East Lyme — In a normal regular-season track and field meet, East Lyme High School's Caroline Thiede might run two or three events. But this was no normal meet.

It was against Eastern Connecticut Conference Large Division rival Norwich Free Academy.

"We did some things we never do," said Thiede, a senior, who won four events for the Vikings Tuesday, as did teammate Haley Ashton. "It's all about the points. We have to adjust and so far this season we've been adjusting."

"You've got to go in this meet," East Lyme coach Carl Reichard said. "It's big competition. You have to use all the people you have as much as you can. (If you don't), then you've got to go home and beat yourself up."

East Lyme's best effort was enough to top NFA 87-64, giving the Vikings the early lead in the ECC Large. It was NFA's first dual meet defeat since the 2007 season, when the Wildcats lost to East Lyme 78-72.

And not that it was entirely unexpected: East Lyme won the ECC Large Division championship in indoor track by more than 100 points and NFA has a particularly young team.

But NFA, coached by Kara Kochanski-Vendola, whom Reichard joked was as magical in her coaching powers as Harry Potter, is also the seven-time ECC champion in outdoor track. The Wildcats, too, with a win in the 4x400-meter relay Tuesday, could have pulled within two points of East Lyme, pressuring the Vikings even further.

East Lyme, however, swept the relays, including the 4x400, the final event on the track. Theresa Legein, a junior running the leadoff leg on the varsity level for the first time, was joined by Ashton, Cassidy Abdeen and Thiede to win the 4x400 in 4 minutes, 22 seconds, with Thiede cruising home on the anchor leg with a considerable lead.

Thiede won the 200 (27.9), the 400 (1:03), the 4x100 and the 4x400, while Ashton ran a leg on both those winning relays as well as finishing first in the 300 hurdles (47.6) and tying for first in the high jump (4 feet, 10 inches). Gianna Folz also tied for first in the high jump and won the 100 hurdles (15.8) and the triple jump (33-8) for the Vikings (3-0, 1-0).

Olivia Lane won the shot put (34-7) and discus (105-8) for NFA (3-1, 1-1).

"Even though we won the indoor ECC, NFA is huge competition," Thiede said. "When you're going up against them, you've always got to bring it."

The Vikings opened the meet with wins in the 4x800 behind Becca Alaimo, Serena Valentin, Lillian Whittaker and Kirsten Thompson and the 4x100 with Ashton, Thiede, freshman Alexis Burgess and sophomore Hannah Belleville.

"We put all the trust in the world to the people on the track," Thiede said of her younger teammates contributing.

Kochanski-Vendola said she emailed Reichard earlier in the week regarding the Harry Potter reference and told him she had no magical powers.

"I'm just blessed with talented athletes that are willing to work hard," said Kochanski-Vendola, who was not at all displeased with her team's effort Tuesday. "... I have to say it was a great day. If you look at our future, we have a bright future."

NFA got wins from sophomore Margaret Lewerk in the 100, sophomore Lindsay Sylvia in the 3,200, sophomore Kelsie Hall in the pole vault and freshman Sydney Corl in the 800, in addition to senior Lauren Kneer in the long jump and Lane, also a senior.

Kochanski-Vendola said Corl, in particular, came back in the 800 with a 10-second improvement over her leg of the 4x800.

"It's more teaching and technique," Kochanski-Vendola said of her team. "It's different than just workout, workout, workout. I'm not disappointed at all. The girls poured their hearts into it."

East Lyme also got wins from Thompson in the 1,600 and Kristen Foster in the javelin.

"I said this to you a lot of times," East Lyme's Reichard said of NFA. "They're a really good program. If you want to be a good program, you have to beat them ... at least once in a while. I knew it was a long time (since we beat them), long enough that I didn't want to know.

"We've won a lot more state championships and runners-up (two firsts and one second since 2007) than we've beaten NFA."

v.fulkerson@theday.com

Twitter: @vickieattheday