After spectacular undefeated seasons from both the boys and girls’ teams last winter, Andover Indoor Track looks to continue its dominance this year with its core of returning athletes. “We have a younger team this year, so learning fundamentals and then hard and fast training will be the most important aspects of our prepping, and hopefully will pay off at meets,” said Boys Co- Captain Turner Shaw ’11. In the long and short distance events especially, it will be essential to develop younger runners to complement the returning core and create much needed depth. Girls’ Captain Claire Harmange ’11 said, “This group might not yet have all the skill, but they have amazing will- power and energy that will support the knowledge and strength of the veterans.” The shot-put event faces a similar situation, with several new young athletes rising more prominent roles on the team. Coach Bernieri said, “While we have a whole new throwing crew this winter, we have a lot of talent among both girls and boys, so I expect that we’ll be good.” The squad also looks to remain especially dominant in the hurdles event led by Joe Kruy ’12, the long jump, led by Mike Wang’11, and the pole vault, led by Shaw. “We still have some incredibly gifted runners and jumpers on the team, in the class of 2012 especially, who I expect to break through in a big way this year,” said Shaw. Not only is Andover looking for continued overall team success, but it is also putting great emphasis on each athlete setting and striving for personal goals. “Some athletes just want to get in shape, others want specific times that will carry on to outdoor track, while others just want to participate in a fun team sport and learn a new skill,” Harmange said. “This year we’re making sure that we cater to every type of goal. I think the success of the season will come from achieving these goals.” Head Coach Corbin Lang aims to emphasize these fundamentals early and often. “It is important to develop good habits and good routines, and if we can have our athletes do this, we will have good results,” said Lang. While still in the preparation stage, ultimately, Andover has all the components it needs to pull off another strong season. “I see people out on the track ready to work hard,” said Harmange. “They’re excited, and this will lead to great improvement and success.” Improvement will be the focus in the team’s first meet, which will be a good opportunity for athletes in each event to measure their own strengths and weaknesses in competition. Andover Boys and Girls Indoor Track will host Wilbraham, Governors, and Hyde, in the Cage on Wednesday, January 12 for the first meet of the year.
