May 12, 2023 – Story by Ava DiCecca
As their regular season came to an end, both the Harbormen and Harborwomen stepped up and finished off with a win as the boys defeated Duxbury 71-65 and the girls did the same 112-23. The girls have been solid and impressive all season long, finishing with an undefeated record of 5-0, capturing the Patriot League Keenan Division title and while the boys had some setbacks towards the beginning of the season, they finished strong and in second place overall with a record of 4-1.
There have been many key performers throughout the season that have led to these wins, and it is those same performers that shined this past Tuesday. On the girl’s side, the main contributors to Hingham’s dominating performance were Margaret Lowther with a PR of 34-11 in the triple jump and a time of 12.49 in the 100, followed up by Emma Mills at 12.81 in the 100; Kelsey Tarbey with a 36-01 in the triple jump which is a 6th all-time Hingham record; Elyse Jones with a 15-07 long jump; freshman Gabby Ferrara with a 13:14 PR in the two mile; Meghan Koenen who won shot put and clinched an impressive time of 1:10 in the 400 hurdles; and Catherine Salem in the 100 hurdles at 17.79.
On the boy’s side, it was the performance of the 4×1 relay team composed of Colin McNamara, Jack Brockney, James MacDonald, and Brendan Hill that began to shift the momentum, and when followed by a win in the 400 by Bryce Botelho with Griffin Coppola close behind in second, it was clear that this momentum would remain in Hingham’s favor. Other big performances came from Griffin Coppola, Cole Sampson, and Brendan Hill who swept the long jump, Cole Sampson again with a 147-01 PR in javelin, and especially Brendan Burm who has been incredibly strong for the Harbormen all season and secured this win for them with his decisive run and victory in the two-mile.
This win is evidently a result of hard work and persistence as both teams have shown fantastic improvement from the start of the season. Overall, they seem much more comfortable in their events and roles on the team, and as their regular season came to a close, head coaches Fred Jewett and Bob Ritz were asked to reflect on how their teams have progressed over the past month.
“[Our seniors] they just kept getting stronger all year long and they’re healthy now so that has helped to carry us, but the thing that’s really been nice, is that they’ve been kind of inspiring the younger kids too and the younger kids have worked really really hard” commented Coach Jewett. He seemed incredibly proud of their performance as a whole and he stated that from the beginning they have been “a team first and individuals second” which is something that has propelled them throughout the season and helped them to become extremely well-rounded.
Girls Coach Bob Ritz showed nothing but pride and enthusiasm for the season up to this point and for the future of his team. He stated that there was “commitment every day” and “having upperclassmen that have been competing in Patriot league and state meets from freshman and sophomore year on, having a great senior class show by example, and having the younger class follow and look at this great leadership” has been instrumental to their season. As far as their season going forward he commented that “this meet is very hopeful, very grateful for what’s excited to come…I just can’t wait, it’s really exciting to say the least.”
Both coaches commended their seniors for their dependability and strong leadership, as well as their underclassmen, for their coachability and willingness to put in the work to reach the higher level of some older competitors. It is because of this effort on all fronts that they are able to come away with big wins like these and it is clear that there are still great things to come from both teams as they get closer to some of their bigger and increasingly competitive meets later on in the season.