Lynn track teams off and running

When the opening guns sound for the Lynn English and Lynn Tech boys? and girls? track teams on Wednesday afternoon, all of the city?s four high school running programs will have officially begun their indoor seasons. Both St. Mary?s and Lynn Classical opened last week.
?It?s sure going to be nice to get going again,” said English girls? coach, Brenda Martin, whose squad was scheduled for a meet at Winthrop on Friday, along with the boys, before it was postponed due to the venue not being available.
Both Bulldogs teams will open on Wednesday against Revere.
?The kids are ready to go,” said boys? coach John Walsh. “It would have been nice to get a meet in last week but an extra week of training isn?t the worst thing.”
Martin?s group will feature the same core group from last season: seniors Georgejet Kotee (50-meter dash) and Marne McManus (1000-meter, mile), who are co-captains, along with Brianna Maynard (50-meter), Nneka Lloba and Ikhia Ukhuedoba.
Junior captain Brianna Silencioux will be a key contributor in the shot put while sophomore Elizabeth Ruzon will compete in the hurdles and high jump.
?This is a group that?s coming back more dedicated than ever after not winning a meet last season,” said Martin.
Freshman Mia Pasuy is expected to pay immediate dividends as well.
For the English boys, senior co-captains C.J. Hernandez (high jump) and Justin Kim (600-meter) lead a team coming off a one-win season.
Junior James Cabral will be a triple threat in the high jump, 600 meters and 300 meters, where he figures to stage a friendly battle with sophomore teammate Kevin Francisco.
St. Mary?s co-ed got off to a fantastic start with an 81-58 victory over Catholic Central League rival Archbishop Williams on Saturday. The Spartans finished last season 2-5 overall.
?Our entire team is of the same mind-set that they can continue to improve day after day,” said coach Heather Woods. “As a coach, it?s great to see that kind of team-wide motivation.”
Senior co-captains Tia Foglietta (mile, two mile) and Mollie Mello (55-meter race, 300-meter) continue to play major roles, along with junior captain Toni Vinciarelli (55-meter), who is recovering from an unspecified injury.
Woods will also be relying on juniors Diana Hallisey (55-meter hurdles) and Ellie Martin (shot put) watching along with freshman Samantha Saunders (600 meters, 1000 meters).
On the boys? side, junior co-captains Cody Muangi (mile, two miles) and Shane O?Neill (55-meter hurdles) lead an extremely young group that includes sophomores Fred Blaise (shot put) and Brendan Donahue (55-meter dash, 300-meter).
A trio of cross-country runners — Cullen Coyle, Matt McManus and Cody Murtagh — will be welcomed into the mix.Classical earned a split decision against Swampscott with the girls winning 44-42 while the boys were defeated, 54-33.
In the Rams? winning effort, Devyn Astucio took first in the 55-meters hurdles (9.22) in addition to victories from Agnes Bangura in the 55-meter dash (7.3) and Jenn Gaudet in the 300 meters (46.3).
The trio teamed with Jenn Ierardi to win the team relay with a combined time of 4:33.
Rachel Jordan won the 600-meter race with a time of 1:53.4 while Ivy Martin and Soraya Auguste both impressed with the shot put.
In boys? action, the Rams got a win from Elias Gervacio in the 55-meter hurdles (8.8) as well as first place finishes from Tom Mackin in the two-mile rac (11:06.8) and Renzo Pappaterra in the 55-meter dash (6.8).
A young Tech team will rely on a trio of young talents, two of whom are making the transition from cross country. Sophomore Edgar Ortega and freshman Jayden Rowe will both compete in the mile and two-mile races while getting their feet wet in the high jump.In recent outdoor training sessions, Ortega won the “Lynne?s Kids 5K Fun Run/Walk” on Thanksgiving morning before a pair of second-place finishes at the “18-Hole Par 70 5K” race at Gannon Golf Course on Nov. 28 and the “Santa Run” on Sunday that began at the Knig