Freedom senior, Will Alpaugh, thought he was finished for the day after competing in the 800 meter run at the Patriots’ track and field meet against Emmaus and East Stroudsburg South last week, but the Patriots’ 4x4 relay team knew they were not.

“The score was pretty close, so from a team perspective, we needed points,” Alpaugh said.

That meant that Alpaugh would need to compete in the 3200 meter run, something he was not expecting to do on this particular day, but he did.

On the final lap of the 3200, Alpaugh pulled away, but Emmaus’s Ian Adams caught up on the last straightaway.

“Someone was literally kicking the back of my legs, but I thought it’s probably not [teammate] Isaac [Gross],” Alpaugh said. “I thought it was East Stroudsburg. I was telling myself I know I can beat him. I heard him, but I didn’t look, and I picked it up as much as I could.”

Alpaugh clinched first place and much-needed team points in 10:22. Adams was next in 10:23, and East Stroudsburg South’s Juvius Gricius followed in 10:36. Gross, who had run three quarters of the race next to Alpaugh, was fourth with a time of 10:38.

“From a team perspective, I felt like I contributed the best I could in that race,” said Alpaugh.

Still, more points were needed to catch up to the Cavaliers, so in the final event of the day, the Patriots’ 4x4 relay team knew what they had to do.

“I knew before we ran,” said Freedom anchor, Anthony Ortiz.

Allan Camus led off, and Chris Szymanski ran second, catching the runner from East Stroudsburg South at one point. Juwan Northington was next.

“I felt like I was sitting on him too much, and I had to make a move,” Northington said.

Northington gained a slight lead, and now it was up to Ortiz.

“I made a move by the goal post and got in front of [East Stroudsburg South],” Ortiz said.

And that’s where Ortiz stayed.

The Freedom senior was already on the ground when his track and field teammates rushed him after his first place finish, which tied Freedom with the Cavaliers 75-75 and helped defeat Emmaus 103-47.

“It all came from the heart,” said Ortiz. “It felt good because my team was there for me, and I was there for them.”

Adding to the double Patriot victory were Jeremy Parker and Cyrus Thompson, who placed first and second in the 100 meter dash. Thompson and Parker then took second and third in the 200 meter. Alpaugh won the 1600 and was third in the 800.

Ortiz and Northington placed second and third in the 110 hurdles, and Northington was third in the 300 hurdles.

In the high jump, Roland Cash-Mabry took second place, and in the pole vault, Colin Curtin placed second.

In the long jump, Roberto Diez won first place, Joe Young was second, and Cash-Mabry was third. Diez also took first place in the shot put.

Cash-Mabry won the triple jump, and Young placed second.

James Dailey took first place in the javelin, and Nick Carbonara placed third in the discus.