Cunha Is Second in 300 at All-State Meet; Purcifull 7th in Weight Throw
Revere star trackman JV Cunha came within 0.82 of a state championship at Saturday’s MIAA Meet of Champions at the Reggie Lewis Track and Athletic Center in Boston. The meet featured all of the winners and top time-finishers from the divisional meets held the week before.
JV finished the 600 meter dash in a clocking of 1:21.95, just behind the time of 1:21.13 of Brookline’s Cameron Walter. Cunha’s time broke his own Revere High record in the event and is the 26th-fastest time in the country this season.
“JV was in third for much of the race, but when he saw the lead runner begin to falter, JV turned on the jets, closed strong, and almost caught the eventual winner. He just ran out of track,” said RHS head coach David Fleming.
“This meet is the conclusion to a brilliant indoor season for JV,” Fleming added. “In addition to his 600 meter school record, he also set the indoor record for the 400 meters (50.97) and anchored the 4 x 200 meter relay team to a new school record (1:34.02).”
Teammate Medy Bellemsieh won his heat in the 600, but was disqualified for cutting too closely in front of Central Catholic’s Corey Mangione.
“Medy ran a great race,” said Fleming. “As usual, he started from the back and waited until the bell lap to make a move. On the final curve, Medy passed Mangione and cut into lane 1 on the straightaway. The lead official said it was a judgment call. There wasn’t any contact, but the official made his decision.
“Something like that probably wouldn’t be called during the regular part of the season,” added Fleming. “Either way, Medy ran extremely well. I love his aggressiveness. He brings his toughness from the football field to the track. I can’t wait to see him run the 400 meters this spring.”
Kevin Purcifull brought home a seventh-place medal in the weight throw (in which athletes throw a round metal ball, 16 pounds for men, 8.8. pounds for women, that is attached to a grip by a steel wire no longer than four inches while remaining inside a seven-foot diameter circle) with a toss of 50’-3.75”, improving Kevin’s existing school indoor record by more than six feet.
“Kevin kicked off the competition (each entrant gets four throws) with a throw of 45 feet, which was already a new personal record,” said Fleming. “He had a really long throw that was foul, and then absolutely launched his third throw 50-feet plus.
“Kevin worked so hard this season,” Fleming continued. “It was exciting to see him throw well and make it to the podium. He can’t wait for the outdoor season to start.”
For the RHS girls, Ashley Chandler was the lone Lady Patriot who qualified for the Meet of Champions. Ashley took 14th place in the weight throw with a toss of 28’-11”.
RHS Girls Hoop Opens Tourney Play
Coach Ariana Rivera and the Revere High girls basketball team opened play in a preliminary round contest in the Division 1 State Tourney last night (Tuesday).
The Lady Patriots, who are seeded 37th in D-1 with a 14-6 record and who were the co-champs with Lynn English of the Greater Boston League, traveled to 28th seed Durfee, which compiled an 11-9 record.
The winner of last night’s contest moved on to the Round of 32, where they will meet #4 seed Wellesley at a time and date to be determined.
