Category Archives: Triton

February 24, 2010 · 3:12 pm

Triton Cheerleaders Practice to be the Best

Triton cheerleader coach Erin Dempsey puts squad through Friday afternoon practice

(Byfield) If you want to avoid crowds, just show up at a high school thirty minutes after the dismissal bell on the Friday afternoon that leads into February vacation. 

That is what I did at Triton on the afternoon of (Friday) February 13th.  While nearly everyone else in the school had headed for the exits, the Triton High School cheerleaders were involved in an afternoon practice.

“Even though basketball has ended we’ll continue to practice because we have two competitions left,” explained Coach Erin Dempsey.  The next competition for the Viking squad will be the Braintree Winter Cheerleading Invitational on February 21st.

Triton captured a solid second place finish to Wilmington in the Cape Ann League competition (February 7th at Triton) and received a high enough score to move on to the regionals.

“In the CAL competition, each team performs a 2 ½ minute routine,” said Coach Dempsey.  “We’re scored on specific areas like; gymnastics, pyramids, partner stunts, motions, and dance.  We incorporate all of those things into the routine. I thought that our strong points at the CAL’s were tumbling and pyramids.”

The team performs before four judges who each can give up to 25 points for the team’s performance.  A team has to total at least 67 points to move on to the regionals and Triton has accomplished that in each of the last six seasons.

Triton has not won the Cape Ann League title yet, but optimism abounds.  “We’re getting better and closer to the top and have just one senior,” added Coach Dempsey.  “We have a good crop of 8th grade cheerleaders coming in with 8-10 of them trying out for the football squad in June.”

Coach Dempsey referred to “good team chemistry” and tri-captain Becca Moore confirmed it – “The girls on the team become your family and you form bonds that are unbreakable.”

Another of the tri-captains (Lindsey Goldstein) told me something I already assumed, “There are injuries (in cheering) and it can be dangerous.”

Triton cheerleaders practice

Only those attending cheerleading competitions see the girls’ full repertoire.  “The rubberized track at the football games and the hardwood floors at basketball games are unsafe places for us to do some of the things we do in cheerleading competitions,” explained Coach Dempsey. 

In the CAL, cheerleaders are limited to doing a routine at halftime and tumbling during timeouts.  The rest of the time, they sit in the bleachers.  Football is a better arrangement, according to Coach Dempsey, “In football the crowd is in front of us and we can interact with them.  In basketball we’re secluded and limited as to what we can do.”

Cheerleading is a varsity sport at Triton and just like other varsity sports, there are plenty of opportunities to continue in the sport (like travel teams) away from the high school setting.  “In the spring, a lot of girls switch over to All-Stars where organizations have their own gyms and travel to competitions throughout the country,” said Coach Dempsey.  “I coach an All-Star team in Danvers and we travel nationally.”

In the summer, the Triton cheerleading squad attends a 3-day camp at URI.  “We’ve done it for two years,” recalled Coach Dempsey.  “There in a relaxed atmosphere we get to work on team-building, tumbling, and stunts.” 

Although cheering is demanding in many ways, it is still worth it, according to Viking tri-captain Makayla Fernandez. “I have been cheering since I was seven,” she said. “I’ve gotten plenty of good exercise and had a lot of fun.”

( This story appeared in The Town Common on February 24, 2010. )

Leave a comment

Filed under Triton

Tagged as , , , , ,

December 21, 2009 · 10:45 pm

Ipswich Streaks By Triton 62-46 in Cape Ann League Opener

Traveling Tiger fans had plenty to cheer about as Ipswich put points together in bunches against Triton

(Byfield) A put-back at the first quarter buzzer by junior Doug Martone started Ipswich on a 17-0 run that gave the Tigers a 28-14 lead before the run ended at 2:40 of the second period on a Jedd Hutchins free throw.

Triton never recovered and the final score was 62-46 on Monday night as both teams opened their Cape Ann League seasons.  Both teams are now 1-3 overall.

During the game-deciding seventeen straight, Doug had another put-back basket as well as two other layups. He was set up by Brenden Gallagher on the first and Colin Smith on the second.

