By David Willis
The day before the All-State meet, Andover's 4x400 relay team did not find its way to the track. Instead, the foursome spent the afternoon in a classroom.
"We didn't practice," remembered Rob Martin. "Coach (Scott) Price sat us down for a meeting. We went over each relay member's individual jobs and what time they should run. We talked about bringing our 'A' game.
"First, coach Price wrote our time if we ran our 'B' game. Then he erased it and wrote our 'A' game. That was our goal, and we rewarded him the next day."
Reward him they did.
Behind the efforts of the record-setting relay team and clutch work on the pole vault, Andover won the Massachusetts All-State Track and Field Championships in Fitchburg on Saturday. The Golden Warriors finished with 38.50 points, edging Merrimack Valley Conference archrival Lawrence (29).
"It was unbelievable," said Martin. "There is nothing better than winning a state title. You can't beat what we were able to do. And that we repeated was amazing. It makes it 10 times better to repeat."
The win was extra special because it matched the efforts of the 2008-09 indoor track team, which won its first ever All-State title this year.
The last boys team track championship before 2009 came when the outdoor squad took the crown in 1984, according to Comeau. The girls last won the All-State title in the 2007-08 winter season. Prior to the track team's historic 2009, no Andover High boys team had won a title since the baseball team won back-to-back titles in 1991-92.
"Any team dreams of winning one state title," said coach Peter Comeau. "Now we have won indoor, and validated that by taking the outdoor title. This was probably the hardest meet that I have ever been part of as a coach."
Martin admitted there were butterflies in his stomach when the baton reached his hands as the anchor leg of the crucial 4x400 relay.
"I was very nervous," he said. "Randolph was right behind us, and their anchor (Emmanuel Jean) was the 400-meter champion. I was thinking about him the entire length, and didn't want him to catch me like he did in indoors. My teammates did an excellent job setting me up with a big lead. I knew what I had to bring in the final leg, and had to sustain."
The team of Mark Vetere, Connor O'Neill, Brendan Crawford and Martin ended up surging to victory in the 4x400 relay with a 3:22.19. That was well ahead of No. 2 Randolph (3:23.27), and broke their old school record set just one week ago.
That was not the only relay team to make their mark. The squad of Kerrick Stevens, Vetere, Crawford and Christopher McConnell added a second-place finish in the 4x100 in 43.24.
"Kerrick and Vetere almost lost the handoff," remembered Comeau. "I thought we were in fifth or sixth when Chris got the baton. He ran an awesome leg, and to get second was huge. We were fortunate."
Martin said that Andover's well-noted dominance of relay events is not the norm in high school track.
"Our strategy turns the whole idea of track upside down," he said. "Coach Comeau always tells us we'll win our championships on relays. Other schools like BC High have Corey Thomas who they expect to score 20 points. It's a lot of pressure, and he was disappointed in himself after. We don't place the burden on one person."
But the Golden Warriors still needed three points out of the pole vaulters to clinch the meet, and the Vetere brothers more than delivered.
Mark continued his record-setting spring by winning the event with a 14-6. Much-improved Adam took sixth with a 12-6.
"I knew I had a job to do," said Mark. "I struggled a lot during the week in practice, but I have been doing well in meets. It all came down to form. Adam is also doing really well."
For the second year in a row, dynamic sprinter McConnell placed second in the 100-meter, running a 10.87. That was just behind Vinnie Lee of Walpole (10.85), and contributed eight big points for the win.
"Winning was so exciting," said Adam Vetere. "We lost a few good kids from the indoor champion team, but we really pushed hard and were able to score the points to win the championship. It was excellent."
Cronin a champ
The boys weren't the only Golden Warriors to excel at All-States. Sophomore sensation Moira Cronin continued her record-setting season by winning the pole vault with a 5-6. Melissa Knapp added a fourth in the 200 (25.65).
