Records All Around!: LaRosa, Duchesne set pr's to help Newburyport sweep meet against Pentucket
Sep. 29—NEWBURYPORT — Last year, Hailey LaRosa ran one of the fastest female times ever in the now-36-year history of the Maudslay Park course.
But coming into her senior year this fall, she wanted desperately to beat it.
Well, what better way to do it than during Newburyport's home opener of the season at its beloved course, and against a top rival? Wednesday afternoon, the two-time Daily News All-Star put together a sensational race. LaRosa finished the 2.97-mile Maudslay Park track in a personal-record time of 18:24 to claim first, in the process leading the Clippers to a 23-36 win over defending CAL Kinney champion Pentucket.
How good was that time, you ask?
It broke her pr at Maudslay by 23 seconds (18:47 in 2021), and was the fourth fastest time ever run at the course. Her teammate, Abby Kelly, was right behind her in second place with a time of 18:26, which was good for fifth all time.
So overall, the undefeated Clippers (3-0) made themselves tough to beat.
"I think, especially for dual meets, my goal is to get a pr (personal record) on this course from last year," said LaRosa, while still catching her breath after the race. "Maybe move myself up that top-10 list a little bit, which I hope I did today. and moving on, I definitely want to win the CAL Meet, which I think today was a good representation of what that will be like."
Indeed, Wednesday was a fairly crucial meet.
As previously stated, the Panthers (1-1) are fresh off a CAL Kinney title and a CAL Open title from a year ago, and return plenty of talent. Mainly, junior Kaylie Dalgar — a fellow Daily News All-Star — has been drawing a lot of buzz for her great summer, and is off to a fine start to her fall season.
Wednesday afternoon, Dalgar certainly looked the part and finished third overall in 18:36, which itself moved her inside the top-10 ever at Maudslay. Teammates Audrey Conover (19:51) and Libby Murphy (20:02) — both returning Daily News All-Stars as well — were right behind in 4th and 6th, respectively, and Sophia Clemente placed 12th (22:25).
But the Clippers not only showcased their top-end talent, but their depth as well.
Bristol Banovic finished 5th overall (19:59), Annabel Murray took 7th (20:53) and both Violet Moore and Olivia Gustafson tied for 8th (21:51). Basically, there was a lot of talent on display, and both teams — and the individuals involved — will be major players at the upcoming CAL Open in October.
"This is definitely our most difficult meet of the year, so I think the result of today will show us what the rest of the year will be like," said LaRosa. "This year we have a really, really strong top-10. Pretty much 3-10 are all very close together, which is exactly what you want. Everyone's been working really hard this year, so I think we're in good shape."
Duchesne's pr sends boys to victory
So far, it's been business as usual for the Newburyport boys.
Wednesday afternoon, returning Daily News MVP Bradford Duchesne put in his best time ever to lead the Clippers to a commanding 16-47 win. The senior finished first overall in a personal-record time of 15:51, good enough for the 9th-fastest time ever by a Clipper at the 2.97-mile Maudslay Park course.
"It was a big pr for me today, so it was pretty good," said Duchesne. "I think our team is going to be very competitive this year, too. I think we definitely filled in the gaps, and we've been looking better and better each race."
In search for their fifth straight CAL Kinney title, the Clippers (3-0) are certainly off to a strong start.
Ethan Downs was right behind Duchesne in second overall (16:24), Matt Murray took third (16:59) and Drew Cassino finished fourth (17:06) to give the Clippers the 1-2-3-4 placing. Even after graduating a strong senior class from a year ago that helped the program also win a CAL Open title and a Division 2B Sectional title, the Clippers are right back at it.
"A lot of commitment and hard work," said Downs. "I've never seen a team work harder during the offseason like we did this year. So it's really great to see it all come together. This was the first race where we were really going to see how good we were, because we can directly compare these times to last year."
For Pentucket (0-2), Seamus Burke took fifth overall (17:26) and Braeden Roche finished 10th (18:39).
Newburyport 16, Pentucket 47 (Boys)
at Maudslay Park (2.97 miles)
Top area finishers: 1. Bradford Duchesne (N) 15:51; 2. Ethan Downs (N) 16:24; 3. Matt Murray (N) 16:59; 4. Drew Cassino (N) 17:06; 5. Seamus Burke (P) 17:26; 6. Aidan Hoidal-Bui (N) 17:29 ... ALSO: 10. Braeden Roche (P) 18:39; 12. Matt Beaulieau (P) 18:45
Records: Pentucket 0-2, Newburyport 3-0
Newburyport 23, Pentucket 36 (Girls)
at Maudslay Park (2.97 miles)
Top area finishers: 1. Hailey LaRosa (N) 18:24; 2. Abby Kelly (N) 18:26; 3. Kaylie Dalgar (P) 18:36; 4. Audrey Conover (P) 19:51; 5. Bristol Banovic (N) 19:59; 6. Libby Murphy (P) 20:02; 7. Annabel Murray (N) 20:53; 8. Violet Moore (N) 21:51; 8. Olivia Gustafson (N) 21:51; ... ALSO: 12. Sophia Clemente (P) 22:25
Records: Pentucket 1-1, Newburyport 3-0
