Sister act lifts
Hingham to crown
By Justin A. Rice
After winning her third straight 1,000-meter state title at the Division 3 Indoor Track & Field Championships, Shauna is no stranger to the podium. But the senior is not as accustomed to being joined by her sister, who qualified for next Saturday’s All-State meet for the first time by finishing fourth.
“I knew she had it in her, but it was a dream of mine to be up there with her, sort of a sister legacy,” Danielle said after clocking a time of 3:05.72.
Shauna – who won in 3:01.81 to help Hingham edge Hopkinton for the team title, 50-47 – was glad to share the spotlight with her sister.
“It was really nice to have her with me on the podium,” said Shauna, who is also a cross country and outdoor track star. “I get more attention than her sometimes, so it’s good to have her with me.”
It wasn’t the last time the McNiff sisters shared the podium. They stood at the top again after helping Hingham break the meet record it set last year (9:43.06) in the 4x800-meter relay, clocking a 9:41.46.
“Two seniors ran this last year,” said Danielle, who ran the second leg.
“Kathleen (O’Neil) and I are the newbies, and there was a lot of pressure to perform well.”
The title marked the 10th straight time Hingham’s 4x800 team won a championship in indoor or outdoor track.
“We’re excited to hit 10, but we’re pumped for two more titles. (We have) high hopes,” senior Mackenzie Lussier said of shooting for 4x800 titles at the upcoming All-State and New England meets, also held at the Reggie Lewis Center.
Hingham, which won its sixth straight Patriot League title this year, also got a boost Friday night from its 4x200 relay team’s victory in 1:46.95. Junior Molly O’Dea won the 55 hurdles in 7.34 seconds, and senior Julia Mirochnick was third in the 55 hurdles in 8.93.
Canton also performed well in the relays, finishing fifth in the 4x800 with a time of 1:54.08.
Other Ledgerland qualifiers for All-States included Duxbury sophomore Julia Nee (fourth in the 300 dash with a time of 42.72) and Milton’s Cheryl Tran, who was third in the high jump with a leap of 5 feet, 2 inches.
Milton junior Emily Hughes finished fifth in the mile with a time of 5:22.03.
Senior Starr Nathan of Randolph was second in the 600 with a time of 1:36.61. Nathan was also fourth in the long jump (16-11) as her team finished tied for seventh place with 18 points.
Randolph coach Bob Pillarella said Nathan has been going back and forth between the 300 and 600 all season but started to focus on the 600 a few weeks ago.
“She felt strong in the 600 event,” he said. “That’s the one she’s going after now.”
Randolph’s Ashlee Pitts was third in the 55 with a time of 7.47. Canton’s Sam Smith placed fourth in the 55 in 7.56.
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