Reading Track and Field Takes on the Best - MIAA Meet of Champions Preview
This article was written by resident Tom Grant, a parent of a student-athlete.
(3-minute read)
After delivering impressive team finishes at the Division 3 State Championships on May 28th and 31st, the calendar has flipped to June, and Reading Track and Field athletes will now focus on their own personal performance. The Meet of Champions (MoC), held at Merrimack College on June 4th and June 6th, features the top athletes from across the state in every event, and Reading is well-represented.
Below is a rundown of the events and how Reading potentially stacks up against the competition. Reading does not have an athlete qualified for the MoC in every event, given the stiff qualifying standards.
Girls Meet of Champions Preview
100m
Isabelle Lightbody (2nd from right) after placing 2nd in the triple jump at the D3 state championships. Photo by Nancy Madden.
Senior Kamryn Encarnacao’s personal best time of 12.31 ranks her 12th out of 32 entries in the 100m. This is an extremely fast event this year, with the top 20 times all under 12.50, so just making the final will be a challenge. Encarnacao has lifted her game at the end of the season, so do not count her out for another personal best and a spot in the final. The top three sprinters in this event all run sub-12 and likely will be shooting for the state record of 11.48.
200m
Encarnacao is ranked 14th out of 33 entries in the 200m with a time of 25.46, but is only 27 hundredths behind the 8th-ranked time. As mentioned above, Encarnacao has been saving her best for the end of the season and has a solid chance of hitting a new personal best and making the final. The top sprinter in this event is the current state record holder in the 200m at 23.28, so this event also promises to be a fast one.
4x100
Reading’s sprinters are coming off a third-place finish in the 4x100 in the Division 3 state championships with a season-best time of 50.38. Reading’s quartet of junior Rachel Grady, freshman Aryanna Neth, sophomore Annabelle Repucci, and Encarnacao is ranked 19th in the state currently, but they are only half a second away from the 8th-place time.
Long Jump
Repucci (18-00.50) and senior Isabelle Lightbody (17-11.50) are ranked 17th and 19th in the state, and both just medaled in the D3 state championships. While both would likely need to establish new personal bests to reach the podium at the MoC, it is not out of the question.
Triple Jump
Lightbody is ranked 10th in the state this year at 37’1.5” and is coming off a second-place finish in the D3 state championships. On a good day, she can be right in the mix for a top-eight finish.
Boys Meet of Champions Preview
200m
Senior Ryan Pulpi has the fastest time in the state this year in the 200m (21.11) by four tenths of a second. His time is the fastest 200m run in the state since 2022, and he is unlikely to be seriously challenged on Thursday. The real question is if he can break his school record again, just a week after setting it in the D3 state championships.
400m
Pulpi is also the top sprinter in the state in the 400m, but in this event, he is a full second faster than the next-fastest time. His personal best of 47.31 was set at an “elite meet”, where he had competition pushing him the whole time. While it is unlikely he will be pushed on Saturday, it will be the only race he runs that day, so look for him to give his all in trying to lower the school record again.
2-mile
Junior Finn Johnson-Houlihan (9:25.07) has the best time for the Rockets this season and ranks 26th in MA. On his best day, Johnson-Houlihan can run with the best in the state - like at Weston Twilight - and a top-eight finish is not out of the question.
4x100
Cam Gigler finishes strong in the 4x400. Photo by Casey Johnson-Houlihan.
Reading’s 4x100 squad of freshman Brady LaMontagne and juniors Zalen Puff, Matthew Dougherty, and Domenic Pate is coming off a second-place finish and time of 43.34 in the D3 state championships. This ranks them 14th in the MoC, with a legitimate shot at the top eight.
4x800
Reading comes in as the 24th-ranked team in the 4x800. However, do not count out the updated lineup of junior Sebastian Orsini, junior Max King, senior Cam Gigler, and Johnson-Houlihan. All of these runners can run an 800m right around the 2:00 mark, which, if they did, would put them in seventh place overall.
Javelin
Reading’s Luke Rogerson (210-07.00) is the top-ranked thrower in the MoC by over 19 feet. Just like at the D3 state championships, Rogerson is the favorite and likely will only be competing against himself to break his own school record.
High Jump
Senior Levi Emmanuel (6-4.00) is coming off a victory in the D3 state championships and is looking for more. While it will take a new personal best for him to finish in the top eight, Emmanuel has shown this season that nothing is out of the realm of possibility for him.
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