Ipswich played some pretty serious man-to-man defense throughout and that led to another stretch of empty Triton possessions that started at the end of the first half and went four minutes into the third quarter.

Specifically, the Vikings missed four shots and turned the ball over on the other four possessions.  Meanwhile the Tigers ran off twelve unanswered points.

Aaron Jessen – Tallied ten points including an NBA-range trey

Three of those points came on an NBA-range long one by senior Aaron Jessen.  Freshman Colin Smith was the catalyst in the rest of them with a layup, a free throw, and assists on baskets by Brandon Ashe and Doug Shaughnessy.

Now up, 47-24, the bench-clearing started and continued until the end.  Tom Bashaw tallied ten points for Triton in the last quarter.

Ipswich has had difficulty handling pressure in previous games but Triton’s poor shooting (17 for 59 overall – 28.8%) limited their opportunities to press.

The Vikings had some good looks at 3’s but even in their own gym made just 5-of-18.  Blaise Whitman’s trey ended the Tiger 12-point run in the third quarter.

Those on hand at the start wouldn’t have predicted the final score because after five minutes Triton led, 10-4, and Ipswich had already committed six turnovers including four in a row.  However, Ipswich recovered and went on two impressive scoring runs that clinched this one.

Doug Martone topped IHS scorers with eleven (all in the first half), while Darren Lewis paced Triton with fourteen.

The Tigers did end up with 21 turnovers but most of them did not lead to Triton easy baskets.  In other games, the turnovers have opened up the floodgates to layups.

Things didn’t go well for the Triton cheerleaders, either.

The Triton faithful didn’t have much to cheer about after the first five minutes.  Matters got worse at halftime when the Triton cheerleaders were unable to do their routine because the music needed wasn’t available.

Triton next meets Lynnfield at home on Wednesday.  Ipswich will be at Wilmington on the same day.

(All stats presented are unofficial.)

Leave a comment

Filed under Cape Ann League, Ipswich, Triton

Tagged as , , , , , , , ,

November 7, 2009 · 8:19 pm

Triton Defeats Shawsheen Tech 4-0 In State Division 2 Boys Soccer

Ed Hargreaves airborn 11-7-09

Triton’s Ed Hargreaves heads the ball toward the Shawsheen Tech goal

(Byfield) I was on hand for the Triton (14th seed) boys easy soccer win over visiting Shawsheen Tech (19th seed) on Saturday afternoon in the Division 2 state tournament preliminary round.

The Vikings now advance to the D2 North First Round on Monday against North Andover at NA at 4PM.  The Scarlet Knights haven’t lost since September 16th but Triton competed well against them in a 4-3 loss at NA on October 14th.

Triton scored three times in the first half and spent most of the rest of the time threatening to score.

Perched near the Shasheen goal I was in a position to see most of the action.  I saw Collin Smith tally the first goal after a corner kick gave him a direct shot from in close.

This first half shot shows the kind of pressure the Vikings put on the the Shasheen goalkeeper.

A near-miss by Justin Paquette. He did connect on the second Triton goal.

This was a Pat Martin shot on goal.

This was Eric Peterson  preparing for a corner kick in the second half.

Here is Gabe Marcolini and Matt McWeeney in action.  Matt is heading the ball toward the Shasheen net.

This is a look downfield at Pat Martin, Dan Ford, and goalie Dan Norton.

Here is Max Nichou kicking toward the Shawsheen goal.

Corey Burgess assisted on the 3rd Triton score by Andrew Fitzgerald.

This is Triton Coach Brad Smith at halftime.

Neal Lojek  heads toward the Shawsheen Ram net.  Neal set up the 4th Triton goal headed in by Andrew Fitzgerald.

 

Leave a comment

Filed under Shawsheen, Triton

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

April 23, 2009 · 3:31 pm

Triton Boys’ Lacrosse Defeats Newburyport on April 22nd

Triton coach Donna Andersen works out goalie Carson True before the game with Newburyport.

