Eddies edge Bangor> Ram girls second, Hampden in third

AUGUSTA – In the space of 20 minutes, Bangor’s girls track and field team went from laughing and hugging to confused, shocked silence, then to tears and a quiet acceptance of their Class A state runner-up plaque.

Ahead by 19 points with the pole vault competition still under way, the Rams appeared to have a team track championship, their first since 1986.

But after Bangor’s winning 1,600 relay team was disqualified because a referee said one of the runners committed a lane violation, all the Rams could do was gather on the track and watch the vaulting competition on the other side of the field.

Both Abby Bouzan-Kaloustian of Brewer and Edward Little’s Meghan Kohlmeyer vaulted a state-record 9 feet, 3/4 inches. Kohlmeyer cleared the vault on fewer attempts, and Bangor’s disqualification in the relay gave the Red Eddies of Auburn the break they needed to win the title 62-61.

Hampden Academy took third place with 44 points, followed by Waterville (42) and Brewer (39 1/3).

Edward Little’s Ben Fletcher had another outstanding meet, winning all three individual distance events and anchoring the winning 3,200 relay to a state record to help the Red Eddies earn 88 points for their first state title since 1966. South Portland took runner-up honors with 76 points and Sanford was third with 52. Brunswick scored 45 points and Kennebunk 34.

Bangor coach Gary Capehart, speaking calmly just minutes after hearing that his appeal of the relay disqualification had been denied, said what upset him was the effort his team had put into the meet.

“They did so well,” he said. “Kari [Jenkins] was just fabulous in the javelin, Kara Crockett, Julie Dawson, they all came through really big for us.”

Jenkins’ 121-6 effort in the javelin was the Rams’ only first-place finish. Instead of dominating, Bangor relied on depth.

Lacey Bogan was third in the triple jump and fourth in the 100 high hurdles. Dawson earned a second-place finish in the 300 intermediate hurdles and third in the 100 hurdles. Crockett took second in the discus, Alison Smith was the 400 runner-up.

Before Bangor had its letdown, Capehart got to watch a back-and-forth long jump competition between his daughter, Emily Capehart, Brewer standout Jen Puiia and Skowhegan’s Katie Ross, who came into the event with a 15-4 3/4.

With the three girls all within one inch going into the final, Capehart reeled off jumps of 17-2 1/4 and a personal best 17-4 3/4 that made her run in excitement to her brother Joe, who also was watching. But Puiia, the next jumper, topped Capehart with a 17-5 1/4. All that remained was Ross, who went 17-2 in her second jump.

Ross’ last attempt was a foul, giving Puiia her second consecutive long jump win.

Puiia, who finished sixth in the 400, said she wasn’t pleased with her first two jumps in the final – the second of which was a foul.

“I’ve jumped that well before, but I wanted to prove it. I just tried to get into it and focus,” she said of her mindset before her winning attempt.

“It’s good to see young jumpers competing,” Emily Capehart said. “[Ross] told me that she’d never gone over 16 feet in her life.”

Other winners included Mount Ararat of Topsham’s Jenn Moreau, who broke the 13-year-old state 1,600 record with a 4:57.27 and earned a victory in the 800 (2:22.98). Hampden Academy freshman Jani Bosse took the 300 hurdles with a time of 46.84.

In the boys meet, Fletcher said he felt his times were a little off from last year’s state meet.

Still, the University of Oregon-bound ace anchored the Eddies’ winning 3,200 relay that set a state record with a 8:02.70 finish and won the rest of the distance events.

Fletcher didn’t have any competition in his three individual races once he got out of the pack and poured on the speed down the stretch. Even the deceptively close 3,200, in which he ran just in front of Edward Little teammate Joe Kuvaja until the final 100 meters of the race, was part of the plan.

“I was saving myself for the 3,200 so we could have the points for the team,” Fletcher said. “In the 3,200 I was trying to pull [Kuvaja] through so he would come in second.”

Mt. Blue of Farmington’s Pete Brown set a state record in the 1,600 racewalk with a time of 6:43.64.

Darren Lewis earned two victories, sprinting to a 11.09 in the 100 and a 22.30 in the 200 for Oxford Hills of South Paris.

Kennebunk’s Pierce Jackson was a double-event winner in the high jump (6-6) and the triple jump (44-10 1/2). Mike Lecomte of South Portland won the shot put (54-10 3/4) and the discus (156-4).

Bangor finishes included Nick Loukes’ second place in the high jump and Jay Huckins’ third in the pole vault.