Header Boys' Track Team Gunning for Peabody

After an undefeated season in 2010, the Marblehead boys’ track team felt a little unsatisfied because they didn’t get to test their mettle against Peabody.

The Headers finished 7-0 last spring, with a nice win over Swampscott to close out the track season, but the Tanners loomed large in minds of track team members.

Peabody is undefeated in league meets since they joined the revamped Northeastern Conference four years ago, and the Header track and field men are itching to put the first blemish on Tanners NEC record.

“Oh, yeah, we want to go right at them,” senior co-captain Jake Smith said before practice at the high school field house Friday afternoon. "It will be a huge test for us to see what kind of team we have this year.”

The team won’t have long to wait; the Headers square off against Peabody in the second meet of the season, April 12, in the Tanner City.

“I know the team can’t wait to see Peabody,” coach Brian Crowley said Friday. “They’re a great team, they have a huge number of kids competing for them, and it will be a big test for our team.”

The Headers open up the regular season on Wednesday, April 6, at home against the Saugus Sachems.

“We’ve got no problem with the runners right now, “ Crowley said. “But the weather has really been tough on our field guys; we can’t really measure where we’re at throwing in the cages indoors.”

Smith will be joined by senior captains Tyson Miller, Henry Pratt and Will Herlihy to provided the leadership for Crowley’s team in 2011.

Miller has been battling back from an injury and hopes to be back in action soon in the 800 and the triple jump.

“The triple jump is kind of an awkward event for some people, I started doing it in middle school and I really got hooked on it the first time I tried it,” Miller said.

“Peabody is really a tough challenge for us, they’re the class of the league and we really want to see how we stack up against them as a team,” Miller said.

“The captain’s practices were excellent before the spring season started, “ miler Henry Pratt said. “We had the best turnout we’ve had for them in the four years I’ve been here. In addition to the mile, Pratt runs the quarter mile and the two-mile.

“We beat Swampscott in the relay last year to win the meet and take the conference championship (Northeastern Conference South), we’ve got 71 kids out this year, and if we work hard we can be successful,” Crowley said.

2011 Schedule

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