The Conant track and field team began its title defense on Tuesday, and while the Orioles lost some key pieces from last year’s boys’ championship team, they should be right back in contention for the best in Division III.

“A lot of people are looking at us after losing some of our top people like ‘Oh, they’re not going to do well,” said sophomore Ben Sawyer, who helped Conant to their 2022 championship with first-place finishes in both the long and high jump. “But I think we’ll be right there again.”

Conant lost a slew of state meet point-scorers to graduation; with throwing champ Garrett Somero and sprinter/jumper Ethan Vitello not in the mix, the Orioles have to find a way to replace their contributions if they want to contend again. 

“Ethan and Garrett left, but we have a lot of people stepping up in other events,” Sawyer said, citing jumper Jordan Nagle, short-distance runner Jake Sawyer, distance runner Nathan Alajajian and hurdler Kaden Colby. “We’ve got a lot of other people stepping up this year, so we’ll definitely be there.” 

Sawyer is leading the way as a jumper and is focused on improving in the 200m in order to lead the Orioles at the championship meet, where he hopes equal or surpass Gilford senior distance star Patrick Gandini’s point total. 

“My goal is to counter Gandini’s points,” Sawyer said. “If he scores 40, I have to score 40.”

Conant also lost their championship head coach, Bill Edson, who’s now an assistant at Keene State College, but they’ve picked up where they left off under longtime assistant and now head coach Chris Bernier. The Orioles looked good on Tuesday afternoon as Conant hosted Mascenic, Wilton-Lyndeborough, Hinsdale, Sanborn and Hillsboro-Deering, coming away with team wins on the boys’ and girls’ sides, both nearly doubling the next-closest point total.

The Conant girls should have a promising outlook to their season, as well, with a crop of excellent seniors. Isabella Brooks is strong in the sprints, Lainey Holombo is great in the short distances, Kylie Aho and Laurel Bennett are seasoned in the middle-to-long runs and Emma Tenters and Adrienne Kennedy add some sprinting skill individually and as part of the Orioles’ relay teams. 

Mascenic took third place in the girls’ meet on Tuesday; much like the fall cross-country season, the Vikings are stronger on the girls’ side this season, where their best hope for spring hardware is in the girls’ 4x800m relay. 

“The girls would like to go win that,” coach Mike Smith said, “and what I’m seeing today bodes well for that.” Smith plans on running Erin and Kaitlin O’Shea, Emma Schaumloffel and Amelia Smith, likely bouncing them out of contention in the longer distances in exchange for a good shot at a state relay title.

The Mascenic boys took a 4x800m relay title of their own last spring, but only Drew Traffie remains from that team, and he’ll have his sights set on a podium finish in the two-mile run, where Gandini has reigned supreme.

“[Traffie] wants to run a sub-10 two-mile,” Smith said, “but he’s not going to beat Gandini, and there are a few other kids who run pretty well, so I think a top-three finish would be pretty nice.”

Traffie had no problem winning the 3,200m on Tuesday, holding off Alajajian before creating a big gap and finishing in 10:57. 

Wilton-Lyndeborough is led by senior sprinter/jumper Ruben Sistachs on the boys’ side and seventh-grade sprinter Lydia Vanderhoof on the girls’.

Conant and Mascenic are both back in action Friday at Belmont. Wilton-Lyndeborough returns to competition at Mascenic on May 2. 

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