Triton coach Donna Andersen works out goalie Carson True before the game with Newburyport.

I was trying to get my usual weekly story for The Town Common and went into Tuesday (April 21st) with almost nothing.  A seemingly set up interview on Thursday (April 16th) vanished on Friday, Monday, and Tuesday morning.

What to do?  Could have thrown in the towel but God opened a door on Tuesday.

I heard about a boys’ lacrosse game happening on Tuesday morning between Newburyport and Triton at Newburyport.  I knew that the Triton coach was a woman from seeing a game last year.  I thought that I could find out in an interview about that arrangement and also discuss the game.

Some things sound good but can things be pulled together on such short notice. 

I hustled over to Newburyport – a mile from here – and met the coach (Donna Andersen) on the field ½ hour before game time.  She agreed to an interview back at Triton after the game.

I stood on the sidelines and used my big Canon.  It was quite foggy with rain likely before day’s end.

Both teams had won only one game and the play was rough.  Newburyport put some very solid hits on Triton kids.  Getting a penalty didn’t seem to lessen their willingness to hit hard.  Triton led throughout and won 15-9.  Three of Triton’s goals came when they had the man advantage.

Andrew Sokol (#9) and his "shadow" Bert Comins.

Andrew Sokol (#9) and his "shadow" Bert Comins.

Newburyport had one very impressive player (#9 Andrew Sokol).  Only a sophomore, he had a shot that was quick and accurate.  The longer the game went on the more Triton shadowed him.  #43 of Triton (Bert Cumins) was the shadow.

I went home after the game to warm up and then went to Triton.  I arrived just as the team was getting off the bus.  I had a nice chat with Donna Andersen inside the building.  I believe that the players were calling her, “Coach A.” 

She teaches phys ed at Triton and also coaches field hockey.  She excelled at both field hockey and lacrosse at UNH. 

She became coach seven years ago when the lacrosse program started at Triton.  Elizabeth McAndrews (AD at Triton then – at Amesbury now) needed someone to coach boys’ lacrosse and no one had stepped up to do it.  Elizabeth knew that Donna could handle mixed phys ed classes and had a lacrosse background.  Donna was surprised to be asked to take the job but accepted after a weekend’s consideration.

She likened the boys’ intensity playing lacrosse to the intensity of Division 1 women’s lacrosse. 

She said that she thought that the boys were comfortable with her as their coach.  She said that unfamiliar officials tend to think that JV coach Avery Woodworth is the head coach and she might be the trainer.

She told me that she doesn’t know of any women coaching high school level or above boys’ lacrosse.  She thought it was surprising.

( A regular story on Triton coach Donna Andersen will appear in The Town Common on April 29, 2009 )

Leave a comment

Filed under Donna Andersen, Elizabeth McAndrews, Newburyport, Triton

Tagged as , , , , ,

March 24, 2009 · 12:24 pm

Triton Track Team Reads “Those Shoes” at Newbury Elementary School

Triton High readers gather at Newbury Elementary School with their copies of "Those Shoes" before heading off to the classrooms to read.

Triton High readers gather at Newbury Elementary School with their copies of "Those Shoes" before heading off to the classrooms to read.

(Newbury) I was at Newbury Elementary School this morning to see another piece of the Triton community service project spawned by “Those Shoes,” fall into place.  On this day a group of Trition High School students were to go into each of the classrooms and read, “Those Shoes,” as well as explain the sneaker-gathering project.

I expected to see an assortment of Triton students on hand but learned that Triton’s community service director (Joe Colbert – back left in picture) had decided instead to involve his spring track team.  “Those Shoes,” by Maribeth Boelts is about footwear and the tie-in to the track team was a natural one.

I was surprised to learn from Joe that very few of the Triton students had attended NES.  I, unknowingly, followed one of them walking down the hall to the classrooms.  A teacher from one of the lower grades spotted one of the Triton students and gave him the, “Is that you, so-and-so.  Wow, you’ve changed.”  I believe I detected that particular student cringing after he heard that!

