By JENNIFER GENTILE
BRIGHTON—The reigning Middlesex Freedom League girls indoor track team is off to a flying start, and similar to the schools boy’s team, has secured an undefeated 2-0 debut to their season with critical wins over league rivals Wakefield and Burlington.
A massive 73 athletes are competing on the team this year, and they are led by senior captains Maizie Frakt, Cadence L’Heureux, Kensington Ludlum, and Jill Frawley, along with 6 more seniors. “This is the biggest indoor team we’ve had in a long time,” says head coach Shannon Kane.
Melrose kicked their season off with a 62-37 win over Burlington on Dec. 19. Key to that win were wins in the 1000, the mile, the 55 dash and long jump, which Melrose swept with a strong 15’4 jump from Cadence L’Heureux, who later increased that to 16’4 at the Boston Holiday Classic qualifier last weekend. Coach Kane was happy with the sweep in the event over Burlington. “Lauren Healy learned to jump the day of the meet and came in second, with a jump of 14’3″. Amelia Kelley has only ever jumped one other time, at this meet she PR’ed by 2 feet, coming in 3rd with a jump of 13’8″.
Melrose has showed early strength in distance running, events that they have been consistently strong over the years. “Our distance squad is led by returners Maizie Frankt, Kensie Ludlum, Cadence L’Heureux, Emma, and Reilly Powell. We have some new distance runners on the team this year that we are really excited about, Ella Yorker, Nora McCormick, and Teagan Altman. The biggest thing across all events is, we have a lot more depth this year, so where we had a few distance runners or a few sprinters in the past, this year we have a lot more girls who can step up and score points.”
Melrose sprints are lead by returners Abby Taylor, Jill Frawley, and Lilah Fauci. “We have so many new sprinters and hurdlers this year. Lara McLucas came over from basketball and has been such a standout in the 55 and 4×200. Lauren Healy also came over from basketball and has been a huge asset in the hurdles, 300, and 4×200. Colby Finch, Maddy Bencal, and Ella Walsh have all already made a big impact on our team as well,” reports the coach.
Their 4×200 relay team of Jill Frawley, Abby Taylor, Lara McLucas and Lauren Healy had a nice first place finish against Wakefield.
One big standout for Melrose has been junior Emme Boyer who is topping competition in the shot put, including in their meet against Wakefield. “Emme has PRed every meet in shot this season, today she threw 36’ (which is insane),” says the coach. “Emme is also excelling in high jump and teaching our new freshman and sophomores how to high jump.”
Other new high jump stars are Amelia Kelley, Avery Bencal, and Lilah Croach.
With such a strong start, it’s certainly conceivable that Melrose can repeat a league title. “We would love to win it again this year, and I think it is very much a possibility,” says Kane. “We have a lot more depth compared to seasons past and more depth compared to other teams in the league.”
Yet, she predicts that Wilmington on Jan. 7 will be a challenging meet. “Wilmington always has something up their sleeves and will come at us hard, especially in the sprints, throws, and jumps.”
