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Lincoln out-throws Section VII field

Sean Lincoln, a senior in Saranac Lake, makes the second of nearly a dozen throws in the shot put on his way to a Section VII title Thursday in Peru. (Enterprise photo — Justin A. Levine)

PERU — Sean Lincoln stood at the throwing ring for more than two hours Thursday afternoon, watching as shot putter after shot putter failed to match the Saranac Lake senior’s prowess. And after baking in the sun for the better part of the afternoon, Lincoln quietly picked up his bag of shot puts and walked away with the Section VII title.

In an event where every inch matters, Lincoln bested Saranac Central’s Jacob LeDuc for the title by more than two feet with a winning throw of 47 feet, 6.5 inches.

“It was alright, but I could have done better,” Lincoln said. “I just have to keep doing technique and practice. I was pretty good [during the season].”

Lincoln said he was a little up and down over the season, but still expected to earn the win.

“One day I could be throwing close to 50 and some days I’m down at 45 [feet],” he said. “It feels pretty good, but I kind of expected it. Hard work pays off I guess.

Lake Placid sophomore Mike Skutt runs in the 4x800 relay Thursday at the Section VII championships in Peru. (Enterprise photo — Justin A. Levine)

“Seeing the competition throughout the year, I knew I was better than most people so that’s why I kept my attitude good.”

But the shot put was just one of many wins for both the Saranac Lake and Lake Placid track and field teams as they competed in the sectional championships at Peru Central High School.

Lincoln’s teammate Jonathan Hewitt had an equally decisive victory in the discus, winning by a dozen feet with a 136-8, while the Red Storm’s Mecalyn Sousa-Thompson placed second in the girls shot put with a throw of 29-7.

The Lake Placid Blue Bombers had strong showings in a number of running events. Carter Grady took third in the 100-meter dash with a time of 11.74 seconds and also placed fourth in the 200 (23.93). Two Saranac Lake runners went 4-5 in the 400, with Patrick Wamsganz (53.16) finishing just ahead of teammate Brooks Fletcher (53.36).

The Red Storm’s Dzihad Cecunjanin (58.19) earned a third-place finish in the 400 hurdles, while teammate Tyler Martin placed first in the 800 with a time of 2 minutes, 4.06 seconds. Lake Placid’s Scott Schulz finished third in that race with a 2:04.87. In the 1,600, Saranac Lake’s Anderson Gray (4:37.65) placed third and was followed across the line by Martin (4:46.03) in fourth.

Saranac Lake sophomore Sylvie Linck runs in the 4x800 relay Thursday at Peru Central High School. (Enterprise photo — Justin A. Levine)

In the 3,200, the Red Storm continued their strong performances with James Catania (10:13.18) in second and Lauchlan Cheney-Seymour (10:29.55) in fourth. In the relay races, Saranac Lake’s Wamsganz, Fletcher, Cecunjanin and Martin combined to set a school record, but came in second to Saranac Central with a time of 3:31.8. Lake Placid’s team of Schulz, Grady, Kai Frantz and Patrick Manning (3:49.42) placed fifth.

Saranac Lake’s 4×800 team of Cheney-Seymour, Gray, Martin and Micah McCulley set a blistering pace with their first-place finish in 8:18.35. The relay was a battle between the Red Storm and Seton Catholic, with McCulley holding on to an early lead in the first two laps. Gray lost the lead but held tight to Seton, but Cheney-Seymour regained the lead and watched as Martin held on for the win.

The Red Storm boys also fared well in the jumping events, with Cecunjanin (5-2) taking fourth in the high jump, while Owen Yando (18-11.5) took third in the long jump. Wamsganz also placed third in the triple jump with a leap of 38-11.25.

On the girls’ side, Saranac Lake’s Edina Cecunjanin (13:08) placed second in the 100-meter dash while teammate Grace Clark also earned a second place spot in the 100-meter hurdles with a time of 17.01. Cecunjanin (26.45) also placed second in the 200-meter dash but earned a win in the 400 with a time of 1:00.08, which was a full two seconds ahead of second place. Lake Placid’s Annie Rose-McCandlish finished third in the 400 with a time of 1:02.70.

Red Storm senior Madison Grimone placed third in the 400 hurdles with a time of 1:12.06, while Lake Placid’s elder Rose McCandlish, Sara, took fourth in the 800. Annie Rose-McCandlish placed fifth in the 1,500 with a time of 5:14.55.

Saranac Lake’s Jacob Alberga competes in the shot put Thursday at Peru Central High School during the Section VII track and field championships. Alberga finished sixth in the event. (Enterprise photo — Justin A. Levine)

In the 4×400 relay, Saranac Lake and Lake Placid went two-three, with the Red Storm’s Grimone, Edina Cecunjanin, Gwen Mader and Faith Rothaupt finishing behind Saranac Central with a time of 4:28.12. The Lake Placid squad of the Rose-McCandlish sisters, along with Alexa Harper and Dylan Bashaw came across the line little more than a second later, finishing the race in 4:29.14.

Mader was also part of the second place 4×800 team along with Sylvie Linck, Sierra O’Mahony and Katie Samperi. The four girls finished behind Saranac Central with a time of 10:26.78.

Despite the strong showings, Saranac Central won both the boys and girls overall titles. The Saranac Lake boys team placed second in the team scoring, earning 134 points to the Chiefs’ 214.

The Lake Placid boys squad finished eighth overall with a team score of 24.5 points. The Saranac Central girl’s team won with 155 points, while the Red Storm finished fourth in team scoring with 74 points. The Blue Bombers ended the season in ninth place with a score of 22.

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