Central's Donatien Djero
There's a reason that Central is a legitimate contender for the team title this weekend. It all begins with the sprint events. The Knights should once again dominate the short sprints with the ability to score a combined 50 (or more) points in the 55m, 300m, 4x200m and 4x400m. The defending champion in the 55m dash is La Salle's Sam Coleman, who clocked a personal best of 6.48 to win his specialty at the Dartmouth Relays last month. Right now, the top seed is Central's Donatien Djero, who won Yale with a PB of 6.41. Both sprinters were neck-and-neck at last year's state meet with Coleman edging Djero at the line by .01. Expect an equally tight race against the two speedsters, who have yet to race each other this winter. Other potential contenders include Central Falls' Leonardo DeVeiga (6.57) and Centrall teammates Dametrius O'Connor (6.58) and Austin Wolo (6.65). La Salle, the defending team champion, could get a big boost in its quest for the title with a strong day from Coleman. He has a seed time of 36.52 in the 300m from his victory at last week's Last-Chance Qualifier, but has clocked the fastest time of 35.72 on a banked track at the Dartmouth Relays. This is an event the Knights could also do some damage with a fierce trio that includes Wolo (35.75), O'Connor (36.01) and Djero (36.12). You also can't count out teammate Anthony Vega, who did 37.04 at the Last-Chance Qualifier and could secure a podium finish. The Knights should be able to give themselves some positive momentum from the start with the meet's second event, the 4x200m. On Feb. 5 at the Armory Track Invitational in New York, Central clocked a state record of 1:29.05, a time that is nearly four-seconds faster than Hendricken, the second best team in the field. Factor in the banked oval of The Armory and it's still an event that the Knights should win convincingly if everything goes as planned. The way we look at it, the battle for the team title could come down to La Salle, Hendricken and Central. And it could come down to the final running event, the 4x400m. The Knights are the top seed in that event, too. But it's only by a slight margin over the Hawks with times of 3:27.88 and 3:28.20, respectively. La Salle ranks among the top six with their best of 3:36.20. It could some down to the 4x400m with the potential to produce one of the most exciting indoor state meets in a long time. Finally, the 55m hurdles features seven runners that have cracked eight seconds this winter. Hendricken's Ethan Famiano, who was fourth at last year's State Meet, is the top seed with his best of 7.73. His only loss to a RI competitor was at the RI Classic in December where he was the second from the Ocean State to cross the line, finishing behind fourth-place finisher Chris Choquette of Cumberland with a seventh-place performance. Choquette is the No. 2 seed with his best of 7.88 from the divisional championships. Hendricken could potentially score about 16 points in this event with Joseph Rivera-Santos (7.91) ranked among the top three.