SCARBOROUGH — Had sophomore Jarett Flaker of Scarborough done even half of what he achieved this indoor season, he still would have made history.

Flaker swept three events at the Class A meet – the 55, 200 and 400. He broke two Class A state records and lifted Scarborough to the state title by scoring 30 points.

By the time his season was finished, he had erased Maine all-time bests in three events, earning the Maine Sunday Telegram boys’ indoor track athlete of the year award.

The Maine Principals’ Association doesn’t keep records of sophomore boys who have won multiple state titles or set multiple state records, but several Maine coaches with more than 20 years of experience say neither has been done before.

The records Flaker set this season:

The 55-meter state record of 6.50, which beat the 2013 mark of 6.53 set by Denzel Tomaszewski of Wells.

Advertisement

The 200 state record of 22.32, which eclipsed the 22.65 set by Colby Brooks of Edward Little in 2006.

His 200 time at the state meet also replaced the Maine all-time best mark of 22.35 by McKenzie Gary of Mt. Ararat in 2011. Then Flaker improved on his time at the New Balance Indoor Nationals, lowering the mark to 22.28.

His 300 time of 34.92 at the New England championships was another all-time Maine best, bettering the 35.23 he ran at the Dartmouth Relays in January.

His 400 time of 49.24 at the national meet was also an all-time Maine best, better than Ben Sinclair’s 49.59 for Bangor in 2009.

Flaker said he had some idea he’d improve a lot this season when he set the first all-time Maine record Jan. 6.

“I probably started realizing it when I broke the first at Dartmouth. Coach (Derek Veilleux) said to me: ‘More to come,’ ” Flaker said.

Advertisement

“I felt stronger this year going into New Englands and nationals. And Coach said he was going to change my training this year so that I peaked at those meets, and that was a confidence boost.”

Flaker could feel himself getting faster through the season as Veilleux worked with him on improving his sprinting form.

“I enjoy breaking down running mechanics,” Flaker said. “I like understanding exactly why you’re faster and what slows you down.”

One example of an improvement to his form that paid off was when, for the first time, he leaned into the last turn in the 200 at the Class A meet. Veilleux told Flaker to lean into that turn so he gain momentum for the stretch. When Flaker followed those instructions, he could feel his speed increase and his running felt effortless.

“I could tell when I was running, it was going to be my fastest time,” Flaker said.

Deirdre Fleming can be reached at 791-6452 or:

dfleming@pressherald.com

Twitter: FlemingPph


Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.

Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.