Fall sports get a running start ahead of season

With the start of the new school year just days away and sporting competitions beginning shortly after, athletes at Dartmouth High School have started putting in the work in preparation for their seasons ahead.

Whistles and shouts could be heard from the Carlin Lynch Activity Center as the girls volleyball team practiced and from the track’s infield where the varsity football team practiced their offensive and defensive lines. 

On the track, the boys and girls cross country teams stretched, shortly after returning from a run.

Hilary Sousa, the head coach of the cross country teams, said she’s excited by the number of students who registered for cross country this fall.

Between the boys and girls teams, there are 45 athletes this year, with the majority of them being underclassmen.

“It is a very young team, and we hope to build on this season and get stronger every week,” Sousa said.

At the beginning of the season, the athletes will have slightly different workouts and runs based on whether they’re newcomers or returning runners. Then, as the season progresses, their runs and workouts will look similar.

“You kind of have to base it on their ability and what training they put in over the summer,” Sousa said.

As part of an effort to grow the cross country program, eighth graders can register and get a taste for the sport before entering high school.

Emma Delgado, now an incoming freshman, joined the team as an eighth grader and said the team is growing since “the more people do it, the more the word spreads.”

As an eighth grader, Delgado competed on the varsity team and even made it to the state meets. She said it feels different being on the team as a high schooler now, which she said is “kind of nerve wracking.”

“I was so young before, but now I’m kind of somebody who they could look up to if they were trying to run or ask questions if they want to see how it was, so it’s definitely different,” she said.

Joseph Oliver-Wong, a senior and team captain for the boys team, said he sees “a lot of running potential” in the younger athletes and said he feels like “it’s going to be a good year in that sense.”

In terms of goals for the season, Joseph Leone, another team captain said he hopes to run faster than last year and that his teammates get PRs “so we have a stronger team.”

Oliver-Wong said, “Just PR, encourage everyone to do the same, work hard, just kind of practical, practice, practice and just push.”

Rachel Lassey, head coach of the girls varsity volleyball team, said she has several goals for the season ahead, which includes developing a chemistry together.

After graduating eight seniors last year, Lassey said there’s a “whole new squad out there.”

“We are talking about being a good teammate and being mentally tougher, being a true competitor, but keeping everything positive,” Lassey said.

She said she isn’t focusing on the wins and losses because she knows what the team is capable of.

“That comes second to making sure we’re gelling together as a team,” she said.

Just four days into practice, Lassey noted the team’s defense is going to be its greatest strength and said they will likely have a powerful serving team as well.

“We got to work on our hitting execution … and again that comes with the chemistry too,” she said.

Volleyball team captain and senior Lindsey Barder agreed that one of the team’s strengths this year will be its defense, which she said is “pretty important.”

“Without good defense, can’t really run offense,” she said, “So I’m pretty excited for our defense.”

Barder said that while the team didn’t have a bad season last year, she hopes that this year it will be better.

“We have a lot more younger talent this year, so I think we’ll be able to utilize that to our advantage,” she said. “We have a pretty deep bench, we have a lot of defense and good hitters, so I’m pretty excited.”