By TONY BELLISSIMO
Senior Harlan Abeshouse (shot put) and junior Baffour Obiem (55 high hurdles) are headed to the state championships at Cornell University on Saturday after runner-up finishes in the Nassau Class A and state qualifier meets.
"We've been knocking on the door for a while," McGlynn said. "It's a special feeling to have not only one but two kids qualify for the state meet."
Abeshouse, a 6-foot-4, 275-pound standout lineman for the Jets on the football field, was in the weight room last winter when he caught McGlynn's eye. "I saw him benching 400-plus pounds and asked if he had interest in joining track," McGlynn recalled. "I knew football was his sport and thought he'd benefit from competing in winter and spring track. Here we are a year later and he's one of the top shot-putters in the county."
Last spring, Abeshouse was throwing approximately 42 feet. At the state qualifier on Feb. 11, his top heave sailed 48-feet, 8-inches. "He's explosive at the point of release," McGlynn said. "His technique continues to get better and there's still room for improvement. He's looking to hit 50 feet."
Obiem is seeking a top 10 finish in the state in the 55 HH after finishing in 8.09 seconds at the qualifier. He was All-County last spring in the 400 intermediate hurdles. Last winter he was sixth in the county in the 55 HH. "Baffour's a multitalented kid with all the tools," McGlynn said. "He lives and breathes track and is reaping the rewards of his off-season work. We set up hurdles in his backyard and he trained all summer."
Abeshouse and Obiem helped the Jets placed third in Conference II and 12th in Class A. The progress of the team's distance program showed in the county meet when the 4 x 800 relay of senior Andrew Dobry, juniors Dan Gomez and Rami Chami and sophomore Brian Hui took fifth.
Lady Jets third in Class A
Junior Tiffany Goodwin's first-place finish in the shot put and second-place efforts by seniors Alyssa Graziano (600 meters) and Kim Slagus (1,500 racewalk) sparked East Meadow's girls' track and field team to a third-place finish in Class A behind Garden City and Hempstead. The trio qualified for the state meet as well.
Additional point producers in individual events for the Lady Jets in the county meet were seniors Alex Simonoff (third in long jump), Sara Alpert (fifth in 600) and Cara Mattson (fifth in 3,000). Coach Steve Josepher also saw the 4 x 400 (Graziano, Alpert, senior Nicole Battaglia and junior Jennifer Flores) and 4 x 800 (senior Priya Patel, juniors Valerie Sanders and Elsa Echeverry and sophomore Jenna Williams) relays finish second.
Comments about this story? TBellissimo@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 204.
