson, Fairfield Prep, 4:22.75; 4. Austin Hutchens, Fairfield Warde, 4:23.50; 5. Killian McNamee, Tolland, 4:24.12; 6. Nate Davidson, Suffield, 4:25.86.

3200: 1. Gavin Sherry, Conard, 8:54.47#; 2. Aidan Puffer, Manchester, 8:59.25#; 3. Nicholas Bendtsen, Wolcott, 9:18.36; 4. Callum Sherry, Conard, 9:27.06; 5. Nate DeAngelo, Bristol Central, 9:28.00; 6. Vebjoern Roeed, Conard, 9:28.36.

55 Meter Hurdles: 1. Enrique Lopez Garcia, Windham, 7.57; 2. Osaretin Osagie, Norwich Free Academy, 7.64; 3. Jordan Pinnix, Manchester, 7.75; 4. Lorenzo Garcia, Northwest Catholic, 7.75; 5. Hunter Dale, E.O. Smith, 7.76; 6. John Macfarlane, Masuk, 7.77.

4×200 Meter Relay: 1. Wilbur Cross (Devin Cue, Armon Hyslop, Jeremiah Williams, Caleb Owen), 1:32.18; 2. Bloomfield (Korey Steele, Shakur Hill, Dante Montaque, Sean Dixon-Bode), 1:32.52; 3. Jonathan Law (Keyshon Giles, Naheim Washington, Chris Wootton, Rayshon Jacobs), 1:33.13; 4. McMahon (Korey Morton, Jose Vasquez, Eli Good, Blaise Mazurkiewicz), 1:33.23; 5. Conard (Brenden Hill, Christopher Maglio, John Gabinelle, Nathan Rinaldi), 1:33.31; 6. Simsbury (Shamar Sutton, Miguel Gutierrez, Kyle Paterson, Noah Pennington), 1:33.35.

4×400 Meter Relay: 1. Bloomfield (Shakur Hill, Sephton Reid, Tyler Wesley, Kymali Hay), 3:29.87; 2. Bristol Central (Ramon Ambert, Galen Hickey, Ryan Krompegal, Jose Ramirez), 3:30.36; 3. Glastonbury (Ryan Smith, Jadyn Nogueira, Jacob Smith, William Remkiewicz), 3:30.39; 4. Daniel Hand (Ameen Parks, Besufekad Opstrup, Connor Parthasarthy, Carson Hines), 3:30.77; 5. Darien (Austin Dehmel, Alec Armstrong, Jacob Grimm, Jack Holly), 3:30.82; 6. Ellington (Anthony Massaro, Jack Olender, Connor Cahill, Nicholas Sivo), 3:31.03.

4×800 Meter Relay: 1. Bristol Central (Mark Petrosky, Austin Freve, Nate DeAngelo, Jose Ramirez), 8:04.19; 2. Glastonbury (Thomas Stone, Seth Pavano, Ryan Smith, Jacob Smith), 8:09.80; 3. Danbury (Glenn Addotey, Jack Watson, Dylan Rosemark, Gabriel Kwarteng), 8:10.23; 4. Hall (Walker Beverly, Yonah Goldberg, Zachary LaPolla, Jackson Grady), 8:10.56; 5. Staples (Nicholas Taubenheim, Jalen St. Fort, Teddy O’Kane, George Lepska), 8:10.82; 6. Conard (Callum Sherry, Vebjoern Roeed, Sophonias Dires, Gavin Sherry), 8:11.46.

1600 Sprint Medley: 1. Haddam-Killingworth (Aidan Coleman, Seth Regan, Dmytri Mallon, Matthew Jennings), 3:37.45; 2. Fairfield Prep (Darren Blount, Tymaine Smith, Joshua Bacon, Azaan Dawson), 3:38.15; 3. Simsbury (Miguel Gutierrez, Kyle Paterson, Shamar Sutton, Owen Wollenberg), 3:38.30; 4. Hall (Isaiah Lizardi, Max Rodman, Tobias Ruffo, Jackson Grady), 3:43.26; 5. Norwalk (Kyle Gordon, Gregory Foster, Cedric Pierre, Frank Bonaddio), 3:43.77; 6. Old Saybrook (Jack Colella, Nicholas Salemi, Luke Hanratty, Cooper Luciani), 3:44.54.

High Jump: 1. Sean Dixon-Bode, Bloomfield, 6-04; 2. Dylan Torok, Masuk, J6-04; 3. Peter Fuller, Canton, 6-02; 4. Justin Costick, Norwich Free Academy, J6-02; 5. Jack Bocchino, Shelton, 6-00; 6. Cornell Tonge, Hamden, J6-00.

Pole Vault: 1. Matthew Bigelow, Weston, 15-00; 2. Aidan O’Connor, Lewis Mills, J15-00; 3. Patrick Oatman, Rham, 13-00; 3. Michael Bobin, Wethersfield, 13-00; 3. Tanner Badey, Glastonbury, 13-00; 6. Cody DeAngelo, Old Saybrook, J13-00.

Long Jump: 1. Javan Guevara-Cragwell, Derby, 22-02.50; 2. Sean Dixon-Bode, Bloomfield, 22-01.50; 3. Korey Steele, Bloomfield, 21-09.50; 4. Nicholas Balenzano, Darien, 21-05.50; 5. Messiah Harling, Wilby, 21-00.75; 6. Kyle Figol, Shelton, 20-08.50.

Shot Put: 1. Michael Campbell, Bloomfield, 58-06.50; 2. Davon Colon, Xavier, 54-08; 3. Gary Moore Jr., Hillhouse, 51-02.75; 4. Marcus Ramsey, Hall, 51-00; 5. Louis Tuccio, St. Joseph, 48-11.50; 6. Ethan Wilkie, Ellington, 48-03.