GORHAM — The Scarborough boys’ indoor track team has enjoyed eight consecutive undefeated seasons and seven straight SMAA championships.
The Red Storm girls, meanwhile, went through a brief down period the past few seasons – until this winter.
Both Scarborough teams turned in dominant performances Saturday, running away with the team titles at the University of Southern Maine’s Costello Sports Complex.
The Red Storm boys compiled 242 points, 85 more than runner-up Deering. Thornton Academy was a distant third with 84.
Scarborough claimed the girls’ title by 60 points, beating Cheverus 159-99. Thornton was next with 91.
“I knew coming into today that we had a good chance (at winning),” said Scarborough girls’ coach Ron Kelly. “I felt pretty good at the beginning of the year. We probably have the best freshman class we’ve ever had.
“The kids have worked hard all year and now they are getting ready and preparing for (the states) in two weeks.”
Emily Labbe took the junior 55-meter hurdles with a time of 8.86. Her teammate, Madison Marinko, finished second. Labbe also grabbed a second place in the 55 dash.
Gaby Panagakos also had a big day, registering second-place finishes in the senior 55 and 400, and helping Scarborough place second in the 3,200 relay. She set personal bests in her two individual races.
Other contributors for the Red Storm included Bethany Sholl, who won the 2-mile, and Ellen Shaw, who took first in the senior 55 hurdles. Scarborough athletes placed 2-3-4 in the open pole vault: Anna Garden (9-6), Edie Christian (9-6) and Kirsten Dennen (9-0).
The Scarborough boys also have some top freshmen, especially Jarrett Flaker, who was the talk of the meet with a hat trick of first-place finishes.
Flaker grabbed top honors in the junior 55 dash, 55 hurdles and 400. His time of 6.61 in the dash broke his own league record, and his 7.86 in the hurdles broke the 2016 record of 7.93 set by Dominic Creenan of Westbrook. His 52.81 in the 400 missed a third record by .13.
“It feels great,” said Flaker, who came from behind in the dash, winning on his lean at the tape. “All of my training has paid off.”
Scarborough boys’ coach Derek Veilleux wasn’t surprised by Flaker’s performance after seeing the work he puts in every day.
“He’s really a driven kid. He doesn’t take anything for granted and has worked hard all year long. He refuses to lose. You can’t teach that.”
Sam Rusak also showed his versatility by winning three events for Scarborough. The senior’s day was capped by a meet-record clearance of 15-10 in the pole vault, breaking his own record of 15-9. Earlier, he won in the senior high jump (6-3) and 200 (23.17).
“Three first places was definitely the goal today,” Rusak said. “I come to every meet thinking it is a level playing field, so I make sure I do what I came here to do. It was great to help the team. I knew I had to perform to my expectations for the team to be successful as a whole.”
Scarborough, the defending Class A state champion, showed its depth on the boys’ side with many multiple placings. Anthony Clavette (5-8) and Tommy Stratis finished 1-2 in the high jump, while Stratis placed second behind Flaker in the junior 400.
First-place finishes by Ben Hatch in the junior long jump (19-71/2), Ben Batoosingh in the senior 400 (53.03) and Sebastian Osborne in the senior shot put (49-4) also helped fuel Scarborough.
“This was a great experience for many of our kids. It’s a totally different animal (than the regular season),” Veilleux added. “It really gets the kids ready for the states … It’s like a dress rehearsal.”
Thornton’s Mia Taranko was a triple winner in the girls’ meet, taking first place in the senior long jump (17-61/4), triple jump (34-21/2) and hurdles.
Westbrook’s Nyagoa Bayak won the junior long jump at 16-61/2 and triple jump at 37-11/4, breaking her own SMAA record. She capped her day by winning the junior high jump.
Westbrook pole vaulter Kiersten Hilton also broke her own conference record with a clearance of 10-61/4.
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