The boys track and field team won the Founders League Championship in commanding fashion on Saturday, May 9, scoring 170 points to top the Pelicans’ closest opponent by 66 points.  

The victory marks the team’s ninth league championship in a row. (The team has held the Founders crown since 2016, but the championship was not contested for two years during the COVID-19 pandemic.) 

Competitors faced challenging weather conditions at the meet, hosted by Avon Old Farms, with cool temperatures and a steady, soaking rainfall during all but the earliest events.  

The field events, contested before most of the running events, helped set the tone for Loomis Chaffee. Junior Jackson Strand won the javelin while junior Jeremiah Robinson captured the triple jump with a leap of more than 45 feet. Senior Abdoulaye Sow had one of his best performances of the season in the shot put, placing third with a throw of 48 feet, 5 inches, nearly two feet farther than his previous best. 

Sophomore Trae Ford and senior Ardon West each cleared personal bests in the high jump to finish second and third, and freshmen Zac Harrison and D.J. Smith both exceeded 20 feet in the long jump and scored points for the Pelicans. Junior Jude Manger and sophomore Michael Flynn continued their consistent seasons in the pole vault with second- and third-place finishes, and junior Gregor MacLean added a fourth-place finish in the javelin. 

On the track, senior Miles Gackstetter turned in one of the top performances of the meet, winning the 800 meters in 1:55.89. The time cut two seconds off his previous best and moved him closer to the school record. Senior Alex Fisher ran a strong tactical race in the 1500 meters, recognizing that the early leader went out fast and waiting for his opportunity in the second half of the race to put the competition in his wake. 

Senior George Volintiru placed second in the 100 meters, and junior Amani Odenigbo finished second in the 3000 meters. Other strong performances came from junior Daniel Onyemakonor in the 200 meters, junior Kaden Wehbe in the 400 meters, senior George Mirgorodskiy in the 800 meters, sophomore Miles Farkas in the 1500 meters, and sophomore Jackson Goings in the 3000. 

The Pelicans dominated the hurdle events. Junior Payton Flint won the 110-meter hurdles, and senior Chidi Moemeka pulled away from the field to win the 300-meter hurdles. Moemeka also finished second in the 110 hurdles, and sophomore Jaan Abernathy added a fourth-place finish in the 300 hurdles. 

Loomis closed out the meet with a win in the 4x400 relay, as junior T.K. Ideriah, Gackstetter, Mirgorodskiy, and Moemeka held off Hotchkiss in the final event of the day. 

Final team standings were: 

1. Loomis Chaffee – 170  

2. Hotchkiss – 104  

3. Kingswood Oxford – 92  

4. Avon Old Farms – 69  

5. Choate Rosemary Hall – 44  

6. Taft – 31  

7. Westminster – 10  

8. Trinity-Pawling – 5  

Complete results can be found at Athletic.net. 

Loomis will next compete at the Division I New England Prep School Track Association Championship on Saturday, May 16, at Choate Rosemary Hall.