February 7, 2023 – Story and photos by Joshua Ross
There are high expectations when you are defending league champions. The boys winter track team is trying hard to meet those expectations even with losing star athletes like Avery Warshaw, Thomas Shetzline, and Jared Salem. The team finished the regular season with a 3-3 record with two of those loses coming by four points or less, including last week’s loss to Duxbury 51-49.
The bright side is that there is a cohort of underclassmen who are making an impact and improving every week. In recent weeks, over 30 members of the team recorded a personal best in their event.
Head coach Fred Jewett is pleased with the progress his team is making.
“This is a very young team that has gained confidence and respect over the season,” Jewett said. “We finished with a 3-3 record but are developing daily. In week 5 we lost a close Meet to Duxbury and have been able to hold our own this winter with underclass athletes. I am super proud of how hard they work in practice and compete in meets. They are the foundation of our future in a very tough Patriot League.”
The key to rebuilding any program is to give the younger athletes the experience and opportunities to grow and learn in a very competitive environment. The creation of the Middle School track program a few years ago may already be paying dividends at the varsity level.
” We are seeing top all time Hingham performances in the sophomores and freshmen that with continued development we feel we will be in great shape by next year,” adds Jewett.
With the experience and leadership of his upperclassmen and some key people coming back from injury, Jewett is hopeful of his team’s chances as championship season begins this week starting with the Patriot League Championship meet on Friday at the Reggie Lewis Center in Boston.
“Our seniors have been great leaders but with a few key injuries we have been hamstrung. We hope that changes going into the next two weeks.”
