Hempstead's Renee Newton primed for Nassau AAA championships

All Renee Newton needed to snap back into form on the track was a strong cross country season. Like many athletes, Newton said she felt there was something missing from the winter season. Maybe it was the rustiness of not running competitively for most of 2020, or maybe it was the fact that athletes were running outside in frigid temperatures, but it just wasn’t the same.

Things are different now. The Nassau outdoor post-season is underway, with most county championship track events set to be run this week, and Newton is ready to go. The Hempstead senior was a triple winner at the Nassau Division 1A championships last week, winning the 200 meters in 26.81 seconds, the 400 in 58 seconds flat, and the 400 hurdles in one minute, 5.14 seconds.

"The 200 was basically speed work," said Newton, who is committed to Georgetown. "Anybody who really studies me and knows the races that I run knows that I don't typically run the 200. But, if I do want to step down, do some speed work, and run the 200, then I can."

Newton, whose main event is the 400 hurdles, said she is still deciding what she will run at the Nassau Class AAA Championships, scheduled for Tuesday at Mitchel Athletic Complex in Uniondale.

"Next week is going to be just a little bit more competitive," she said. "I've taken a look at the schedule, so I know that the break time is about the same, or maybe even a little bit more [than the division championships]. Either way, coach [Lenroy Raffington] and I are still talking about that and we're still deciding what I'm going to do."

A lot of the normalcy that Newton has experienced during the outdoor season was built during cross country – another shortened campaign, but one that restarted a familiar rhythm. Newton finished second at the Class I cross country championships in 19:08.64 on the 5-kilometer course at Eisenhower Park in East Meadow.

"It's always been a foundation, exactly where I start at," Newton said of cross country. "I've always worked my way up. I start really high [in distance] and then I work down to whatever my events are in the spring and in the winter. So, I feel a lot better in spring than I did in winter, and I do feel like cross country had a lot to do with it."

Cross country was a start. This week, Newton will see where she finishes.

Muccini wins Intersectional High Jump

Rain, wind, and temperatures befitting of an early-season meet weren’t going to stop Chaminade’s Daniel Muccini from winning a title last weekend. Muccini fought through awful conditions to clear five feet, 10 inches and win the high jump at the CHSAA Intersectional outdoor Championships at Icahn Stadium on Randall’s Island in Manhattan.

"I was soaked through within the first two minutes, but it was a good day besides that," said Muccini, a junior who lives in Melville. "…The wind only really matters when you’re jumping on the higher heights, because then it starts pushing around."

Muccini said that, besides adjusting steps, there isn’t a lot that a high jumper can do about wind. So, instead of worrying about it, he just won.

"You kind of got to muscle through it," he said. "…The main thing was just staying warm."