On a hot Saturday afternoon, there were so many great performances at the R.I. Track & Field Championships. No surprise, a total of 10 individuals that were selected as the M-F Athletic male and female Athlete of the Week this season were also winners at Brown University Stadium.
It’s now up to a dozen. MileSplit RI would like to congratulate this week’s recipients, North Kingstown junior Zachery Emrich and Classical junior Maddy Berkson.
Emrich, a bona-fide middle distance star for the Skippers, pulled off a rare double this weekend by capturing the 400- and 800-meter runs. The N.K. runner, who copped the 600 state and New England titles during the indoor season, blazed the 400 in a personal best of 48.55 seconds. Less than an hour later, he held off Chariho Regional’s sensational senior Bryce Kelley to capture the 800 at 1:57.05. Emrich then capped off his afternoon by running a leg on the Skippers’ winning 4x400 relay squad that was timed in a season best of 3:25.79.
The first few months of the outdoor season were not typical for Berkson, who was dealing with some tired legs and an iron deficiency and often fell short of victory in the bigger meets. But just like she always does, the Classical standout came through at the most important meet of the spring. Berkson led the Purple to the state crown by collecting 32 points. She won the 1,500 with a season-best of 4:34.27, nine seconds under her seed time. She also finished third in the 800 and 3.000 and anchored the Purple’s first-place 4x400 relay.