SHSE Boys Track Team Takes 3rd Place At Annual Eddy Meet Set School Relay Record

East Boys Track Takes Third Place at 75^th Annual Eddy Meet

A Trio of Individual Champions and New 4x800m School Relay Record

Story and Photos by James B. Teese

(click on photos to enlarge)

 Most of the Smithtown East boys and girls medalists after the prestigious Eddy Meet at Schenectady High School. Pictured (l-r) Silver 4x800 Relay - Eric Herrmann, Patrick Teese, Matthew Whalen, Marius Sidlauskas; High Jump Champion - Daniel Claxton; High Jump - Benjamin Lebit; High Jump - Jessica Martin; Pole Vault - Kylie Strzelczyk; 3,000 Meter Run - Jaclyn Gallery. (Not pictured: Discus Champion - Liam Hendricks; Shot Put Champion - Dominic Oramas; 100 Meter Dash & 200 Meter Dash - Shane Harris.)The Smithtown High School East Boys and Girls track and field team went upstate recently with high expectations for competing in the 75^th Annual Eddy Meet held at Schenectady High School.

With trophies to defend, and school records to challenge, the athletes were primed for solid performances – and the coaches were not disappointed.

Three boys took home individual championship trophies,For the third straight year, the East 4x800 Team medaled at the Eddy Meet - this year smashing their own school record in a blistering 7:56.94. Pictured are senior Matt Whalen, sophomore Marius Sidlauskas, and seniors Patrick Teese and Eric Herrmann. the 4x800 Meter Relay Squad smashed their own school record and the teams combined to produce twelve medalists!

The Boys 4x800 Meter Relay Squad had set a school record last year in winning the event.  This year they lowered their own record by over eight seconds, ran what was then the fifth-best time in the State for the 2015 season – and could gain only the Silver medal when the Liverpool HS squad ran the third-best time of the season!

In three years at the games, the squad – with three members of the quartet running each time lowered the time from 8:23 in 2013, to a then-school 8:05.16 last year to a blistering 7:56.94.  This year, three seniors — Matt Whalen, Patrick Teese, and Eric Herrmann — were joined by sophomore Marius Sidlauskas for the record-setting relay.  The same quartet also sent the indoor record during this past winter season.

Trio of Champs

Champion Throwers: Dominic Oramas won the Shot Put event while teammate Liam Hendricks won the Discus Event. Both are juniors.Three members of the team won championships in field events.

Sophomore High Jump sensation Dan Claxton won the event with a leap of 6’-8.”  He holds the school indoor and outdoor records and finished second in the State in the winter.

A pair of juniors also triumphed:  Dominic Oramas won the Shot Put event (53’-6.25”) while teammate Liam Hendricks won the Discus Event (160’-5”).

Senior Benjamin Lebit also medaled in the High Jump, finishing tied for fourth place.

Senior sprinter Shane Harris (r) won a pair of medals with a third place finish in the 100 Meter dash and sixth place in the 200 Meter Dash. Sprinter Shane Harris (also a senior) won a pair of medals with a third place finish in the 100 Meter Dash and sixth place in the 200 Meter Dash.

Girls Medal Trio

For the East girls, junior Jessica Martin took fifth place in the High Jump by clearing the bar at 5-02.00.

Sophomore Kylie Strzelczyk earned sixth place in the Pole Vault with a height of 10-00.00, a full foot better than her 2014 mark.  She is the school record holder with a vault of 10’-4” earlier this season.

 Another school record holder, sophomore Jaclyn Gallery ran to a sixth place finish in the 3,000 Meter Run in 10:20.42 for the third spot on the podium at Eddy.

The boys and girls will be competing at the State Qualifiers at Port Jefferson High School on Friday Jun5 5 and Saturday, June 6, 2015.