The trend of Oxford Athletic teams getting younger this spring continued with the boys and girls track teams as Track Head Coach Andrew McDonald saw his largest freshman class enter into the program.
Overall, 27 freshman entered the track program, 14 for the boys and 13 for the girls.
For the freshman girls, the departing seniors left a high standard to live up to, as they left sitting on top of the Flint Metro League and an overall record of 7-1.
It is going to be up to Captains Hannah George, Danielle Kelley, Amanda Lewis, Katherine Bosetti, Kate Wolanin and Shannon Seeley to provide the necessary leadership to get the girls back on top of the standings.
‘It is always nice to have the senior captains be an extension (of the) coaches,? McDonald said.
The return to glory isn’t going to be easy as the competition in the FML is going to be tough.
McDonald expects the girls track teams from Holly, Swartz Creek and Brandon, which gave the Wildcats their only loss last year, to be tough.
Even with the tough schedule, McDonald sees a lot of potential in his team.
‘The girls return a lot of talent. They are hoping to repeat as FML Champs,? said Coach McDonald.
For the girls, the sprints and the field events should help provide the necessary points for a winning season.
George and Bosetti are some of the key members of the sprints, while Bosetti holds the school record for pole vaulting, which she set last year.
He also expects breakthrough years for middle distance runners Megan Seeley, Brie Berry and Olivia Hernandez as well as sprinters Kara Charles and Keeona Ives.
The boys are coming off a year where they finished fourth in FML and 5-3 overall.
It is going to be transition year because of how young the team is.
‘Even though we are a young team, we should be competitive every meet and surprise some of the teams.? McDonald said.
One of the key issues for the boys is going to be the health of the athletes.
Since there are so many younger athletes on the team, he doesn’t push them past their limits to where serious damage could happen.
McDonald is going to look towards his captains to help provide leadership for the boys.
Seniors Spencer Britt and Chase Tucker should help establish the middle distances, while Senior Kevin Jickling looks to repeat as the FML champ in pole vaulting. The other captain McDonald selected is Senior Mike Stumph.
The Wildcats are going to face some tough competition on the boys side, with Holly as the returning FML champs and Linden as the defending state champs.
‘Fenton is going to be tough because we haven’t beaten them in eight years,? McDonald said.