The students gathered in the cafeteria before going to the classrooms.  There was an active amount of swapping what classes the students would go into to read “Those Shoes.”  Seemed that the girls wanted the lower grades.

The person who organized the project (Laurie Collins) told me that quite a few pairs of sneakers had already been collected.

Leave a comment

Filed under Newbury, Those Shoes, Triton

Tagged as , , , , ,

March 10, 2009 · 1:50 pm

“Those Shoes” Inspires Community Service Project in Newbury

Laurie Collins holds the book that inspired the community service project in Newbury.

Laurie Collins holds the book that inspired the community service project in Newbury.

I guess it comes with the territory.

As the children’s librarian at the Newbury Town Library in Byfield, Laurie Collins gets to not only read plenty of books but also to recommend books.

One of the books, among many, that she has recommended is called, “Those Shoes,” by Maribeth Boelts.  The parental response to this 40-page, illustrated book caught Laurie’s attention.

“Whenever it was given out, people would come back and say – “That was such a great story,” and, “It was so inspiring,” recalled Laurie in a recent interview at the library.

“Those Shoes,” is about a young boy’s ultimate generosity with a prized possession – sneakers.

The many positive responses caused Laurie to determine that the book had a clear message and readers might want to move from words to deeds.

The end result is that children in Newbury will be given the opportunity to donate pairs of new sneakers to those less fortunate.

How is this going to happen? 

“On March 24th (Tuesday) a group from Triton High School, doing community service, will visit the Newbury Elementary School,” explained Laurie.  “I’ll meet with them first to talk about “Those Shoes.” Then each class will; get the story read to them by a high school student, hear about the new sneakers donation, and have a book left in their classroom.”  (Laurie told me that the Friends of the Newbury Town Library are buying the books for the classrooms.)

“The new sneakers that are received during the weeks that follow will be brought to our library and stacked in the meeting room,” said Laurie. 

The end of the new sneaker collecting will be during April vacation and coincide with the visit of Wally the Green Monster to the library.  “Last year Wally was here and we had 200 people come through in an hour,” recalled Laurie.  “We’re hoping that this year, when he comes, people will bring new sneakers to donate and Wally will help us do a countdown of how many we have collected.”

Laurie informed me that a clearinghouse agency for local children’s services called, Cradles to Crayons, would distribute the donated sneakers. 

Laurie was quick to commend the cooperation from Triton.  “Joe Colbert (community service director) and Kevin McLaughlin (principal) are important in this project because they will organize and bring the students to the classrooms,” said Laurie. 

Newbury Elementary School assistant principal Elizabeth Boulanger told me that the staff there was excited about being involved.  “NES is enthusiastically looking forward to the visiting readers and for the opportunity to participate in this community service project.”

In a description online, the author (Maribeth Boelts) explains that the idea for the story came as years later she recalled being a substitute teacher and witnessing a student caught in a situation similar to the one she later wrote about in “Those Shoes.”

I sent an email to Maribeth Boelts (she lives in the Midwest) telling her about the community service project.  She wrote back, “I was so honored to learn that “Those Shoes” prompted Laurie Collins to organize and lead this fun and worthy event.  It’s always touching to see an act of generosity like this, particularly when children are involved in the giving.”

Laurie told me that the best part in this project is that “a piece of literature is driving the whole thing.  That’s the most exciting part because that’s what we do here.”

It is said that, “A true charity is something that touches you personally.”  If that is the case then some Newbury students will be going out and buying new sneakers………but not for themselves.

( Prepared for publication in The Town Common on March 18th. )

Leave a comment

Filed under Maribeth Boelts, Newbury, Those Shoes, Triton

Tagged as , , , , , ,

February 14, 2009 · 1:37 pm

Triton Wrestling “Rebuilds” to 20-4 Season

Triton westling team with Coach Shawn McElligott at the top left

Triton westling team with Coach Shawn McElligott at the top left

Somewhere before the 2008-09 season it was decided that this would be a “rebuilding” year for Triton’s wrestling team.

Now that the team has finished the regular season at 20-4, you have to wonder what folks were missing before the season started.

