Blue Devils Capture County
Track Titles
Huntington High School senior Shaheem Lewis captured his second consecutive county shot put title and the 4x400m relay team upset the field and finished first as the Blue Devil boys' winter track and field team turned in another stellar effort at the Suffolk small school championships at Suffolk-West in Brentwood.
Lewis edged Kings Park star Luke Toscano for the league shot put crown two weeks ago and last weekend the duo went at it again, engaging in a grueling battle for the county's top spot. After a spirited preliminary round, Lewis was joined in the finals by teammates Matteo McNeil and Jimmie Nelson, much to the delight of Huntington head coach Ron Wilson.
Locked in a tight deadlock with Toscano, Lewis' second throw in the championship round astonished bystanders and fellow competitors alike. The Blue Devil great's effort was measured at an astonishing 52'4. "Wow," Wilson said. "We were very excited for him, but we didn't show too much emotion because Toscano still had two more throws."
But, Lewis' best throw ruled the day and he was crowned the small schools' county shot put champ for the second straight year as McNeil (45'8) and Nelson (42'8) placed fourth and seventh, respectively.
Lewis was ecstatic with his performance. "He was so a happy camper," Wilson said. "Everyone congratulated him on his fine performance. It was nice to see."
The biggest surprise of the evening came in the 4x400m relay. Seeded fourth, the Huntington team of Exzayvian Crowell, Josh Watkins, Thomas Boisclair and Y'Majesty Allen crossed the finish line first. A trial heat in the event unfolded in a remarkable way.
When Crowell didn't get off to a good start, Huntington found itself last among six teams as Watkins took the first handoff. On the final 200m of his lap, Watkins made the most impressive move his coach has ever seen. After moving into the second lane, Watkins passed two runners and then split another two runners on the back stretch, all while maintaining his stride.
"You had to be there to see it," Wilson said about the move by Watkins. "Unbelievable! He then caught the second leg of Port Jefferson who was in first at the exchange zone where he handed the baton off to our third leg, Thomas Boisclair."
Boisclair ran a great leg, too, settling in behind the Port Jefferson runner. On his final lap, the Blue Devil senior made a move on the back stretch and passed the race leader. He handed the baton to Allen, Huntington's anchor leg, "who was probably pooped after running the prelims of the 300m finals," Wilson said.
Allen took the baton and maintained the lead for the first lap as the rest of the field followed in hot pursuit. With about 70m remaining in the race, Allen "found another gear and drove hard to the finish line leaving the other teams about 10 meters behind him," Wilson said. "It was a beautiful finish to a great day of performances."
In other action:
• Sondy Jean-Baptiste placed third in the high jump with a leap of 6-feet.
• Allen was edged out for the 300m dash crown when Amityville senior Vincent Jackson nipped the Huntington star at the wire. Allen ran 37.02 seconds, just off Jackson's winning time of 36.99.
• Watkins finished fifth in 600m dash in 1:28 and Boisclair was seventh in 1:29.57.
The Blue Devils placed third in the team standings with 40 points trailing only Amityville (75 points) and Bayport-Blue Point (64 points) in the 24 team field.