The Peabody boys track team tallied 56 points and finished tied for second Sunday at the MSTCA Division 2 Relays. The Tanners won the long jump (Evan Bedard, Kobe Avery, Aniel Espinal), triple jump (Bedard, Riley Michaud, Brian Stevens), discus (Alex Jackson, Areno Saint-Victor, Jackson O’Brien) and shot put (Jackson, Saint-Victor, O’Brien) relays.
According to throw coach Jay Smith, the shot put relay team established a new school record, breaking the previous mark set by Marcus Viera, Ariel Ayala and Anthony Christo in 2015 when the Tanners took first at the MSTCA Division 1 relays.
Jackson had a double win. He won the shot put (57-10.5), discus (165-0.75), and placed fourth in the javelin (145-07.75). Bedard won the long jump (21-02.25) and came in second in the triple jump (43-01.25).
“The four state championship teams were the key to our ability to make the podium second overall as a team,” said coach Fernando Braz. “The coaches and athletes in the long jump, triple jump, shot put, and discus had an outstanding week of practice that smoothly translates to state championship results. The shot and discus were the best in the state over all six divisions, which is a testament to the hard work the athletes and coaches put in.”
Declan Smith finished fifth in the high jump (5-08) and Michaud finished fourth in the triple jump (40-08.25). Saint-Victor finished sixth individually in the shot put (44-11) while O’Brien finished eighth (43-08.50). Kobe Avery finished eighth in the long jump (20-02.5).
The Tanners’ girls team finished seventh with 16 points. Alessandra Forgione won the javelin (118-11.5), finished seventh in the discus (94-11), and 10th in the shot put (31-04). Makayla Kokonezis placed in two events. She was third in the triple jump (34-05.5) and seventh in the long jump (15-07). Nicole Ofurie placed seventh in the shot put (32-05.5).
Host North Andover won both the boys and girls team titles.
