Published in the April 7, 2017 edition
ANN MORRISON is among those who are expected to go far for the Melrose High girls’ outdoor track team this season. (file photo)
By JENNIFER GENTILE
MELROSE—Expect some familiar faces to return to the 2017 girls’ outdoor track team for Melrose High. Many of the athletes are fresh off of a competitive winter season, including players who excelled on the state level.
According to first year coach Shannon Kane, who instructed the girls’ indoor team this winter, Melrose boasts a lot of young talent. “We have some real promising talent, a lot of speed. But we also have a lot of athletes with leadership skills.”
Over sixty girls will be competing between the varsity and junior varsity level. Leading the Lady Raiders as captains will be Erin Reardon, Anne Morrison, and Jenna Delmastro. All three have earned the trust of their coach, who credits their work ethic. Delmastro, Kane contends, is a pleasant surprise. “She’s grown so much in one year. She’s blossomed into our best hurdler.”
Last season Reardon qualified in the long jump and excelled in the 100 and 200, proving her versatility, according to her coach. And there is seemingly nothing that Anne Morrison can’t do. “Her high jump was amazing last season. I can’t wait to see her do more of it. Obviously she’s quite strong in the long jump. She’s outstanding in any event she tries.”
Melrose should show promise in distance running with efforts of Tara O’Shea (2 mile) and Holly Moore (1 mile). “Tara got tall over the last year and her stride is great. Holly was a huge member of our record breaking 4×400 relay team.”
Melrose’s middle distance team should see runs by Kate Bidgood and Keira Sixsmith. Isabel Castro has proven to be a very talented 200 sprinter. Look for field events to be covered by athletes such as Molly Clark (shot put, disc) and Katie Donovan (javelin). One new face that shows promise is junior Kara Fahey. “She killed it in the triple jump in practice,” says her coach. And another is Emma Lynch Galvin, who impressed with her speed. “She came into the season in great shape,” says Kane.
And newcomers Lucia Siede and Nia Kovasev bring an enormous amount of speed and could see time in the 100m, 200m or 400m. Bridget MacDonald is showing great promise in the hurdles. And Brooke Barriss could be a jack-of-all-trades, showing tons of potential the high jump, triple jump, long jump and 100m. The team is coping with an early injury to vet Sarah Herron. “She hurt her achilles and we’re hoping for the best,” says her coach.
Across the league, look for Melrose to contend with teams such as Wakefield and Burlington, who are always competitive. “We’re hoping to reverse last year’s record of 2-3 into a winning one,” says the coach.
They get their chance when they host Wilmington on Monday at Pine Banks at 3:30 p.m.
