It’ll be a long time before Franklin County has a track season like it did last year. 

Between Frontier’s Jack Vecellio and Greenfield’s Liviu Mihailicenco, the Recorder Area had a pair of state champions last year as Vecellio captured the title in the pole vault while Mihailicenco won the high jump. On the girls side Greenfield’s Tess Rancourt placed third at New England’s in the shot put while Mahar’s Sienna Moore won the MIAA Div. 6 pole vault title. 

It’s rare to have one of those types of athletes in the area, never mind four of them. With all four all now graduated, the landscape in the area will look much different this spring.

Both the Frontier boys and girls track teams went unbeaten during the regular season last year — the Redhawk girls also winning the Western Mass. Div. 2 title — and with how both opened the season last Friday against Greenfield, it looks like the Redhawks will once again be a tough out this spring. 

 “We have a positive outlook,” Frontier girls coach Bob Smith said. “We will work to be the best we can be.” 

Caroline Crocker is coming off a winter season in which she placed second in the Div. 5 state meet in the 55 hurdles. At the Western Mass. Div. 2 outdoor meet a season ago, Crocker pulled out a first-place finish in the 100-meter hurdles while Hannah Mackin took third in the mile and Abigail Howard earned second in the high jump (5-0). Mackin and Howard are also back this year on a Redhawk team that doesn’t lack in experience as it shoots for its second straight Western Mass. title. 

Replacing Vecellio on the boys side won’t be easy, but Frontier has plenty of experience returning as it looks to make a run at a Western Mass. title. Ian Burt, Ben Cachiguango and Adrien Pazmandy each won two events in the Redhawks’ opening meet against Greenfield last week and will be athletes to watch this spring while eighth grader Evan Hedlund competed at the Nike Indoor Track Nationals in March and placed fourth in the middle school mile. Erich Brown was second to Mihailicenco in the high jump at Western Mass.

Emmy Sisum returns for the Mohawk Trail girls team, who placed fifth in the 400 hurdles at Western Mass. a season ago. Natalie Lanoue and Valerie Bzomowski return with Sisum on the Warriors’ 4x800 team which qualified for Div. 6 states last spring. 

Chay Mojallali showed well in the high jump during the indoor season, finishing in fifth place at the Div. 5 state meet last month. Mohawk Trail must replace Dennis Simmons, who placed eighth in the 2-mile at Div. 6 states. 

Not only is Greenfield tasked with replacing Mihailicenco and Rancourt, but it also lost Theo Popusoi, who if it wasn’t for Vecellio, would have multiple Western Mass. titles in the pole vault. 

Lillia Kachelmeyer is one of those returners who qualified for states last year, as she placed sixth in the discus at the Div. 6 state meet. The senior had the fourth best qualifying toss heading into states, and with the three ahead of her graduated, Kachelmeyer should be in a position to once again compete for a state title in the event. Ava Fortin, Suhani Patel and Makayla Valente are others to watch for the Green Wave. 

Deion Brewington qualified for states in the 100 and shot put last year and is set to return this season in both events. Jackson Caron is coming off a big indoor season which saw him take 22nd in the mile and 20th in the 1,000 at the Div. 5 state meet. 

“We’re very young,” Green Wave boys coach Stu Elliott said. “The older kids we have are inexperienced and we have a lot of young kids, which is a good thing in the long run.” 

The Pioneer girls had a great season a year ago, suffering its lone loss to Frontier. 

Nina St. Clair returns after a big spring last year that saw her place second in at Western Mass. in the 100 as an eighth grader. Hailey Ring, Caroline Ring, Addie Harrington and Fota N’Diaye are other to watch while Jonathan Bodenstein, Griffin de Ruiter and Ryan Spofford are some of the Pioneer boys to keep an eye on this spring. 

“The numbers are great and the kids are great,” Panther coach Erin Thayer said. “They’re working hard. I hope the kids reach the goals they’ve put forth for themselves and continue to grow all season long.” 

It would typically be hard to replace an athlete like Moore at Mahar. Fortunately for them, her younger sister, Stellina Moore, is waiting in the wings to take over her spot as the top pole vaulter with the Sens. 

Stellina Moore placed third at Western Mass. in the pole vault as a seventh grader last year, and with the two finishers above her now graduated, she will have a chance to replace her older sister as the top pole vaulter in the area. 

Dom Whitman, Noah Rich, Liam DiDonato, Jeff LaPlante and Sophia Woods are other Sens to keep an eye out for this spring. 

The Franklin Tech boys got out to a strong start to the season with a win over Pioneer last week. Brayden McCord, David Stowe, Josiah Little, Cameren Candelaria and Maddix Whitman are a few athletes primed for big springs for the Eagles. The Turners girls are led by Ella Guidaboni, Jaade Duncan and Jazzlyn Gonzalez, Duncan and Gonzalez having qualified for Western Mass. a year ago. 

Sydney Gauvin, Karleigh Chase, Alex Masaitis and Riley Reed are the three returners for Athol who qualified for Western Mass. last year, with Gauvin competing in the girls shot put and discus, Chase in the girls shot put, Masaitis in the  boys triple jump and Reed in the boys shot pu   t and javelin. 

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