WHS Indoor Track and Field Teams Compete in FCIAC and Class L State Championships

The Wilton High School boys and girls indoor track and field teams wrapped up their winter seasons with a string of successes at the FCIAC East Division Championship hosted at Wilton’s Zeoli Fieldhouse, and the FCIAC Conference Championship and CIAC Class L State Championship, both at the Floyd Little Athletic Center in New Haven.

The girls team finished fourth out of 19 competing teams in the Class L State Championship meet across 15 events. Jill Roberts took home the State title in the 55-meter hurdles posting the winning time of 8.43 seconds, while Anna LaBant and Skylar Reading ran strong times in the event as well. Roberts picked up third-place hardware in the 300-meter race with a time of 41.93 seconds. Jenna Mancuso and Kelly Mancuso had strong performances in the 1000-meter race, each posting sub-3:30 times. Grace Guglielmo ran the 3200 meters in 12:05 and Lucienne Prior posted a strong 1600-meter time of 5:36. Sophia Viggiano competed in the high jump and Caroline Luce competed in the shot put with strong results.

The girls relay teams had a fantastic day at the State Championships as well. The team of Lia Lombardi, Kelly Mancuso, Jenna Mancuso and Mia Salvino finished third in the 4×800-meter relay. The team of Ava Partenza, LaBant, Lombardi and Salvino also took third in the 1600-meter sprint medley relay and the team of Lombardi, Erin Kelly, LaBant and Salvino took fifth in the 4×400-meter race.

On the boys’ side, a number of Wilton athletes had a fantastic State Championship event. Tristan Burke took third place in the 1000-meter race with a time of 2:35. Alex Cohen ran the 1600 meter (one mile) in an impressive 4:34.49, earning him sixth place in the state. Cohen followed the mile with the two-mile race where he posted 9:53.34 to secure fifth place in the state. Andre Weist won third place in the shot put with a throw of 49-4.75 feet.

In the FCIAC East and Conference Championships preceding the State Championship, both teams excelled. The boys and girls teams finished fourth at the FCIAC East Division meet, and the girls finished fourth among 13 teams competing in the Conference Championship.

Highlights from the East Division meet included:

Weist won first and Luce took fourth in their respective shot put events. The girls’ 1500-meter sprint medley relay team of Partenza, Larsen Burke, Lombardi and Salvino, and the boys’ 4×225-meter relay team of Garrett Bouvier, Jason Miller, George Rushevich and Thomas Welch, both won first place in their respective events.

In the boys’ 1600 meter (one mile), Wilton dominated with Cohen and Michael Byrnes taking first and third, respectively, on the podium. LaBant took second in the 55-meter hurdles. Reed O’Neill took second in the boys 55-meter hurdles. Wilton dominated the girls’ 600-meter race with Lombardi taking second and Emily Gregson, Kelly, and Alyssa Karim all finishing in the top 10. In the girls’ 1000-meter race, Salvino, Jenna Mancuso and Kelly Mancuso finished third, fifth and sixth, respectively. Prior and Guglielmo ran into third and fifth in the girls’ one-mile race. In the high jump, Viggiano and Andre Tovar each took third place. In the 45-meter sprints, Partenza finished sixth and Rushevich finished in the top 10. Liam Christ posted a strong time to grab the seventh position in the 1000 meter.

At the FCIAC Conference Championship meet the teams again ran great races. Roberts had a banner event, taking home the FCIAC title in both the 55-meter dash and the 55-meter hurdles, and third in the 300-meter race. LaBant finished fourth in the 55-meter hurdles. Weist won the boys’ shot put. The girls’ 1600-meter sprint medley relay team of Partenza, Burke, Lombardi and Salvino earned second place. The boys 4×200-meter relay team of Bouvier, Miller, Rushevich and Welch finished fourth. Cohen ran the mile in 4:35, taking fourth place overall. Kelly posted a sixth-place finish in the 600 meters. Bouvier took fth in the 55-meter dash.

Next up for the athletes is the CIAC State Open on Saturday, Feb. 18 at the Floyd Little Athletic Center in New Haven. The State Open gathers qualifiers from across all of Connecticut’s high school classes.