Seniors Erick Duffy of North Andover and Brooke-Lynn Williams of Norton took home titles Saturday at the New England High School Track and Field Championships in Norwell.
Duffy, who will attend Harvard in the fall, cleared 16 feet 4¾ inches in the pole vault to defend his New England crown, despite the breeze working against him.
In the All-State meet June 1, Duffy broke his own state record by vaulting 16-7.
“It would’ve been nice to vault going in the other direction because I would’ve had a nice tailwind, but the headwind factor was there today,’’ Duffy said.
“Still, it was definitely a good day.’’
Duffy also earned second place in the 110-meter hurdles at 14.24 seconds, finishing 0.15 seconds behind Billy Powers of Winnacunnet (N.H.) High.
“[Powers is] very talented,’’ Duffy said. “We were equal over the first six hurdles. He then kind of surged ahead a little bit. Seventh hurdle, I dinged with my knee then my foot, and I was totally off balance and couldn’t catch him at the end.’’
Williams won the 100-meter dash in 11.94 seconds for her second straight New England title in the event. She also finished third in the 200 at 25.02.
“I didn’t want to regret a single thing,’’ said Williams, who will attend Penn State. “I really wanted to push and finish everything off with a bang.’’
Finishing second in the 100 was freshman Andraya Yearwood, a transgender athlete from Cromwell, Conn.
As the Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference defers to the determination of the student and the school regarding gender identification, Yearwood is eligible is participate on the girls’ side.
“I just wanted to focus on running my own race,’’ Williams said. “It wasn’t going to be a distraction. It was just like any other challenge and I was happy to come away with the win.’’
Williams dominated the 100 over her high school career. In fact, the last time she didn’t win a 100 in Massachusetts was at the All-State meet in 2015. The thought of losing crosses Williams’s mind, but it’s her confidence that drives her success.
“In the back of my mind I have that nagging voice, but you have to trust your training and have confidence that you’re going to win and that’s what happened today,’’ she said.
Other girls’ winners from Eastern Mass. were Wellesley sophomore Julia Jordahl-Henry (high jump, 5-7), Foxborough senior Shraeya Srinivasan (triple jump, 40-¼), and Sharon junior Shira Stoller (javelin, 148-8).
Joining Duffy among boys’ winners from EMass were Needham junior Davonte Burnett (100 meters, 10.48), Arlington sophomore Ryan Oosting (1,600 meters, 4:11.93), Newton North junior Andrew Mah (3,200 meters, 9:10.36), Old Rochester senior Danny Renwick (high jump, 6-9), and Milton sophomore Smith Charles (long jump, 23-4½).
Boys’ tennis
Division 1 South
Wellesley 3, Newton North 2 — In the teams’ third matchup of the season, senior Alex Kley prevailed at first singles, 7-6 (7-3), 2-6, 7-5, to lead the Raiders (20-2) past their Bay State Conference rivals for the sectional title at Hingham.
Wellesley will play North champion Acton-Boxborough in a state semifinal Tuesday at Lexington.
During the regular season, Wellesley recorded a 3-2 win over North on April 19 and toppled the Tigers, 4-1, on May 15.
P.J. Wright can be reached at pj.wright@globe.com.
