Gilberto Brown

The Boston Globe has selected the annual Indoor Track & Field All Scholastics team.  Read about the accomplishments of both the athletes and coaches from this past winter season.   (via www.boston.com)

Based on the performance list entering the meet, the Newton North boys were projected to score 24 points.  Even further down the list, Mansfield was projected to only score 14 points.  Both should have finished mid-pack if the performance list had any significant impact on the outcome of the championship.  Thankfully for both teams, seed times mean little.

Every event in a state championship provides excitement and drama, but this year the relays may decide the team title. But don't expect to see the same line-ups from last week. Some additional fresh legs --courtesy of athletes that did not qualify in an individual event-- may help the common man become the hero. We watched it happen on Sunday at the Division 1 Championships, and those same teams remain in the hunt this week.

Newton North continues to accomplish what is unimaginable to most teams, and this time they may have outdone themselves.  They scored 20 points in the long jump with four different girls contributing to the total.  Most teams would be thrilled to score 20 points in a meet, or have one athlete in the finals of a major division championship.  The depth was on display as a bevy of athletes assumed their role within the program for the greater good of the team.  The entire situation speaks volumes about the character of the athletes and the trust they have in the coaching staff.

It was a record breaking day as the Newton North girls took home the team title and set three meet records in the process.   The Tigers surpassed the previous best marks in the 4x50 Yard Relay (24.52), the 4x50 Yard Hurdles Relay (29.11), and the Long Jump (49’4.25).  Carla Forbes was a major part of the dash relay and long jump relay; in addition to anchoring the winning 4x400m relay. 

The MSTCA Winter Festival signaled the start of major invitational action in Massachusetts, and several prominent athletes from last year picked up right where they left off.  It was an impressive first day at the Reggie Lewis Center as the Small School athletes were on center stage Saturday. 

The indoor track season is upon us and it’s time to take a look at the top returners from each event.

Massachusetts distance strength was on display in the 5,000m and Nicole Genard set a new meet record in the javelin. (Photo by Maroon News).

Relays and records were the story of the week as the Penn Relays, District E Relays, and MSTCA State Relays all fell on the same weekend.