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Woonsocket boys shooting for division championship this winter |
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Thursday, 13 December 2007 |
By STEVE MAZZONE
Call Sports Writer
WOONSOCKET --- In a good way, Woonsocket High track coach George Briggs admits he's a little envious of neighboring rival Cumberland this time of year.
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By STEVE MAZZONE
Call Sports Writer
WOONSOCKET --- In a good way, Woonsocket High track coach George Briggs admits he's a little envious of neighboring rival Cumberland this time of year.
No matter how good his Villa Novans have been during the boys' indoor track campaign, the Clippers always seem to be a step above. In the last six years alone, Cumberland has compiled a 47-1 dual-meet mark in the Northern Division and has won the season-ending league championship each and every year. Meanwhile, Woonsocket has finished second in the dual-meet season four times and was tied for first with Cumberland and Tolman in 2002-03.
Briggs is not saying this will be the year that his Villa Novans will finally break through and attain that long-awaited divisional crown, but he's certainly excited what's in store for the coming season.
"This may be the deepest team that (assistant coach) Bobby Doyle and I have had in a long, long while," Briggs said. "We have a lot of good athletes. We are solid in every area. A lot of kids are coming of age."
In the year's past, the Woonsocket coach has had a problem retaining athletes for whatever reason, particularly the underclassmen. That has changed recently, and is partly the reason for Briggs' optimism.
"Two years ago we had 17 freshmen start with us," he said. "They are still with us and that are juniors now. We are just very pleased. The numbers are fantastic. We usually have about 25 athletes. Right now, about 45 athletes show up on a daily basis."
Woonsocket began its league season on Wednesday night with a sweep of Lincoln and Shea. Some of the key athletes on this year's team showed their early-season form at the meet, held at CCRI-Lincoln.
Senior Corey Brunelle, a multiple All-Stater in cross-country and a top middle distance runner, easily won the 1,500 meter run, cruising to a strong time of 4 minutes, 24.1 seconds. As a junior last year, Brunelle was fourth (4:10.2) and sixth (4:06.37) in the indoor and outdoor state meets, respectively.
"He didn't lap the field (Wednesday) but he was close to it," Briggs said. "He definitely had a lot left."
Other quality middle and long distance runners are Jason Allard and Eric Jarrett, who finished 1-2 in the 3,000 against the Lions and Raiders.
In the high jump, the Villa Novans have two athletes that are capable of clearing six feet or higher on a consistent basis with junior Chris Penso and sophomore Wesley DeChristofaro. The two teammates tied for sixth (5 feet, 10 inches) at last year indoor meet. Penso won on Wednesday with a height of 6-0, while DeChristafaro was the runner-up at 5-10.
In what he describes as a "very strong group of hurdlers," Briggs will be counting on team
captain Suthi Seneth, Sean Ceccofiglio and Travis Cournoyer for some strong placements. All three are capable of running in the low seven-second range.
Promising sophomore Geoff Phaneuf is the Villa Novans' top sprinter. He won the 200-meter dash at last spring's Freshmen State Meet. He was third in the 45 dash (5.8) and second in the 300 (41.0) in Wednesday's meet. His most impressive performance, however, occurred in the 4 x 160-meter relay. As the anchor leg, Phaneuf blitzed around the oval in a sizzling time of 17.5 to lead the Villa Novans to a victory over the speedy Raiders.
"He has a lot of talent," Briggs said. "He came from way behind against Shea. It's been a long time since we won a relay over them. It was nice to see."
Woonsocket lost a handful of talented athletes from last year's team, including multiple All-Stater Craig Pearce. Pearce, a two-time state titlist in both the 25-pound weight and the hammer, is now a freshman at Princeton University.
Chaz Lizotte, who hovers in the 40-foot range in both the shot put and the weight throw, is the strongest for the Villa Novans in those events. The weight event will be coached by former WHS graduate Marc Piette, who starred for the Villa Novans in 2000.
Other than the state championship in Febraury, Briggs and the Villa Novans have the date Jan. 2 circled on their calendar. That's when the Clippers and the Villa Novans will compete against each other along with Ponaganset. In its dual-meet opener on Wednesday, the Clippers swept
past St. Raphael Academy and Tolman.
He has the numbers, and so far it appears he has the talent. For once, Briggs hopes that will add up to a long-awaited Northern Division crown, but he's knows it won't be easy.
"We know the Northern Division title goes through Cumberland first," he said. "It's been a long while (since we won). Cumberland has just been so dominant. For years, we just keep getting closer. We are often in envy of what they have done. But it's just a great rivalry."
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Last Updated ( Saturday, 22 December 2007 )
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