“I think the rebuilding idea came from our lack of experience,” was how Coach Shawn McElligott explained it to me before practice recently. “Only one of last year’s starters had gone to the state tournament. We did have a lot of guys back, however, who had earned varsity letters.”

The Vikings ended up finishing second in the Cape Ann League regular season and third in the recent Cape Ann League Open held at Triton.

A key to this team’s success has been the commitment team members have made. “You can’t be a three-month wrestler anymore and be successful,” he explained. “It is practically a year round sport. A lot of guys put in the extra work and it’s paying off now.”

Two of the top wrestlers on the team, junior brothers Danny (three year starter) and Joey Chandler (CAL All-League team), do a lot of wrestling in the off-season in a program at The Barn in Danville, New Hampshire.

“Another place that kids go to extend their wrestling is the North Shore Wrestling Club in Ipswich which is run by the Georgetown wrestling coach,” added Shawn now in his 11th season.

Coach McElligott explained to me that the programs away from high school are similar to AAU in basketball. “There is a group called USA Wrestling,” he said. “They start as early as March and they sponsor tournaments. Joey Chandler went down to Virginia for a national qualifier as part of it.”

Other key performers Coach McElligott mentioned are Colton Blanchette (CAL All-Star), Cody Miller (30 wins), and Brendan O’Neill (11-0 going into this past weekend).

Coach McElligott attended Triton (1990-93) and wrestled for four years when Con Madigan was coach. He then went on to Norwich University where he did club wrestling.

He returned to Triton in 1997 as an assistant wrestling coach. “We had about 12 or 13 wrestlers that year,” he recalled. “When I became head coach the next year the push was to improve the numbers. We got about 20 involved the first year and since then the average has been between 30 and 40.”

There are 14 starters in a meet, so I asked what keeps the rest of the team going. “We are on the lookout for other tournaments. St. John’s Prep, for one, has a JV tournament. I also rotate the lineup quite a bit.”

Coach McElligott believes that Triton’s wrestling program suffers from under-exposure. “We’re better known elsewhere then we are in this area,” he said. “We have the best program history-wise in the school. Look at the banners.” He was referring to the Vikings being state runner-ups in 1976 and 1983, state champs in 1984, and Division 3 North runner-ups in 2005 to prove his point.

There’s little doubt that when it comes to high school wrestling, Coach Dave Castricone of North Andover runs the most successful wrestling program in the area if not in New England with over 600 wins and 29 league titles to his credit. It is interesting that the second stop in Dave’s coaching career, after Masco, was at Triton where he won the state championship in 1984.

“North Andover was here for the CAL Open the other day and we did something special for Coach Castricone,” said Coach McElligott. “We fixed up the plaques from the 1983 and 1984 seasons and showed him our new banners for those accomplishments and he appreciated it.”

(Prepared for The Town Common.)

Leave a comment

Filed under Coach Shawn McElligott, Triton

Tagged as , , , ,

February 14, 2009 · 12:57 pm

Museum Studies Class at Triton Searches for Answers and Help

Matt Denaro,Kathleen Corcoran,Kristin Kelleher,Molly Lovell, Andrea Sargent

Triton Museum Studies participants left to right: Matt Denaro,Kathleen Corcoran,Kristin Kelleher,Molly Lovell, Andrea Sargent

978-462-8171 (extension 514) is an important phone number as far as a class of students attending Triton Regional High School is concerned. 

If you have information on the opening of Triton in 1973, the students want to hear from you.  If you’ve got answers, they’ve got questions!

We all have our own way of visiting museums.  Most of us walk in the front door, wander around guided, or unguided, and tour the exhibits possibly offering a few “oohs” and “ahs” along the way. Then we walk back out the front door and return to our normal lives.

At Triton High School, a full-year elective course called, Museum Studies, looks at museums more thoroughly.

Led by Triton media specialist Andrea Sargent, Museum Studies gets into the inner workings of museums and explores what goes on behind-the-scenes. 

Wisely, Triton has program coordinator Kathleen Corcoran on board from Historic New England of Boston in what is a museum/school partnership.

