Local track and field athletes shine at famous National meets in Philadelphia

Some arrived via car, leaving minutes after the conclusion of the final day of school. Others traveled by train. They all put their stamp on Natick’s track and field program.

The Redhawks’ performance at New Balance Nationals in Philadelphia from June 15 to 18 represented a new standard, with two relay teams setting school records and another setting a season-best time.

The venue also stood out as a highlight.

Franklin Field, the oldest two-tier stadium in the nation, is home to the renowned Penn Relays and 70,000 seats. Natick's team hotel was a short walk away.

“It was by far the best track we’ve ran on with the most people in the stands,” said Nick Bianchi.

“It was so loud there,” added Dylan Weddle. “They had music playing while we were running; it was just blasting.”

Weddle ran with Michael Cliver, Andy Marotta and Liam O’Neill - a team of all juniors – in the Sprint Medley Relay, which beat the previous school record by a hundredth of a second, finishing in 3 minutes, 34.03 seconds. The old mark was set earlier in the season by Ben Feldman, Drew Waldron, Cliver and Weddle.

Natick’s 4x400 relay set a season best (3:26.42) when three of the team’s members ran their best times. Weddle helped the Redhawks come from behind at the tape as Natick won its heat.

“That made my whole season,” Weddle said. “Coming into it, we were seeded at the bare minimum time to qualify for Nationals.”

Brothers Nick and John Bianchi along with Jacob Tobin and Sean Fleming teamed up to set a school mark in the 4xmile relay in 18:28.84.

Natick met as a team earlier in the season to identify possible athletes who wanted to compete at Nationals, which happens each season for cross-country, indoor track and outdoor track.

“About two years ago we decided we’d make it a program goal to take athletes to the national meet in all three seasons,” said Natick’s outdoor coach, Matt Miller.

Natick’s Booster Club, with help from proceeds of December’s Frosty 5K road race, assists in coordinating transportation and lodging for trips to National meets.

Because there is a limit on the number of entries for each event, athletes attempt to achieve qualifying marks early in the season.

“It’s a big goal for us every year to try and get as many people into that meet as possible,” said Nick Bianchi.

Natick’s trip to Philadelphia did not include a visit to the “Rocky Steps” at the Museum of Art or the Liberty Bell, but all athletes did endure a Friday-evening storm that delayed the meet for nearly three hours.

The Distance Medley Relay from Natick (Jacob Tobin, Brady Miller, Marotta and Sean Fleming) placed 15^th  and the 4x800 team (O'Neill, Nicholas Bianchi, John Bianchi and Feldman) – which won Division 2 states and placed second (by less than a second) at All-States, was 42^nd at Nationals in a crowded heat of 19 teams.

Natick sophomore Angie Leavey placed fourth in the Rising Stars Shot Put (39 feet, 8 inches) while Alyssa Peasley placed 14^th in the high jump )5-3.25) and 12^th pole vault 10-11.75. Matthew Acquah competed in the triple jump.

“It was a really good experience,” Miller said. “All the athletes really enjoyed it and the parents were really happy, which is always a good thing to know that the parents are happy with the way things go.”

The stadium, again, played a starring role.

“It would have been nice to run a little bit better, but in terms of the environment, it was way better than I expected,” Nick Bianchi said. “I didn’t realize how big of a stadium that was. There was so many insane runners there; it was fun being in the same environment.”

Franklin’s Dumas second at New Balance pentathlon

All-States pentathlon champion Sarah Dumas of Franklin placed second in that event at New Balance Nationals with 3,518 points. Dumas was second in the shot put and third in both the 100 hurdles and high jump.

Franklin’s Lily DeForge was 18^th in the shot put and 30^th in the discus.

Tri-County's Averie Denelle was eighth in the high jump while Hopkinton’s Sean Golembiewski finished 16th in the 400 hurdles and ran with Paul Litscher, William Bialobrzeski and Andrew Bialobrzeski for a 10th-place finish in the 4x110 shuttle hurdles. Declan Mick, also of Hopkinton, was 34th in the javelin.

Framingham’s Sam Burgess placed third in the 5,000 meters.

Wellesley’s Annie Comella was 14^th in the long jump and Emma Tuxbury was 10^th in both the 1,500 and mile; Maddie Tuxbury placed 12^th in the mile; and Charlotte Tuxbury was 49^th in the 1,500. Christopher Brooks, also of Wellesley, finished 24^th in the first round of the 100.

Melinda Haagensen of Westborough placed in a tie for fourth in the pole vault.

Hopedale’s Ari Levine won the freshman shot put in a school-record distance of 47-2.25 and third in the discus.

Dover-Sherborn runs strong at Nike Nationals

A number of local athletes put in strong performances on the other side of the country at Nike Nationals in Eugene, Oregon. Dover-Sherborn's Vincent Stefanelli, William Lombard, Cathal Keating and Matt Rooney placed fourth in the Emerging Elite 4x400. Reed Fenno, Keating, Stefanelli and Connor Long finished sixth in the 4x1.

Owen Comiskey, Fenno, Long and Lombard finished sixth in the 1,600 Sprint Medley Championship race. Cian Moss, Antonio Saenz, Stefanelli and Aidan Pearsall were eighth in the 1,600 Sprint Medley Emerging Elite race. Matthew Darin was 18th in the Emerging Elite shot put.

Hopkinton’s Logan Sullivan was 15^th in the Emerging Elite high jump 5-11.25; Marlborough’s Zachary Barton ran a 16.27 in the Emerging Elite 110 hurdles; Natick’s Caroline Niedermeyer placed 24^th in the Championship javelin 101-11; Lincoln-Sudbury's Gabrielle Pierre placed 22^nd in the Championship long jump; and Wellesley’s James Hoffman ran in the Freshman 100.

Tim Dumas is a multimedia journalist for the Daily News. He can be reached at tdumas@wickedlocal.com. Follow him on Twitter @TimDumas.   

This article originally appeared on MetroWest Daily News: Natick sets records at Nationals; Franklin pentathlete nabs silver