Chaminade's Jack Higgins prevails in 3,200 with all-out sprint

The circumstances surrounding the last two weekends could not have been more different for Chaminade’s Jack Higgins. Last weekend was filled with water and, ultimately, disappointment. A late night "aqua-prom" on Friday night (that is, prom … but on a boat) followed by the Nassau-Suffolk CHSAA league championship on a rain-soaked Saturday, led to tired legs and a lost 1,600-meter title.

This Saturday, however, the script flipped. Higgins was well-rested, the Memorial Day Weekend weather could not have been more perfect for running, and it was Higgins who walked away a winner in one of the closer races of the day.

The Bucknell-bound senior won the 3,200 meters in 9 minutes, 29.86 seconds, eclipsing St. Anthony’s Jack Morelli in a neck-and-neck battle down the home straightaway at the CHSAA Intersectional track and field Championships at Icahn Stadium on Randall’s Island. Morelli, who beat Higgins last weekend in the 1,600, was a hair behind him, second in 9:29.94. 

The win sent Higgins to the state championships, scheduled for June 9-10 at Middletown High School.

It was a great finish, one made even more so by the length of the race. Those kinds of to-the-tape fights aren’t common in the race colloquially known as the "two-mile" (in actuality, it’s a few meters short of that).

“I finished in 61 [seconds], which was very interesting for a 3,200,” Higgins said of the quick final lap. “Once I got to the last 200, I knew I had to move my arms more, keep on going. I heard [Morelli] breathing down my neck, which I was pretty surprised by. I didn’t think he was going to get me on that last 400. Then, on the straightaway, I felt the crowd roaring … I just gave it my all and finished the race strong.”

The field ran the opening mile in 4:51.72, painfully slow for this time of year. Higgins, annoyed with that pace, knew he had to get in the lead.

“I kind of felt like it was a bad idea when I got to the 2,400 [mark],” said Higgins, who also helped Chaminade win the 4 x 800 relay in 7:59.76. “I started feeling it a little bit. The last 400, I just gave it my all because I did not want to get passed.”

His finish helped Chaminade to a Long Island-best third in the team competition with 36 points. Iona Prep won with 46.

 Elsewhere, Holy Trinity’s Josiah Brown came from behind to win the 100 in 11.06 seconds. Iona Prep’s Marcus Nahim was second in 11.07. Brown’s 21.82 took second to Nahim’s 21.74 in the 200.

“I was trained to always go hard, no matter if I’m in first, second, or whatever,” Brown said of his close 100 finish. “It’s just a mentality.”