DOVER-FOXCROFT – Dean Hall is thankful that there is still time left in the track season. With the New England track championships still to come, Hall still has opportunity to watch Tyler Clark race for Lisbon High School.

The Greyhound senior won both the 1600 and 3200 in the Class C State Championship Saturday at Foxcroft Academy. He also helped the 4×800 relay team win while the 4×400 team took third.

“I told him two weeks ago that ‘I already miss you'” said Hall, the Lisbon track coach. “You know you only get a few of those along the way.”

Clark finished his stellar career with 11 individual state championships and five team state titles between wrestling, track and cross country. He has seven track state titles in the last four years. “It’s definitely a great accomplishment” said Clark. “I don’t think anyone else has done it. I’m not positive about that, but that is definitely something to be proud of.”

The Lisbon boys’ and girls’ track teams threatened with the lead for much of the day but couldn’t sustain it. The NYA boys pulled away with 97 points while the previously unbeaten Greyhounds were second with 73.5.

“NYA kind of pulled away after the 800” said Clarke. “We wanted to hang onto NYA as long as we could, but that 100 meters when they went first and second really stacked up some points.”

In the girls’ meet, Hall-Dale ended John Bapst’s streak of five straight titles. The Bulldogs finished with 86 points while Orono was second with 77.5 followed by John Bapst with 66. Lisbon took fourth with 46.5.

Late in the meet, Lisbon trailed NYA by 46 to 45.5 while the girls trailed Hall-Dale 46 to 42.5. The Bulldogs lost to Lisbon in the MVC meet, but were missing a number of top performers because of a school trip to Boston. They were at full strength on Saturday. Laura Peterson won three events and took fifth in another while Katie Frett and Magen Ellis also added wins. “I was one of those that missed the MVC meet because I made the trip” said Peterson. “That just made us want to do even better because we wanted to show everyone that we do have a really strong team this year. We’ve never won a state championship and never won a conference championship. It’s really exciting. It’s exciting to win an individual title, but it’s so much better to have a team title.”

Clark teamed up with Mike Bolduc, Cam Bubar and Aaron Cloutier to claim the 4×800 relay. Clark then won the 1600. Traip’s Dakota Rees had the lead up to the final lap before Clark breathed by him to win in 430.14.

“I wasn’t really scared” said Clark. “It makes the race better if someone else takes it over. I just let him go. Then I felt like I had to take it back with 300 meters to go, the final lap.”

Clark had little competition in the 3200, which he won in 9:49.98. “I was trying to go for a 4:50 in the first half, and I went under that at 4:47”, said Clark. “Then I just tried to hang on, and I kept slowing down and tried to hold on the best I could.”

Hall and his assistant coaching staff of Dan Sylvester, Doug Sauter and Hank Fuller were lucky to have a talent like Stephanie McCusker a few years ago. So to have another like Clark has been a true joy.

“I never thought we’d get another competitor as instense and motivated as Stephanie McCusker”, said Hall. “He’s just the epitome of a great athlete.”

Lisbon also got a second from Tyler Campbell in the racewalk. Bubar took third in the 800 and fourth in the triple jump. Cloutier added a seventh in the 3200 while Dan Gil-Romero was fourth in the high jump followed by Kyle Huston in seventh. Gil-Romero also was second in the pole vault. George Clement added a fifth in the long jump.

The Greyhound girls’ team of Allison Tietjen, Kelly Bourgoin, Amanda Lamb and Jasmine Clark won the 4×800 relay. Sara Adams and Kelley Baickle took first and second in the racewalk while Kim Tarr took sixth. Clark was second in the 400 and Bourgoin took fourth in the 3200. Rebekah Sullivan was sixth in the high jump and fifth in the shot.

“We moved up from last year”, said Hall. “We lose a few people along the way, but we’ll be back next year. The girls program is going to swing up.”

Other top performances included the Livermore Falls 4×100 relay team winning for the third straight year. Rebecca Leclerc raced from behind on the final leg to lift teammates Helaina Lake, Missi O’Connor and Kendra Lyman to the win. Leclerc also was third in the 100 and 200.

Telstar’s Jen DeNormandie won the 400. She also added a sixth in the 100 and 200.

“I’m pretty excited”, said DeNormandie. “I was ranked third. I was kind of hoping to stick with what I was doing. My time going into it was considerably slower than it was last year. I got third place with a minute flat, and this year it’s slower and I won. So, you never know what to expect.”

Dirigo’s Katherine Gagne took second in the 1600 and third in the 800. Winthrop’s Kim Toothaker was third in the 100 hurdles while Livermore’s Heather Roux was third in the discus. Monmouth’s Stephanie Perkins took second in the 800, and the Mt. Abram relay team of Maria Parrett, Hannah James, Georgia Dixon and Emma James took second in the 4×800.

In the boys meet, Telstar’s Charles Haines won the discus and took sixth in the shot and seventh in the javelin. Winthrop’s Kris Cooper won the long jump and took sixth in the triple jump and fifth in the 110 hurdles.

“I was expecting to do well in the long jump, and I did”, said Cooper. “I was expecting to do a little better in the triple jump. I was kind of disappointed. I think I lost the strength in my legs by the time that came around.”

Winthrop’s Dan Soltan was third in the 1600 and fourth in the 3200 while Rambler Larry Foster added second in the high jump. Telstar’s Frankie DelDuca was second in the 200 and third in the triple jump.

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