Amherst girls’ 4x400 relay team cruises to title at MIAA Meet of Champions

Day 2 of the MIAA Track & Field Meet of Champions was pushed 24 hours to Sunday due to inclement weather, yet Amherst Regional still managed multiple medals in the meet at Fitchburg State University.

The Hurricanes’ 4x400-meter girls relay team won the race in convincing fashion, counting as their best performance of the entire meet.

Logan Alfandari earned his second individual medal of the weekend, while Moriah Luetjen claimed two top-eight finishes, both on Day 2.

The Hurricanes’ 4x100 girls relay team also earned a top-three finish to collect a medal.

Angel Hernandez Castro took first in the boys shot put wheelchair division as well (9 feet, 10½ inches) receiving a medal to add to the team’s total.

Alfandari got another seventh-place finish on Sunday, this time in the boys shot put. Alfandari’s best toss measured in at 55 feet, 11½ inches, which was more than two feet farther than the ninth-place finisher and the medal cutoff. On Thursday, Alfandari took seventh in the boys discus.

Luetjen secured third place in the girls 400 with a time of 55.54 seconds for her single individual medal. The ‘Canes senior was in a bit of a pocket by herself as the first and second place finishers crossed the line about two seconds beforehand, then the fourth through sixth-place finishers were two seconds after Amherst’s speedster.

Starting with the 4x100 girls race, the Hurricanes came in third in 49.25 seconds. Amherst’s quartet consisted of Julianna Albo, Ella Austin, Ruby Austin and Claire Fortin.

Then in the 4x400, Amherst literally ran away from the competition with a winning time of 3:55.26. The ‘Canes were a full five seconds faster than second place Wachusett Regional, which concluded in 4:00.93. Ololara Baptiste and Skylar Fox joined Ruby Austin and Luetjen in the group of four and set its fastest time of the season in the first-place effort.

Amherst’s non-medalists were Miles Jeffries in the boys 400 (14th, 49.77 seconds), plus its 4x800 boys relay (ninth, 8:00.99) team of Owen Platt, Clavin Miller, Peter Nedeau and Nico Lisle.

Other Hampshire County athletes who competed in individual events Sunday were Frontier’s Evan Hedlund in the boys mile (23rd, 4:26.75) and South Hadley’s Aimee George in the girls javelin (14th, 102 feet, four inches).

Northampton’s 4x800 girls relay team of Maddalena Figueroa-Starr, Ella Hoogendyk, Mairead O’Neil and Maeve O’Neil took 12th in 9:40.07, while the Redhawks’ 4x800 boys team wound up in 22nd in 8:37.33. Frontier’s squad was made up of Charles Dennis, Luke Howard, Augustus Radner and Hedlund.

Next on the track calendar for select locals is the 78th annual New England Interscholastic Outdoor Track & Field Championships on Saturday, June 14 at Willow Brook Park in New Britain, Conn. Field events begin at 10:00 a.m.