FITCHBURG — A disappointing fifth-place finish in the 200 on the opening day of the Meet of Champions wasn’t about to rattle a perennial winner like Cambridge’s Kylee Bernard in Saturday’s chilly meet finale.
The defending champion in the 400, Bernard went up against a deep, talent field and left no question about the finish. Bernard went to her arms down the final straightaway and powered to the tape in a fast time of 56.38 seconds. Bernard left runner-up Ali Murphy of Norton more than a second behind (56.42) on the way to putting an exclamation mark on her second consecutive title after finishing third as a sophomore.
“It was really important (to win),” said Bernard, who will compete at Boston College. “The 400 is my favorite event and it’s super emotional repeating and going out with a bang.”
Bernard showed her championship makeup as she shrugged off the uncharacteristic off-day in the 200. “One race doesn’t define who you and you can always get better,” she said. “My goal at nationals is to break 55 seconds.”
Amelia Everett of Newton South further cemented her impressive resume with scary ease in the mile. Coming off a successful defense of the 800 on Thursday, the strong, smooth-striding Everett star looked perfectly calm in the breezy, 48-degree chill.
Everett, who ran a personal best of 4:47 earlier this season, glided towards the front after the first lap and had a gear no one could match over the final 400, surging across the finish line in 4:54.02. Charlotte Tuxbury of Wellesley ran the race of her life as she broke her personal best by two seconds to take the silver medal in 4:55.89. Dana Lehr of Belmont also dipped under 5-minutes with her 4:56.81.
“The heat took something out of me on Thursday, but I much prefer this weather,” said the personable Lion star in winning her third consecutive mile title and will compete at nationals in two weeks. “I knew it was going to be a good fast field.”
Everett is confident she still has faster times to run on the national stage before heading to Stanford University in the fall. “I ran 4:47 and I’ve only gotten fitter since,” she said.
Nathan Lopez completed his 2-mile/mile double by pulling away from the pack and pushing hard down the final straightaway for the win in 4:12.99. The St. John’s Prep star broke Alberto Salazar’s meet record in an emotional 2-mile race on Thursday in 8:59.29, his third consecutive state title at the distance.
“I felt alright — not as good as I hoped,” said the University of Michigan-bound Lopez after his mile win. “I’m happy to get the double. It didn’t go as I hoped. I came in knowing I had the fastest time in the field and just let it rip. I really wanted it bad. It’s pretty satisfying (winning both). It’s been the goal all season.”
Bishop Stang’s terrific shot-putter, Jacob Cookinham, was his usual dominant self as he defended his title in the circle, winning by more than seven feet with a heave of 65-8. Before Cookinham heads to the University of Kansas, he’ll compete at next Saturday’s New England Championships in Bangor, Maine, and then the nationals.
Cookinham made some slight technical adjustments because of the drizzle and cold, but no one in the field could come close. “I took some speed and intensity off,” he said. “It’s exciting to be a state champion. It would have been nice to throw in the hot weather. I’ve had such a great time competing these four years.”
The cold really affected the 400 race, but it didn’t keep Malden’s Johnny Emmanuel from living up to his top seed and winning in 49.32. Emmanuel, who ran a sizzling 46.99 to break the state record at the Div. 1 Championships, said he much preferred racing in warmer conditions. “It was very cold,” he said. “I was pretty slow but I’m happy I won.”