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Francois Wins the 55, Takes 2nd in Long Jump for East Haven at Sectionals; Damian Earns Runner-Up in 55 Hurdles

Sophomore Kisha Francois took first place the 55-meter dash for the East Haven girls’ indoor track squad at the Southern Connecticut Conference West Sectional Championship last week. The Yellowjackets scored 25.50 points as a team and finished in eighth place at the sectional meet, which was held at Floyd Little Athletic Center in New Haven on Jan. 23. On the boys’ side, senior Evan Damian posted a second-place finish in the 55-meter hurdles for the Easties, who scored 16.5 points and came in eighth place on the day.

Francois claimed first place in preliminary heat of the 55 dash to advance to the final, where she grabbed the gold with another first-place performance. Francois clocked in with a time of 7.48 seconds in the prelims and then ran a time of 7.43 in the final to beat out Tiatianna Jones of Hamden (7.51) for first place.

Francois also placed second in the long jump with a leap of 17 feet-6.5 inches at the West Sectional meet. Freshman Morgan D’Auria claimed second in the pole vault by clearing 6 feet for East Haven Freshman Emily Mazzucco cleared 4 feet-6 inches in the high jump to finish in a tie for sixth place. She also finished 10th in the 300 with a time of 46.29 seconds.

In the 55, sophomore Samantha Franceschi finished 13th by running a time of 8.07. Freshman Julia Espinoza ran a time of 6:35.44 in the 1,600 to finish in 14th place. Junior Samantha Schlottman finished 11th in the shot put with a throw of 23-8.25, while freshman Princess Aggrey came in 15th place at 22-5.50.

In the boys’ meet, East Haven saw a great deal of success in the 55-meter hurdles. Damian earned runner-up honors in the event by finishing with a time of 8.38 seconds, just behind Robert Farley of North Haven (8.05) for first place. Junior Ian Loehmann took fourth place (8.72) in the 55 hurdles, and sophomore Radames Figueroa finished fifth (8.88) after both athletes joined Damian by advancing to the final heat. In the preliminary heat, Damian had ran a time of 8.38, Loehmann posted a mark of 8.63, and Figueroa finished in 9.0 seconds. Sophomore Dhruv Patel took 15th place in the prelims with a time of 10.52.

Loehmann also reached a height of 5 feet-2 inches to finish tied for fifth in the high jump at sectionals. Junior Nathan Santos placed sixth in the long jump with a leap of 18-9.50. Senior Steve Johnson took seventh in the long jump (18-9.25) and eighth in the 300 (40.09). Senior Zach Valles finished 36th (5:45.85) in the 1,600 with freshman Erick Caguana placing 43rd (6:27.83).

From the Sidelines

Wilbur Cross scored 98 points to finish in first place in the boys’ competition at the SCC West Sectional Championship. The rest of the team standings are as follows: 2. Xavier (74 points), 3. Notre Dame West Haven (73.5), 4. Branford (69), 5. Hamden (62), 6. North Haven (42), 7. Fairfield Prep (30), 8. East Haven (16.5).

In the girls’ meet, Hamden claimed first place by totaling 106 points at sectionals. Here are the rest of the standings: 2. Wilbur Cross (81), 3. Sacred Heart Academy (68), 4. North Haven (56), 5. Lauralton Hall (47), 6. (Career), 7. Mercy (26.5), 8. East Haven (25.5), 9. Branford (7).

The SCC Indoor Track Championship will be held at 4 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 1. The Class M State Championship is at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Feb. 9. The State Open Championship is taking place at noon on Saturday, Feb. 16. All three meets are at the Floyd Little Athletic Center in New Haven.