Courtesy of Brian Beard

Last weekend, the track and field team ran its fellow collegiate teams from the state of Maine dry, securing both the men’s and women’s Maine State Indoor Championship titles. The meet took place at the University of Southern Maine, with colleges from all over the state competing. However, the Polar Bears reigned victorious at the end of the day.

“There’s just too much to highlight in all honesty…. 21 individual Maine State champions in total. We demolished the field,” Head Coach LJ Que said.

Ben Bockmann ’25 set the tone for the team’s performances throughout the day with an early win in the 5k.

“I knew it was going to be a good day when we won the first distance meet,” Brooks Peters ’23 said. “[Bockmann] kind of controlled that race from the start.”

Jenna Albanese ’24 set a new school record in the long jump at the meet (5.59m) and was named Field MVP with wins in both the long jump and triple jump. Kane Demers ’26 swept multiple events with wins in the 200m dash, the triple jump and the long jump, earning Track MVP of the meet.

Sprinter Kianne Benjamin ’24 broke her own record in the 400m dash, placing her amongst some of the top performers in the state and earning her Track MVP honors alongside Demers.

After last year’s win—its first since the 2012-13 season—the women’s team was slated to win its second consecutive title and claimed several individual events to secure the victory. Lauren Traum ’25 swept both the 800m and the mile, Abby Mueller ’24 won the 500m dash, Corinne Ahern ’24 took the weight throw and Charlotte Hodge ’25 dominated the pole vault.

“There’s this feeling in the track and field community, these people make each other better, and that’s something that I feel so lucky to be a part of,” Traum said.

The men’s team was predicted to finish second to Bates College but pulled off an upset with several key performances. Max Russo ’24 set a new meet record for the 600m dash, Peters won the 1000m, Sam Angevine ’24 took the 3000m and Will Goddard ’25 claimed the mile.

Throughout the meet, the team’s camaraderie and support for one another was evident. While the athletes often warm up individually before competing, everyone was ready to cheer their teammates on.

“We kept on having performances that were inspiring,” Goddard said. “Everybody just brought their A game … from seeing their teammates do so well.”

One of the team’s biggest focuses for this season has been consistency—both at practices and meets.

“This past weekend was a product of that consistency of training process, team joy and our team values,” Que said.

The team’s victory at the Maine State Meet punctuates an already-successful season and lays the groundwork for future accomplishments.

“This is kind of like an exclamation mark right in the middle of the season, and it’s important to keep working hard but still enjoy and celebrate our win,” Goddard said.

The team hopes to continue to create a supportive atmosphere and emphasize consistency leading up to the New England DIII Championships—hosted by Tufts University at the end of the month.

“I imagine everyone is hoping to just get an inch further … and really focus more on the process and see how far that carries us,” Traum said.