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Season Review: Girls’ indoor track regained its footing

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The Panthers during a Dec. 13 meet. / Photo by: Sue Moss

Through their first three meets, the Panthers sat at 0-3 with losses to Hingham (87-17), Duxbury (54-46) and Plymouth North (67-33).

After a rocky start, the Whitman-Hanson Regional High girls’ indoor track team regained its footing to finish the season strong.

Through their first three meets, the Panthers sat at 0-3 with losses to Hingham (87-17), Duxbury (54-46) and Plymouth North (67-33).

“The Patriot League is an extremely competitive league with some enormously talented athletes,” W-H head coach Steve George said. “We faced the very best teams during those first [three] weeks. While we kept it close with most, we had some key athletes go down with injuries.”

Reinforcements would be on their way, however, and in the Panthers’ fourth meet of the season Jan. 24, they scored a nail-biting 51-49 victory over Silver Lake.

Trailing by three with one event to go – the 4×400 relay – the Panthers’ crew stepped to the line. Coincidentally, W-H was missing three of its four runners who had competed on the team all season long, leaving junior Dorothy DiMascio-Donohue as the only one who had previously done the event. So, the Panthers went with a next man up approach, inserting senior Julia Cosgrave and sophomores Victoria Boss and Courtney Woodward into the lineup.

The tandem finished the course in 4:39.56, besting Silver Lake by nearly 13 ticks to lift the Panthers to victory.

The girls then carried that momentum into the final meet of the season, two weeks later, tying Pembroke, 49-49, to cap off the winter at 1-3-1. The Panthers were led by first-place finishes from DiMascio-Donohue (55-meter hurdles, 10.17), junior Allison Bartlett (long jump, 15-foot-2), junior Maeve McDonough (2-mile run, 13:16.77), freshman Isabelle Amado (600-meter dash, 1:52.16) and senior captain Nicole Norve (1-mile run, 5:26.63).

It was one of many top-place finishes for the Adams State-bound Norve, who was tabbed as the team’s lone Patriot League All-Star. Norve also represented the Panthers in the Division 3 All-State meet, where she placed 10th in the 1,000-meter run (3:09.28) and 12th in the 1-mile run (5:26.81).

“Nicole has literally led by example during her four years at Whitman-Hanson,” George said. “I recall as a freshman cross country runner we saw that she was talented and invited her to run at the Martha’s Vineyard Invitational. She initially declined, I think feeling a bit uneasy as the only freshman entry. But she ended up running that meet and since then has worked tirelessly to improve. It’s as simple as – she loves running.”

Norve was one of a few runners who impressed George this season.

“I would have to say seniors Julia Cosgrave and Camryn Boyce were as consistent as it gets,” George explained. “Each could be counted on to participate and score in multiple events each week. Maeve McDonough has really worked hard to become a very good distance runner.”

George added he was pleasantly surprised with a handful of freshmen who burst onto the scene this season as well.

“Isabelle Amado, Hailey Minicucci, Alaina Mutascio and Emma Rogers all showed some real ability in multiple events and should make an impact over the next three years,” George said.

Next up for many the girls is the spring campaign.

“Many of our kids run all year long and our between-season goal is just to get them rested so they can be healthy going into the outdoor season,” George said.

Season Preview: Girls’ indoor track team focuses on achieving goals

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Head coach Steve George said the strength of his team, which is coming off a 2-3 season in 2016-17, lies it its potential and the abilities of its untested newcomers.

The Whitman-Hanson Regional High girls’ indoor track team is ready to hit the ground running, and fourth-year head coach Steve George remains focused on growth.

“While victories would be outstanding for us all, we really focus on improvement, getting all our kids to achieve their personal goals and maximize that potential we see,” George said.

George said the strength of his team, which is coming off a 2-3 season in 2016-17, lies it its potential and the abilities of its untested newcomers.

“Nearly half of our student-athletes have never competed in track and field previously,” George said. “Twelve days of practice won’t provide the conditioning or experience they will need to succeed. But we’ll all work unrelentingly until we get there.”

