BRUNSWICK, Maine – University of Maine at Farmington senior Ben Vachon (Portland, Maine) led the Beavers to a fifth-place finish at the Maine State Championship, amassing 14 individual points, the most by any Beaver in program history at the meet. The competition featured athletes from the University of Southern Maine, Bates College, Colby College, Husson University, Thomas College, Farmington, and Bowdoin.
Top Beaver Performances:
A week after setting the program record in the mile, senior Justin Castaldo (Scarborough, Maine) finished less than a second off his record-setting time, posting a time of 4:22.67 in a competitive field. Castaldo placed sixth overall, earning three points for the Beavers.
Junior Nate Trussell (Berwick, Maine) scored six points with a third-place finish in the 60-meter hurdles. In the final heat, Trussell clocked in at 8.58 seconds. He had previously run a time of 8.53 seconds in the preliminary round, advancing to the finals as the third seed.
In the relays, the Beavers earned a pair of fifth-place finishes. In the 4x400 meter relay, the team of Seamus Reeve (Kittery, Maine), Vachon, Logan Burns (Islesboro, Maine), and Trussell posted a time of 3:41.51, scoring four points. In the 4x800 meter relay, Castaldo, Ethan Linscott (Lakeville, Maine), Connor Freeman (Bath, Maine), and Alex Gagnon (Goffstown, N.H.) finished with a time of 8:35.49, also earning four points.
Vachon and Owen Booker (Lisbon, Maine) each scored in the high jump, with both clearing the 1.80-meter height. Vachon cleared it on his first attempt, placing fourth, while Booker cleared it on his second attempt, earning sixth place. In the long jump, Vachon and Booker continued to rack up points for Farmington. Vachon finished second with a jump of 6.70 meters, while Booker took third with a jump of 6.64 meters. In the triple jump, Booker placed seventh with a jump of 13.02 meters, while Vachon followed closely behind in eighth place with a jump of 12.98 meters.
Junior James Riley (Shrewsbury, Mass.) placed tenth overall in the 5,000 meters with a time of 16:02.33, missing a top-eight scoring position by 6.27 seconds.
Linscott also ran a competitive race in the 1,000 meters, placing 12th with a time of 2:43.92, missing out on a scoring position by less than two seconds.
UP NEXT:
The Beavers return to action next weekend at the Lynn Ruddy Invitational at Bowdoin College.
