Boys track opens 3-1; Benjamin, Lavin win

Whitehall’s boys Track team completed a successful opening week splitting a dual meet against Stillwater and Schuylerville in Stillwater last Thursday.

The Railroaders fell to Stillwater but defeated Schuylerville.

Jake Evans, Jared DeRusha and Zach Diekel paved the way for Whitehall, each winning two events.

Evans won a very close 100 meter race, crossing the finish line a tenth of a second ahead of the nearest competitor. He also won the 110 meter hurdles and finished second in the 400 hurdles.

DeRusha won both the long and triple jumps for Whitehall while Diekel beat out teammates Sam Merriman and Evan McLaughlin in the shot put and discus respectively. Both Merriman and McLaughlin finished second.

David Rich was also a winner for Whitehall, clearing 11 feet in the pole vault.

On the girl’s side, Kelsie Benjamin turned in a dominant performance in the throwing events, winning both the shot put and discus.

Her throw of 101-03.05 in the discus was more than 34 feet further than teammate and runner-up Olivia Sweeney.

Rebecca Lavin and Marion Gendron finished first and second respectively in the triple jump.

The girl’s 1600 meter relay finished second.

Earlier in the week, the boys swept past Granville and Hoosic Valley in a dual meet on April 12 in Schaghticoke.

The boys had 21 top three finishes on the day and three athletes won two events.

Rich won the 100 meters and pole vault, Diekel swept the throwing events, and Evans outpaced the competition in the 400 hurdles and the long jump.

Codie Bascue also won an event for Whitehall, finishing ahead of teammate Josh Hoagland in the 200 meters. Hoagland and Bascue also teamed with Rich and Evans on the winning 400 relay team. 

DeRusha won the triple jump and finished second in the high jump alongside teammate Diekel.

Danny Low also had a strong day for the Railroaders finishing second in the 110 hurdles and third in the 400 hurdles.

Benjamin paced the girls, winning both the discus and shot put by a comfortable margin.

Lavin turned in a pair of strong performances finishing third in the 1,500 meters and second in the triple jump.

Gendron finished third in the triple jump and 400 meters and Sweeney finished third in the discus.

The Boys finished the week at 3-1 while the girls dropped to 0-4.

The team resumes play on Tuesday, April 26 with a home meet against Greenwich and Cambridge.