Beginning of a track rivalry?

Staff Report
The Springfield Cosmos hosted their neighbors to the North as the Windsor Yellow Jackets made the trip down I-91 to Springfield in the first of what will hopefully become a tradition of rotating dual meets. Windsor bested Springfield on the men’s side, 74-53, while the Cosmos women’s team claimed victory over the Lady Jacks, 61-52.

The girls 4x800m relay consisting of Alicia Ostrom, Skyler Congdon, Olivia Howard, and Anna Ondre started off the day with a win (13:45.5). Senior Captain Haley Gibbons led her team in points, with wins in the triple jump (29 feet, 7.5 inches), long jump (13 feet, 1.5 inches), and shot put (23 feet, 10 inches). Gibbons also hit a personal record of 4 feet, 8 inches to place second in high jump, behind Windsor phenomena Janiah Young, who won with a best of 5 feet.

Besides the above-mentioned relay, Junior Alicia Ostrom also won the 800m (3.03) and the 1,500m (6.25) while senior Anna Ondre took first in the 400m (1:12), second in long jump (12 feet, 9 inches), and third in high jump (4 feet, 8 inches). Sophomore Olivia Howard placed second in the 1,500m (7:11.45), third in discus (49 feet, 10 inches), and fourth in shot put (19 feet, 5 inches).

Junior Liv Loney, in her first meet since 2019, won javelin with a throw of 56 feet, 9 inches. Senior Hannah Dolloff placed second in the 100m dash (15.78) and fourth in the 200m (34.42). Senior captain Skyler Congdon threw a 66-footer to place second in discus. Junior Gabby Anders placed second in javelin (52 feet, 8” inches), third in shot put (20 feet, 1 inch for a new personal record), and fourth in discus (49 feet, 9 inches) in another very productive day. Rookie ninth-grader JJ Prouty made a promising start, placing fourth in the 100m (17.15) and fifth in the 200m (36.75).

Leading off for the boys team, the 4x800m relay of junior Tim Amsden, sophomore Jaden Garganese, freshman Dylan Magoon, and sophomore Damien Stagner won uncontested with a time of 10:47.8.

Chris Jeffers led the boys’ team in points, winning a hard-fought 400m dash against Windsor star Ben Gilbert (photo below) with a personal record of 59.39. He also won the long jump (18 feet, 1.5 inches) and the high jump (5 feet, 2 inches), while also placing third in the 100m (12.9).

Right behind Jeffers came Damien Stagner who, besides anchoring the 4×800 relay, also won the 1,500m (5:17.73) and took second to Windsor star Owen Abrahamson in the 800m (2:20.44, and 2:24.94, respectively).

Springfield senior Donavin Sprano captured first in the javelin with a 5-foot personal record of 117 feet, 10.5 inches, placed third in the discus with a six-foot personal record of 88 feet, 3.5 inches, and managed to get fifth in shot put (30 feet, 2 inches). Junior Captain Aidan Donahue placed second in the shot put (36 feet, 9 inches) and fifth in discus (62 feet, 6 inches). Marshall Simpson placed second in the 200m with a personal record of 29.82 and fourth in the 400m (1:08.4). Tim Amsden, besides his 4×800 leg, placed second in the high jump (4 feet, 10 inches), third in the 400m (1:05.8), and third in the long jump (14 feet, 1 inches). Austin Laplante placed second in the 3,000m (12:11.09). Jaden Garganese placed second in the 1,500m (5.26.35) and fourth in the 800m (2:46.37). Dylan Magoon took third in the 800m with a personal record of 2:26.34 and fourth in javelin (60 feet, 6 inches). Cole Wright placed 4th in discus (67’5.5”) and finished 6th in shot put (27’11”).

“The meet pushed our athletes in new ways,” said co-coach Stephen Lawrence. “This being our first dual meet meant that things were moving fast, and athletes had to constantly adjust and refocus. That being said, it helped! Athletes kept coming up to me, sharing their personal records, along with their pride in themselves and in their teammates!”

“Many of our newer athletes found their niche in the last two meets, and now we see measurable improvement from them as well as our veterans,” said Head Coach Jim Fog. “Windsor proved a strong opponent. I’m excited to see how the season plays out!”

The Cosmos will host their next meet Saturday, May 15, at the Springfield High School Gurney Field for a 10 a.m. start. Spectators should stay outside the fences competition area due to guidelines implemented due to the ongoing novel coronavirus pandemic.