Penn Relays this weekend will include solid R.I. presence

Apr 21, 2015

From Thursday until Saturday, high school, collegiate and even world-class athletes will be competing in the 121st annual Penn Relays Carnival at the University of Pennsylvania's historic Franklin Field. The oldest and most prestigious outdoor track & field meets in the country will feature several Rhode Island teams and individuals.

La Salle Academy will be bringing the biggest squad to Philadelphia for the three-day meet. Two events to keep an eye on are the boys' and girls' Championship of America Distance Medley Relay. In both races, the Rams have a legitimate chance to earn the coveted "Wheel" that's given to the winners in the respective relays.

In the boys' DMR (Friday, 5:50 p.m.), the La Salle foursome of junior Matt Bouthillette (1,200m), junior Cam Morenzi (400m), senior Dan Paiva (800m) and junior Jack Salisbury (1,600m) will toe the line with the likes of New York teams Liverpool, Xavier and Fairfield Prep as well as always-powerful Christian Brothers Academy of New Jersey. All five squads are capable to running a low 10-minute time.

The girls' DMR quartet (Thursday, 6:10 p.m.) of senior Sheridan Wilbur (1,200m), junior Jess Apagee (400m), junior Karina Tavares (800m) and junior Eliza Rego (1,600m) will compete against quality schools such as Blacksburg (VA), Cardinal O'Hara (PA) and Suffern (NY). Suffern was the indoor national titlist with a fast 11:53.57 clocking.

Individually, La Salle sophomore D.J. Principe and East Greenwich senior Tommy Sommer are entered in a strong 3K race (Friday, 6:10 p.m.) that includes Darien (CT) senior Alex Ostberg and Saratoga Springs (NY) senior Aiden Tooker, the third- and fourth-place finishers in the two mile at the New Balance Nationals this past March.