TA News

Guest post by Track and Field coach Joel Breakstone

The TA track and field teams had great performances at the Division 3 State Championships in Fair Haven on May 30. The girls finished third, just behind Woodstock and White River, and the boys were state champions. It’s the fifth championship in a row for the boys and their 12th title since 2004. 

Many TA athletes won individual championships. Ava Hayden swept the three distance events (800, 1500, and 3000). Charlize Brown won the 200 and the 400. Luke Miller won the pole vault, javelin, and 400. Uly Junker won the 100, 200, long jump, and anchored the winning 4×100 relay team (Hunter Clay, Emmett Terry, Spencer Durkee, Uly Junker), which broke a Division 3 state record that had stood since 2014. The 4×400 relay team of Hardy Payson, Spencer Durkee, Brady Sloop, and Ben Mattern won by less than a tenth of a second. Chase Lefevre had the longest throw in the shot put, and Evan Rich won the triple jump. 

In addition to the 4×100 record at the state meet, TA athletes set a series of new Division 3 records this year. Uly Junker established new records in the 100 and 200, and Evan Rich had the longest triple jump ever in Division 3. 

Uly, Evan, Chase, Luke, Hunter, Ben, Charlize, Ava, Sebastian Perdrizet, Maya Dixon, and Lizzie Brown all qualified for the New England Track and Field Championships, which will be held on 6/8 at UNH. They qualified by finishing in the top 6 in events at the Essex Invitational against athletes from all divisions in Vermont. 

Finally, a group of TA athletes will compete in the Vermont High School Decathlon Championship on 6/17 and 6/18 at Burlington High School.