A few of those newcomers George is referring to are freshmen Emma Rogers and Isabelle Amado, both of whom have caught his eye.

“They have the perfect combination of having the ability to compete in multiple events and the willingness to take on the task of [multiple events],” he said.

While there is an influx of young talent, the Panthers are still going to rely heavily on their veterans – spearheaded by senior captains Camryn Boyce, Lillian Perkins-Reisdorf and Nicole Norve.

“All three girls are not only terrific athletes, but first-class leaders when healthy,” George said. “We’ll need them all healthy if we’re going to make an impact.”

With that trio, along with the likes of juniors Dorothy DiMascio-Donohue and Allison Bartlett and sophomore Samantha Perkins near the top of the roster, George said he feels his club will be relatively strong in mid-distance and sprints/hurdles events.

“Right now, I think we have the making of a terrific 4×200 relay team, and I am confident in our 55-meter hurdles and 300 events,” George said. “I’m optimistic in the 1,000 as well. But beyond that we will have to mix and match to find the right combinations.”

However, George noted while his team has the potential to yield a formidable 4×200 relay team, he would like to see an improved performance in that event from last season, along with the shot put. That will come with time as the team finds a way to replace multi-event school record holder Alex Santos, along with Lily Nolan, Olivia Morse and Olivia Reed.

“I’m confident we’ll get there with the young talent on the team, but we may need to tough it out in a couple of meets first,” George said.

The girls will be back in action on Tuesday, Dec. 19 at 4:30 p.m. at the Reggie Lewis Track and Athletic Center in Roxbury against Duxbury.

“So much about track is based on the individual performance of each athlete which differentiates it from other sports,” George said. “There are no set plays like football, no assists like basketball and baseball. It’s pretty much youversus the clock.”

Season Review: X-Country stand-outs set bar for future

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Seniors Andrew Newman and Nicole Norve were standouts this cross country season at Whitman-Hanson Regional High.

Another cross country season has crossed the finish line at Whitman-Hanson Regional High. 

Andrew Newman led the way for the boys’ team, which wound up with a 4-3 record. The senior was unbeatable in his first five meets, as he raced to first-place finishes in every single one. He also set four personal records throughout the fall. Steve George, who serves as the head coach for both the boys’ and girls’ cross country teams, said Newman is self-motivated, extremely hard working and just loves to run. 

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Andrew Newman / Photo by: Sue Moss

“Andrew’s consistent improvement is a result of his effort over and above what we ask for,” George said. With high school runners, we’d ordinarily see a drop off in performance given the number of miles a runner like Andrew logs each week. We have not seen that in Andrew. He thrives on high mileage.”

Not only did Newman have a season to remember, many of his teammates did as well. Fellow senior captain Jack Ryan finished the fall boasting seven top-five finishes and sophomore Adam Solari improved on his numbers significantly from a year ago, as did classmate Brandon Hager. Freshman newcomers Liam Cafferty, Theo Kamperides, Chris MacDonald and Aiden O’Brien were all welcome sights as well.

Cafferty and Kamperdies ended the season as two of the Panthers’ top-five runners.

“The only rest they’ve had, if you can call it rest, is when they run a shorter distance in the invitational meets,” George said. “Otherwise, they do every workout, every day and it’s paid off for them.”

George said his club’s biggest strength over the past few months was the leadership it received from its captains Alex Uva and Ryan.

“They provide examples of achieving results through determination and effort,”George said. “Coaches provide instruction and structure, but high school athletes are motivated best by their peers and in cross country we have some very good ones in those seniors.”

GIRLS RACE TO 3-4 MARK

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Nicole Norve / Photo by: Sue Moss

The girls’ team, which finished at 3-4, was in a lot of close meets, as three of its losses came by 15 or fewer points. One runner who stood out from the rest was Nicole Norve. The senior captain hustled to a first-place finish in the Panthers’ first five races. Her second-place outings came against Plymouth North on Oct. 17 when she crossed the finish line one second out of the top spot, and on Oct. 24 against Plymouth South when she lost to eventual league MVP Jillian Callaghan by 17 ticks. George said Norve is as fierce as a competitor as there gets.

