Reading Girls and Boys Track Teams Finish Fourth in Middlesex League Championships

(4-5 minute read)

Freshman Eva Kirkwood finishes strong in the mile. Photo by Tom Grant.

On the second-hottest day of the year, Reading’s track teams battled both the heat and the competition in the Middlesex League Championships on May 20, 2026.  With temperatures touching 91 degrees, multiple sprinters brought the heat with seasonal and personal bests.  Both teams finished in fourth place, just a handful of points out of third, and are now gearing up for the Division 3 state championships held at Merrimack College on May 28th and 30th.

Reading Girls’ Track Finishes Fourth in Middlesex League Championships.

Sophomore Maya Beaulieu prepares to throw the javelin. Photo by Joy Beaulieu.

It was a foregone conclusion that Lexington’s girls would bring home the ML Championships while everyone else fought for second place. While Lexington delivered with an astounding 233 points to win the meet, Reading’s girls put forth their best to finish fourth with 74 points, only four points out of third. 

Reading girls’ track scorers in the Middlesex League Championship meet.

Reading was led by the team’s senior stars, Isabelle Lightbody (20 points) and Kamryn Encarnacao (19.25 points).  Lightbody showed the versatility that has been her hallmark all season, taking second in the 100H (15.58), third in the long jump (17-11.50), and third in the triple jump (37-01.50).  Lightbody saved her best for this meet as she delivered her season’s best performances in all three events.  Encarnacao brought home the team’s best finish at the Championships, winning first place in the 200 in a season’s best time of 25.54.  She followed that up with a second place in the 100 later in the day, running 12.55 in the final after a blistering 12.32 in the prelims.  Sophomore Annabelle Repucci scored 11 points for the Rockets by finishing third in the high jump (4-10.00) and fourth in the long jump (17-06.25).  Other top scorers for Reading were senior Tessa Rock, who put down a personal best time of 1:02.31 to finish fourth in the 400, senior Katherine Savio, who finished fourth in the high jump (4-10.00), and junior Rachel Grady, who scored in three separate events: 200 (8th - 27.07), 100H (8th - 16.81 - personal best), and the 4x100 relay (4th - 50.99).

Reading Boys’ Track Finishes Fourth in Middlesex League Championships.

Senior Jamison Bentley pushes through the 400H. Photo by Tom Grant.

The Lexington boys’ track team entered this season with something to prove, after losing dual meets to the Reading boys in both cross country and indoor track this school year.  The Minutemen’s stars - some of whom compete at the national level - brought their best to the Middlesex League Championships as the team scored 211 points to take home first.  Reading finished fourth with 66 points - just two points out of third - but had multiple runners deliver personal bests and had two league champions in Ryan Pulpi (200 - 21.76) and Luke Rogerson (javelin - 198-02).

Junior Max King pushes to the finish in the mile. Photo by Tom Grant.

While Pulpi and Rogerson led the way, a total of 15 athletes scored points for the Rockets.  Notable efforts came from junior Zalen Puff, who finished third in the 100 with a personal best time of 11.10, junior Jack Millerick, who finished third in the 400 (52.53), junior Max King, who finished fourth in the mile (4:34.93), and senior Levi Emmanuel, who finished fourth in the high jump (6-04.00).  In a tough 110H field, senior Karmani Mirville ran a personal best of 15.52 to finish fifth.  His time would have finished second in the league last year, demonstrating how well Mirville ran against the national-level competition.

Reading boys’ track scorers in the Middlesex League Championship meet.

The Rockets’ relay teams also performed well, finishing second in both the 4x100 and the 4x400. Freshman Brady LaMontagne, senior Ryan Pulpi, junior Matthew Dougherty, and junior Domenic Pate combined in the 4x100 for a time of 42.96, just three-tenths of a second out of first place.  In the 4x400, juniors Sebastian Orsini (leadoff), Domenic Pate (second leg), and Finn Johnson-Houlihan (anchor), along with senior Cameron Gigler (third leg), ran a 3:27.79.  They were a mere seven-tenths of a second behind first-place Arlington, but over seven seconds ahead of the third-place team.