Londonderry High School’s girls’ and boys’ indoor track and field squads got the league meet season started in pretty superb style in the University of New Hampshire’s Paul Sweet Oval this past Sunday night, Dec. 20, with the Lady Lancers finishing first and the Lancer males finishing second in their meets.
Coach Sue Johnson’s LHS girls battled it out for the top team spot in their seven-squad meet and ended up winning it with a tally of 51 points. Nashua South was a close second (49) and the Winnacunnet High Lady Warriors from Hampton were a close third (47).
Lancer boys’ mentor Matt Smith saw his guys finish behind only Pinkerton (79 points) in their eight-team competition. The LHS crew scored 53 points, out-distancing third-place Portsmouth by a mere two points.
GIRLS
The Lady Lancers stepped into their new campaign with a pretty solid mix of veterans and newcomers, with last winter’s 32-6 contingent – which finished fifth at the Division I championships – being well represented by a bunch of skilled and determined seniors.
Among those important returning 12th graders are the versatile Yorgelis Ortiz, Courtney Guay, and Andrea Wooldridge, sprinters June Cranmer, Orianna Kane, and Julianna Slavoski, and shot-putter Sarah Moriarty.
The returning juniors include Keira Fitzmaurice (middle distances), Ellie Goodspeed (sprints), Lindsey Guenther (versatile), Kaitlyn Marchant (versatile), Gretchen McGrath (versatile), Elizabeth Stubbs (mids), Bella Ziolek (versatile). And sophomores Kalin Gregoire (mids) and Alexandra Seeley (mids) also bring key experience.
The team’s newcomers include versatile senior Jordan Dufresne, junior sprinters Devyn Enwright and Addy Garofalo, sophomores Jess Brien (sprints and jumps), Jillian Doris (versatile), and Kiara Quitayen (sprints and jumps), and freshmen Hunter Langley (shot), Ashley Lynch (sprints), Theresa Nickerson (versatile), Mary Nicoli (versatile), and Alivia Proulx (versatile).
When asked what the keys will be to a successful 2015-16 season for her crew, veteran LHS coach Sue Johnson said, “The girls will have to come together as a team in more than just name. There has to be an acceptance of a common vision and a buy-in. After that, it’s a matter of staying healthy.”
In the season-opening victory at UNH this past weekend, the locals got individual wins from McGrath in the 1,000-meter run (time of 3 minutes, 10.30 seconds), Wooldridge in the long jump (15 feet, 3/4 inches), and the 4×400 relay quartet of Cranmer, Marchant, Enwright, and McGrath (4:26.90).
Seconds were registered by Marchant in the 300-meter dash and Dufresne in the long jump, and thirds came from Guay in the 600-meter run, Gregoire in the 1,500-meter run, and Dufresne in the shot put.
BOYS
The Lancer guys’ lone event win came from Derek Davies in the 300 (38.00), but seconds were bagged by Jared Kane in the 1,500, Josh Wasserman in the 3,000-meter run, Trevor Guay in the long jump, and the squad’s 4×400 relay quartet.
Third places came from Noah Schrank in the 1,000, Chris Zaino in the 3,000, and Guay in the 55-meter hurdles.