THE NRHS pole vault team scored 21 points for the Hornets, helping NRHS take 4th overall at the Div. 5 state meet. Pictured at NRHS on Friday with the rest of the Division’s vaulters are Vincent Pastore (1st place, 11’6”), Nico Johnson (2nd, 11’0”) and Rocco Tammaro (6th, 9’6”). (NRHS Track Photo)
NORWELL — The North Reading High boys’ spring track team ended it’s team competition with a solid finish of 4th overall in the MIAA Division 5 State Championship, scoring 50 points as a team over the three-day event. Pentucket was the State Champion with 66 points and Norwell was runner up with 64.
Senior Vincent Pastore was the “King of the Pole Vault,” as he placed first with his personal best vault of 11’6″ to take the top spot. Sophomore Nicolas Johnson placed second with 11′ 0″ and Senior Rocco Tammaro placed 6th with 9′ 6″. The vaulters gave the Hornets 21 points for the competition.
“We knew Pole Vault would be a big event for us and our vaulters had a great day,” said Hornets Head Coach Ryan Spinney. “I am so thrilled for Vincent as he can say he is an individual state champion. That is quite an accomplishment and it is well deserved.”
Senior co-captain Nathan Miller was once again a pivotal force as he scored 20 points for the Hornets over the span of the meet, as he was 2nd in the Division in the 200 Meter Dash (22.63) and 3rd in both the 100 Meter Dash (11.04) and Long Jump (21′ 9.75″) to help the Hornet cause. His long jump mark is the 2nd best in NRHS history.
“Nathan stepped up once again and competed hard for our team,” said Spinney. “He is a top medalist in three events at the state level. That is not an easy accomplishment. It just further proves how dedicated, talented and competitive he is.”
Junior Noah Schifano placed 3rd overall in the Triple Jump with his new best of 42′ 9.25″ which ties him for 2nd all time in NRHS history.
“Noah is still so new at the event and he is operating like a pro,” said Spinney. “He is going to be absolutely unstoppable next spring with a full season of preparation in the event.”
Freshman Leo Romanski placed 8th overall in the Discus as he achieved his new personal best of 128′ 3″.
“Leo keeps on impressing everyone with his improvements,” said Spinney. “He moved up from 19th to 8th in the event and as a 9th grader, that is really incredible. He has tremendous potential in this event as he continues his high school career.”
The 4 x 800 Meter Relay team of Seniors Christian DaCosta, Ben Meier, Liam Rodger and Michael Hemme placed 7th overall in the event in a time of 8:36.56, a 31 second improvement over their previous best and it is one of the fastest in school history for the relay.
“I am so happy for these four guys,” said Spinney. “They have worked so hard and for them to finish with a race like this, it is really fitting. I could not be prouder.”
The Hornets had a number of solid performances in addition to the point scorers as well. Senior Brodie Mann placed 9th in the 100 Meter Dash in a time of 11.26 and Senior co-captain Caleb Sands finished 47th in a time of 12.03. Mann and Freshman Seth Evans finished 12th (23.33) and 34th (24.62) respectively in the 200 Meter Dash. Sophomore Kaio Pancini and Johnson placed 19th (17.17) and 29th (18.39) respectively in the 110 Meter Hurdles. Pancini also finished 14th overall in the Pole Vault with his vault of 8′ 6″. Hemme placed 10th in the 800 Meter Run with a time of 2:01.03, which places him 6th all time in the event. Hemme also ran the 1 Mile as he placed 10th overall in the event with a time of 4:31.96. Meier also ran the 800 Meter as he finished with his personal best time of 2:08.96 to finish in 28th place. Tammaro and Johnson placed 15th (62.55) and 29th (69.69) in the 400 Meter Hurdles as well. Senior Kyle McCormack finished his high school career with a 12th place finish in the Discus as he threw 119′ 2″.
Senior co-captain Jacob Duval finished his high jump high school career with a jump of 5′ 8″, which placed him tied for 13th in the event. Senior Owen Delano and Freshman Otto Indelicato finished 13th (41′ 11.5, a personal best) and 19th (38′ 11.5″) respectively in the Shot Put. Schifano finished 13th in the Long Jump with a jump of 19′ 6″ in the event. The 4 x 100 Meter Relay of Evans, Sophomore Kieran Miller, Sands and Mann finished 10th overall in the event with a time of 44.75. Rounding out the Hornet competitors was the 4 x 400 Meter Relay team of Sophomore Torin Nickerson, Tammaro, Meier and Rodger as they finished 14th in a time of 3:45.49.
The Hornets had a tremendous season and fought to defend their state championship from 2022 extremely well. Nathan Miller, Brodie Mann, Michael Hemme and Vincent Pastore all qualified for the MIAA Meet of Champions which will take place on June 1 and June 3 at Fitchburg State.
