The final weeks of the season for the Bonny Eagle girls’ outdoor track and field team are about micromanagement.

The focus on the little things, Scots Coach Stephanie Beattie explained, could have a significant impact on the final two meets of the season: today’s SMAA championships and next week’s state Class A championships.

“We’re doing a lot of technical work right now,” Beattie said. “We’ve done hard conditioning throughout the season but we’ve tapered them down now and we’re working on fine-tuning events.”

The fine-tuning encompasses everything from tweaking handoffs in relays to counting steps before leaping over hurdles, elements that could affect the final outcome of not just the event, but possibly the meet.

“People win races by hundredths of seconds and win jumps and throws by inches and half-inches, so all those technical things will be really important,” Beattie said.

Bonny Eagle is expected to be among the favorites in the girls’ competition at the SMAA meet at 10 a.m. today at Scarborough’s Mitchell Sports Complex.

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The SMAA meet is one of three conference championship meets today involving area schools: Falmouth will host the Western Maine Conference championships at 9 a.m., and the KVAC championships begin at 9 a.m. at McMann Field in Bath.

The Scots expect to contend with host Scarborough, Cheverus and Thornton Academy for the league title. Significant meets involving SMAA teams often seem to be decided by the outcome of the final event.

Scarborough edged out Bonny Eagle for the title in the state Class A indoor championships by winning the 800-meter relay, with the Scots finishing sixth in the event.

“It’s going to be really close,” Beattie said. “It might come down to the last event of the meet.

“There are usually two or three teams with great athletes. Throughout the day, everyone scores in the events they’re strongest at, but it always seems to come down to the relays.”

Falmouth will host its first Western Maine Conference championship meet at its new athletic facility a year after not having a home track for practices or meets.

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The Yachtsmen have hosted one meet this spring, a four-team meet on May 6.

“It’s exciting (to host) because it’s a new facility and it’s exciting to run a good meet,” Falmouth Coach Danny Paul said. “The amount of time we’ve put into this pushes you in a lot of directions. It comes down to being organized and having a lot of help.”

Falmouth has won the last four boys’ conference championships and the last two boys’ Class B state titles. The Yachtsmen are again among the favorites in the conference meet, joining Greely and York.

The WMC championship will award both large-school and small-school boys’ and girls’ team championships.

“Given what we went through last year, it’s completely the other end of the spectrum,” Paul said. “This year, it’s incredibly different.

“I was very, very satisfied and pleased with the kids and what they accomplished, the fact that they put themselves in a position to be successful without having everything right here.”

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Staff Writer Rachel Lenzi can be reached at 791-6415 or at:

rlenzi@pressherald.com

Twitter: @rlenzi

 


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