BOSTON — It’s hard to find the right words to best sum up the performance of Eli Mendese at the Feb. 4 Cape Ann League Indoor Track Championship Meet at The Track at New Balance.
Incredible. Amazing. Unparalleled. You name the superlatives, and those are the best words to describe the kind of day Mendese had.
He won one event, finished second in another, and fifth in a third, setting personal records in all three and smashing two school records, leading the boys team to an eighth-place finish with 39 points.
He won the high jump with a school-record leap of 6-04, besting his prior mark of 6-02 he set on Jan. 28. He placed second in the long jump to establish another school record, 21-00.5, besting his 2024 mark of 20-06.
Finally, he placed fifth in the shot put with a toss of 41-07.5, knocking nearly a foot-and-a-half off his previous best. All told, Mendese accounted for 22 of the Pioneers’ team points. As if that wasn’t enough, he was also named the CAL Indoor Player of the Year.
“I would say that Eli had the best meet of his life,” said coach Christine Smith. “I am really proud of him. He stepped up and rose above the competition.”
Michael Murphy wasn’t too shabby either with two top-10 finishes. He finished second in the high jump (5-10), just ahead of Dillon Reilly (5-06), who finished sixth. Murphy also finished eighth in the long jump with a PR 19-06.5.
The 4×200 relay team of Jesse Dorman, Charlie Morgan, Dillon Reilly, and Brendan Reilly finished fourth in 1:36.29, barely missing breaking their own school mark by two-hundredths of a second. Brendan Reilly also finished 12th in the 300 (38.34).
Other top-10 finishes included the 4×400 relay team of Jacob Book, Murphy, Joel Attubato, and Nick Groussis, who finished eighth (4:02.59) and the 4×800 relay team of Ben Clancy, Brian DiGangi, Shea McCarthy, and Ritvik Mahajan, who finished 10th (10-00.4).
McCarthy, battling sickness, also finished 12th in the 2-mile (11:24.68) and Walter Radulski rounded out the Pioneers (3-1, 2nd in the Baker Division) with a 15th-place effort in the shot put (35-06.5).
The Pioneers (3-1) finished second in the Baker Division behind Amesbury.
“I am really so proud of the entire crew,” Smith said.
The girls team finished back in the pack with eight points.
Abby Lopez was the top Pioneer, finishing fourth in the 2-mile with a personal best 12:43.7.
“This was the first time all season that she got to run this event on fresh legs,” said coach Bill Wallace. “She has definitely had a breakout season and I am looking forward to how she does at the state meet.”
The 4×400 relay team of Lily Rocco, Emma Greenleaf, Sophia Morgese, and Sofia Giardina placed sixth with a season-best time of 4:38.90.
Other top-10 individual efforts were turned in by the following Pioneers: Clara Caulfield (4-08), Christine Choi (4-06), Lily White (4-06), and Allison Madocks (4-04), who finished sixth, eighth, ninth, and 10th, respectively, in the high jump; Caitlin Buoniconti, ninth in the 1,000 (3:40.08); and Maddocks, 10th in the long jump (PR 14-02).
“Clara has been a great team leader and captain all season, so I was happy to see her finish with such a great time,” Wallace said.
In her first CAL Championship Meet, Sofia Giardina set PRs in the 300 (45.81) and dash (8.07) and also anchored the 4×400 relay team.
“She has had a tremendous first season and I am looking forward to her competing at a high level over the next few years,” Wallace said.
Other notable performances were turned in by Kaila George, 12th in the long jump (13-07); Gabriella Bottaro, 11th in the mile (6:20.79); Sofia Giardina, 13th in the 300 (PR 45.81); Lauren Mattia, 14th in the 600 (1:51.14), and Emma Greenleaf, 15th in the long jump (12-10), and Greenleaf in the 55 hurdles (10:12).
“There will be a few athletes moving on to the state meet on Feb. 16,” Wallace said. “Abby Lopez is the only athlete right now who officially qualified for the meet, but I expect there will be a few more pulled up to the meet because their performances are close enough to the standard.”
