by
Anne Berleant
With temperatures in the 70s and sunny skies, the George Stevens Academy Eagles jumped, leaped and ran in the track and field meet at Bucksport High School on May 18 to a solid finish.
The occasion was the Hancock County championship meet.
The girls finished in fourth place with 44 points, behind Mount Desert Island (152.5 points), Bucksport (74 points) and Ellsworth (72.5 points), mainly due to a lack of second- and third-place finishes. The girls finished ahead of Sumner (12 points).
But the real news was Liana Arquette setting a school record in the shot put, throwing it 32’1.5” for a second-place finish behind Bucksport. She also placed third in the triple jump at 26’9”.
Inji Hwang placed first in the 1600 meter race walk, at 11:13.71, against a field of one—herself.
The boys fared slightly better overall, eking out a third place finish with 65 points, behind first-place Mount Desert Island (143.5 points) and Ellsworth (103 points).
River Plouffe Vogel came in second in the 800 meter race at 2:08.23, losing by 3 seconds to MDI. Vogel also placed second in the 1600 meter race, coming at 4:44.49.
“River put in his usual performance and scored a lot of points for the team in the relays,” Coach Erich Reed said.
In the 3200 meter race, Sam Stahnke placed second at 11:06.95 and Vogel placed third at 11:12.23.
The boys also were competitive in the 4x800 meter relay, placing second behind Ellsworth, with a time of 10:07.38.
In field events, Corey An placed third in the high jump, clearing 5’2”, third in the long jump, with 17’4.5”, and second in the triple jump, at 33’11.5”.
Throughout the season, An “has definitely been a focused competitor,” Reed said.
Freshman Alex Szwez also competed in the high and long jumps for a fifth-place finish in both.
Baxter Forrest came in first in the 1600 race walk at 10:52.81, against a field of one—himself.
“The team has definitely done really well and worked really well together. It’s been a really good season,” said Reed.
They next compete on Saturday, May 26, at the Penobscot Valley Conference Small School Championships at Foxcroft Academy and at the state championships on June 2 in Augusta.
“Right now, it’s time to sharpen their workouts,” said Reed.
