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ORONO – For three years running, Edward Little girls coach Steve Robertson has gone into the final weekend of the season hoping for one of track’s rarities: The perfect meet.
One without the ebbs and flows that mark a sport made up 19 separate competitions over a day of activity. Where athlete after athlete has a great day. No regrets. No what-ifs. None of that.
And for three years, Robertson has left the Class A championship meet without that meet … and with a grin on his face.
“We never seem to have a great state meet,” Robertson said late Saturday, as the end of a long day approached at the University of Maine’s Beckett Family Track.
Then the grin broadened.
“But we have done enough the last three years to walk away with the championship,” Robertson said.
The Red Eddies of Auburn did just that, holding off a late challenge from Eastern Maine champ Waterville and an unexpected effort from Brunswick to win their third straight big-school title.
Edward Little scored 933/4, Waterville finished with 67, Brunswick had 65 and Bangor tallied 62. Mount Ararat of Topsham rounded out the top five with 40. Brewer was 10th with 223/4.
In the boys meet, South Portland defended its title with a dominant effort: Nate Thompson won the 300 hurdles and set a Class A long jump record of 22 feet, 91/2 inches, and the Riots tallied 104 points. Edward Little (74), Westbrook (56) and Biddeford (551/2) helped Western Maine teams sweep the first four spots. EM champ Waterville was fifth with 38 while Brewer was seventh with 26 and Bangor took 11th with 19.
In the girls meet, neither rain nor a longer, all-class state meet format could foil Robertson’s girls as they won their third straight.
Waterville edged into contention late in the meet, closing to within 83/4 points with two events – the triple jump and the 1,600-meter relay – remaining.
Enter Ashley Cass.
The talented EL senior ignored the most steady and chilling rain of the day to post a personal best of 36-11 and win the triple jump by nearly three feet.
That effort alone would have given the Eddies an insurmountable lead entering the relay. A second-place finish in that race provided the final margin.
Waterville coach Ian Wilson said his team’s performance was a surprise.
“When we looked at it on paper, our girls had no business being in it,” Wilson said. “EL was a heavy favorite, so I’m really proud of the way they fought today and made a meet of it.”
Robertson said his senior jumper deserved a lot of the credit for the team win.
“This has been Ashley Cass’ day. It’s unbelievable,” Robertson said.
Cass also won the long jump and ran a leg on the Eddies’ victorious 400 relay squad.
“I had the best day of my life,” Cass said. “I love it.”
Cass said that half the battle on a chilly, rainy day was convincing herself that the conditions were nicer than they were.
“I think my body’s in shock,” she said. “I fooled myself into believing it’s a great day.”
That method also worked for Waterville junior Lauren Tebbetts, who helped fuel the comeback by setting a state record of 10 feet, 3 inches in the pole vault – the 16th of 19 events contested.
“It was perfect,” Tebbetts said of the weather. “We practice in the rain. You think of it in a positive way. When other people say they hate the weather, you say you love it. You make yourself say it.”
Bangor finished fourth in the meet behind two wins: Junior Emily Capehart captured the 300 hurdles with a stirring stretch run and Capehart teamed with Jessye Hand, Melissa Achorn and Alison Smith to win the 1,600 relay.
Capehart also finished second in the triple jump and third in the long jump and had a hand in 34 of Bangor’s 62 points.
Capehart arrived at the second-to-last barrier down by a meter to Danica Best of South Portland. But when Best chopped her stride and Capehart didn’t have to alter her own cadence, the Bangor star came off the hurdle up by a meter.
“For the conditions, I think that was the best race I’ve ever run,” Capehart said.
Other top performers in the meet: Cally Ellis of Mount Ararat won the 100 and 200 and finished second in the 400; Waterville’s Carolyn Shea won a pair of duels in the 1,600 and 3,200; And the Deering 3,200 relay squad of Amanda Sesto, Nellie Beaudry, Cara Chebuske and Kim Whipkey peeled almost nine seconds off the existing state record with a 9:32.61 clocking.
In the boys meet, while South Portland topped 100 points in its comfortable win, Eastern Maine champ Waterville was struggling through a nightmare meet.
It started poorly, as sophomore Kyle Irvine false-started in the 110 hurdles semifinal, and didn’t get much better the rest of the way. Troy Irvine’s pole vault win was the bright spot.
“The wheels fell off the wagon today,” Wilson said. “Everything that could go wrong, did.”
Wilson said his team never found a way to rebound after the early setbacks.
“We’re a small team, and a tight bunch,” Wilson said. “When things are going well, that emotion will carry us, as happened with the girls. But when things go badly, it turns around and bites you on the butt.”
South Portland got a win from Jake Houser in the 400 and a team victory in the 1,600 relay. The Riots paved the way to their win by scoring 38 points in the long jump and triple jump.
Michael Barris of Westbrook completed two years of undefeated in-state sprinting, as he won the 100 and 200. The state 100 record-holder said the weather didn’t allow for fast times, but he was happy with Western Maine domination of the sprints.
Western Maine athletes captured five of six places in the 100 and four of six in the 200.
“[The sprinters] are all really good friends,” Barris said. “Coming in we knew we wanted to knock everyone [from Eastern Maine] off. We did a pretty good job at it.”
Jeff Gaudette sparked Edward Little’s runner-up finish by winning the 1,600 and 3,200.
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