“She wants to improve every time out and loves a challenge,” George said. “Nicole’s success may stem from the fact that she is strong enough to run hard virtually every day, recover, and do it again the next.”

But it takes more than one runner to be competitive, and W-H had no problem with that. Seniors Julia Cosgrave and Camryn Boyce were about were steady presences all season.

“Julia and Camryn were consistent 2/3 for the team this year,” George said. “I’ll miss both of them next year certainly.”

Coming into the season, one of George’s goals was to have his runners achieve their own milestones, and that came to fruition. Sixteen of the 20 girls established personal records with two of the remaining four out much of the season with injury.

As the Panthers look toward next autumn – when this wave of juniors will be looked upon to carry the load – there is a lot to be excited about.

“Maeve Rooney has steadily improved in each of her three years, while Maeve McDonough has moved into our top 5 with an improvement of three minutes over last year,” George explained. “Dorothy DiMascio-Donohue, an indoor and outdoor sprinter/hurdler who joined cross country this year, scored in nearly every meet this fall.”

Coletti runs to West Point

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Samantha Colleti will run at Army West Point next season. The Whitman-Hanson Regional High senior is a heralded runner.

One local Hanson resident is taking her talents to the collegiate level by a different route.

Samantha Coletti has officially received her appointment from the United States Military Academy at West Point, N.Y.

Coletti, a senior at Whitman-Hanson Regional High, first showed interest in attending the United States Military Academy before the school year began. Coletti reached out to the track coach about it via email over the summer, and said she was thrilled when she heard the news that she was accepted.

“I remember running downstairs in excitement after getting a call from [the track coach] a few days later,” Coletti said.

W-H girls’ indoor trach head coach, Steve George, said Coletti is the type of athlete coaches dream of having. Screen Shot 2018-01-14 at 11.00.13 AM

“Samantha is one of those student-athletes that comes along rarely, if ever, for most coaches,” George said. “I was aware of Samantha when she was in middle school, but didn’t have the opportunity to work with her until two years ago when I got the Whitman-Hanson coaching position. I kidded one of Samantha’s neighbors while I was still coaching at Notre Dame Academy in Hingham that I would be happy to pay Samantha’s tuition if she would transfer to NDA.”

Coletti said she has been running for about nine years, with four at the high school level. Her list of achievements while running for Whitman-Hanson Regional High Schoolis immense.

“My biggest accomplishments so far have been being the first Whitman-Hanson girl to win two state titles in one day,” Coletti said. “I won the MIAA Division 3 indoor mile and the MIAA Division 3 1,000-meter races.”

George said Coletti’s success stems from her passion and dedication to running.

“She is physically gifted, mentally tough, and follows our training platform to perfection, but running for her is not drudgery as it is for some,” George said. “It is what she enjoys doing. Loving your work makes it easier to succeed.”

Coletti said she has gained a wealth of knowledge over her time in high school.

“What I’ve learned at Whitman-Hanson is how important team is,” Coletti said. “You can’t do anything by yourself. On the track team, everyone is important.”

Coletti is a year-round competitor. She ran cross country in the fall, is running indoor track this winter and will run outdoor track in the spring.

As for the next level, Coletti said she is most excited to be a part of the traditions at West Point and to build strong relationships with her fellow cadets and eventually become a leader in the Army.

When Coletti isn’t running, she said she has an interest in art and an eagerness to spend time with friends andfamily. There is one more message that she would like to convey to everyone who made this opportunity come true.

There is one more message that she would like to convey to everyone who made this opportunity come true.

“I want to say thank you to anyone who has supported me,” Coletti said. “My family, coach, friends and teachers, I really appreciate everything you have done for me.”