Saturday, June 11, 2016: Beacon's Grey finally takes down Beamon's LJ record

   Leading off today: From this point forward we may have to stop referring to feats so awesome that they border on incomprehensible as "Beamon-esque" and start terming them "Rayvon-esque."

   Beacon senior Rayvon Grey broke the state long jump record -- a mark by Olympic legend Bob Beamon that stood for 51 years -- by clearing 25 feet, 4.75 inches Friday in winning his second straight New York State Public High School Athletic Association championship at Cicero-North Syracuse.

   Beamon jumped 25-3.50 in 1965 while representing Jamaica High. Grey, who placed second in the Division I triple jump earlier in the day, recorded jumps of 25-0, 24-10, 23-7.25, 25-4.75 and 24-10.50.

   "I tweaked my ankle during the triple jump," Grey told the Poughkeepsie Journal. "I collapsed over it and had to ice it, so I wasn't sure I was going to be able to (compete), but I'm happy it worked out for me.

   "It was a great feeling, and it was my goal going into the meet. I was focused and it helped to have everyone supporting me. The crowds and officials, everyone was helping me out and rooting for me."

   Lawson, Petrella go the distance: Corning junior Jessica Lawson earned her second state championship in the 3,000 meters, breaking her own school record along the way. Lawson finished in 9:24.36, easily fending off North Shore's Diana Vizza (9:32.26) and Elmira's Abbey Wheeler (9:33.49).

   Lawson also won the event in 2014 as a freshman. She missed last season's meet with an injury.

   Liverpool senior Ben Petrella kicked home in 1:01.42 for the bell lap and won the boys 3,200 championship in 8:52.42 over Carthage junior Noah Affolder (8:55.20) to break a 29-year-old meet record.

   The two Section 3 stars ran neck and neck for a large portion of the race.

   "During the whole race I felt like I had a lot left in me and I could probably pick it up a little bit. It was probably a bad decision to wait as long as I did to start moving," Petrella told Syracuse.com. "If I tell coach that, she'll probably be a little disappointed, but we're all glad that I pulled it off."

   His effort beat the 1987 meet record on 8:52.75 by Dan Middleman of W.T. Clarke.

   "The last 100 meters I was way too tired to keep going," Affolder told the Watertown Daily Times. "I didn't have the usual finish that I normally have, which is a little sad. Anybody can be the best at this level any day. Ben proved that it was him today."

   More track and field: The champions in the girls 800 meters made up for missed opportunities in the past.

   Two years ago, Hamilton's Sage Hurta, then a sophomore, was the top seed in the Division II competition but placed 15th on a day in which she failed "to take control" of the race. On Friday, the University of Colorado recruit won the fifth heat in a personal-best 2:08.57 to earn the Division II championship. Shenendehowa's Hannah Reale placed second in the race in 2:10.47 but was first among Division I competitors.

   "It was her house today," Hamilton coach Rick Hanson told the Observer-Dispatch. "The last 100 meters, she had a face on. I've seen that face before -- she had to get her business done."

   Said Hurta: "I felt super calm and in control."

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   Reale's performance was confirmation the Shen sophomore is back on track after not qualifying for the state championships last year while dealing with asthma and missing months of training in the fall because of a strained tendon in her hip brought on by a four-inch growth spurt.

   "I learned how to take care of my body better," Reale told The Times Union. "Get more rest, get more sleep, do more stretching. I focused on the little things that will take you farther."

    • Binghamton's Alexis Daniels swept the Division I weight events. She opened with a shot put of 44 feet, 11.75 inches, nearly three feet clear of second place. She came back with a 137-2 throw of for another comfortable margin in the discus.

   "I'm excited," she told the Press & Sun-Bulletin. "I knew coming into the meet I had lots of confidence in myself. I'm just really excited," she said. "It's my senior year, I'm going out with another win."

    • Monsignor Farrell sophomore Charles Crispi captured the pole vault by clearing 14-9.

    • Sam Wray of Starpoint came from behind to defend his Division I discus title with a throw of 181-11, edging Lancaster's Colin Blair, who threw 181-1 during preliminaries. Wray uncorked his winning throw on his first attempt of the finals. After an opening foul, his sequence was a monument to consistency: 179-2, 179-10, 181-11, 174-11 and 175-2.

   Blair won the Division I shot put in 62-6.25, with Wray fourth at 55-3.

   More to come: We'll be back later with some highlight's from Friday's NYSPHSAA girls lacrosse semifinals as well as some other news.