6 Photos
Sean Perez, Edmar Gonzalez-Nateras, Xavier Johnson and Liam Knight marked the return of the Bonackers to the Penn Relays on April 24. COURTESY SEAN KNIGHT
Sean Perez, Edmar Gonzalez-Nateras, Xavier Johnson and Liam Knight marked the return of the Bonackers to the Penn Relays on April 24. COURTESY SEAN KNIGHT
Liam Knight, left, with his father and track head coach Sean Knight at the Penn Relays. COURTESY SEAN KNIGHT
Brian and Kevin Ahern, Joe Sullivan, and Andrew Forrester at the 2003 Penn Relays. COURTESY SEAN KNIGHT
Xavier Johnson competing in the 4x400-meter relay at the Penn Relays on April 24. COURTESY SEAN KNIGHT
Liam Knight competing in the 4x400-meter relay at the Penn Relays on April 24. MELISSA KNIGHT
It was over 20 years in the making.
When Bridgehampton sophomore Xavier Johnson, East Hampton junior Sean Perez, Pierson senior Edmar Gonzalez-Nateras and East Hampton junior Liam Knight competed in the 4x400-meter relay at the Penn Relays on Thursday, April 24, it marked a bit of history for the Bonackers track and field program. It was the first time the combined boys team had competed at the prestigious event since 2003, when current head coach Sean Knight had also taken Brian and Kevin Ahern, Joe Sullivan, and Andrew Forrester.
It was a solid showing for the current Bonac quartet, which finished in a season’s best 3:36.36, which Knight said beat out over 300 fellow high school teams. Knight himself ran the Penn Relays back in 1997 when Kevin Barry and Bill Herzog were coaches.
“My son Liam was really excited to go to this incredible meet, and Kevin Barry, the guru of all that is track and field, helped get this going,” he said. “It showed how we are building as a program and getting into the spotlight.
“Although we are losing our senior Edmar Gonzalez-Nateras, we have some young blood, like Jasper Samuelson and Nelvin Suchite, who will be ready to step into the roll for next year,” Knight added of the 4x4. “We want to thank [East Hampton Athletic Director] Kathy Masterson for supporting us in this unforgettable experience. We stayed to watch Olympic gold medalist Quincy Wilson run for his high school team.”
It was a rather busy week for the Bonackers, who the day prior to the Penn Relays on April 22, defeated host Comsewogue, 82-33, for their first League V dual meet victory of the season. Jai Feaster won the long jump with a leap of 18 feet 6 ½ inches, Liam Knight won the 400-meter dash in 53.2 seconds, Xavier Johnson won the 200-meter dash in 24.1 seconds and finished the 100-meter dash in a personal best 11.8 seconds. Franco Palombino won the shot put with a throw of 38 feet 8 inches and second in the discus with a 100-foot-7-inch throw. Charles Stern, Jackson Ronick, Jai Feaster and Nelvin Suchite won the 4x100-meter relay in a season’s best 47.7 seconds. Eduardo Calle won the triple jump, Miles Menu won both the high jump and 110-meter high hurdles, Nelvin Suchite won the 100-meter dash and placed second in the long jump, though their distances and times were not provided.
Echavarria Sets New Hurdles Record
The East Hampton/Pierson/Bridgehampton girls track team defeated Comsewogue, 86-58, at home on April 22. C.J. Echavarria was one of many highlights of the meet, winning the 100-meter high hurdles in 16.5 seconds, surpassing Amanda Calabrese’s previous school record of 16.88 seconds set on May 21, 2014.
Lucia Mogavero won the triple jump with a leap of 31 feet 2 ¼ inches, Bennett Greene won the 1,500-meter race walk in 8:57.1 and Sara O’Brien won the 400-meter intermediate hurdles in 70.7 seconds. Leah McCarron won both the shot put (personal best 32 feet 7 inches) and discus (season’s best 96 feet 10 ½ inches). Vicky Chen, Mogavero, Sam Ruano, and Echavarria won the 4x100-meter relay in 53.2 seconds and Greylynn Guyer, Laura Martinez, Josie Mott and O’Brien won the 4x400-meter relay in 4:30.8.
“This was a great day for a meet,” girls head coach Yani Cuesta said. “The warmer temperatures gave the girls the better conditions for a lot of personal records and some great performances.”
The girls also competed at the Westhampton Beach Invitational on Saturday despite rainy conditions. O’Brien placed fourth in the open 400-meter intermediate hurdles in a season’s best 69.76 seconds. Maggie Greenwald finished sixth in the same race in a personal best 73.09 seconds. Alex Kolhoff placed second in the open high jump with a season’s best leap of 4 feet 10 inches. Ali Muñoz placed second in the open pole vault after reaching a season’s best 8 feet. And McCarron placed third in the open long jump with a leap of 16 feet 2 ½ inches, a personal best.