Historic New England has the largest collection of New England art and artifacts in the United States.  They also own and operate 36 house museums in New England, four of which are located in Newbury.  The Museum Studies class has visited several of the Newbury sites to find out how they operate.

“I have worked with Kathleen and Historic New England before and they do a wonderful job,” said Andrea.

The first part of the course involved gathering knowledge about museums. The second part, which is now underway, is where the students will be using their acquired knowledge to create an exhibit featuring the towns within the Triton school district – Rowley, Newbury, and Salisbury.

Remember that phone number I mentioned in the first paragraph?  This is where it kicks in……….and you may be able to help.

The students in the course have decided on the time period they will use.  It will start the year Triton opened (1973) and end with the present.  Each of the students has one town to work on.

When the exhibit is finished at the end of the school year, an observer will be able to see an exhibit that highlights the past 36 years in Salisbury, Rowley, and Newbury.

Gathering information on recent times in the three towns is the easiest part.  It’s the earliest Triton days that they want help on. 

Some of you were part of the planning that brought the three towns into one district. Some of you were at Triton when it opened.  What are your memories?  Do you have some pictures and stories that the students could use?  The number to call is still in the first paragraph.

“I have started to interview people about Newbury and they’ve been very helpful,” said junior Kristin Kelleher, one of the class members.

Senior Molly Lovell (choice student from Amesbury) is covering Salisbury and wants the exhibit produced to make Triton look good.  “This is a very good school system and others need to know that. I am thankful for the opportunity to take this course and for the great support I’ve been getting from the staff.”

Another senior, Matt Denaro of Rowley, will be working on the town he lives in. Matt told me that a clear portrayal of the three district towns could benefit incoming students.  “Many of the students enter Triton knowing little about the other two towns.”

“It’s exciting to watch the way they go about this research part,” added Andrea Sargent.  “I think that they have a good vision of what they want to do.”

The road ahead will be a busy one for the course members as they search for exhibit materials.  If you have materials/information that could help them, they would appreciate hearing from you.

(Prepared for The Town Common.)

Leave a comment

Filed under Museum Studies class at Triton, Triton

Tagged as , , , , ,

November 11, 2008 · 6:43 pm

Andrew Fecteau Leads Triton Golf to 27 Straight

Triton golf captain Andrew Fecteau

Triton golf captain Andrew Fecteau

His list of golf accomplishments stretches three pages long. 

He’s Andrew Fecteau, senior at Triton.

With Andrew on board, the Triton golf team has absolutely dominated the Cape Ann League rolling to 27 straight league wins, going back 2 ½ years, while being CAL champions the last two seasons.

Triton third year golf coach Rich Dube suspects that Andrew’s temperament is key.  “He not only is talented but he has a calm disposition that helps in golf. He could put a bad shot behind him”

Coach Dube told me that the best round he ever saw Andrew play was recently in the Division 2 North Sectionals at Far Corner when he shot a one under par 71 to finish second.

Andrew claims that he first picked up a club when he was about 1 ½ years old.  “My dad (Michael) cut down normal clubs and put the grips on them because I always broke the plastic ones.”

Andrew’s dad learned how to play golf from his brother Phil who is now the head golf coach at Division 2 Pfeiffer College in North Carolina.

Therefore, as Andrew grew up playing golf at Rowley Country Club with his dad he could watch a good golfer in action.  When Andrew reached high school age, they switched to playing at Ould Newbury because that was where the high school matches were played.

“I played golf for fun when I was younger,” recalled Andrew of his times at RCC.  “I never really practiced at the facilities there.  I would probably be a better golfer now if I’d taken the sport more seriously back then.”

Andrew’s interest and abilities in other sports (basketball and baseball) have kept him active away from golf.  He played basketball as a freshman and sophomore and told me that he may show up for tryouts on December 1st.  He is also solidly entrenched in baseball and returns there as the starting catcher.

Therefore, for him to get “serious” about golf involved extra work in the summer.  “The last two summers I have really worked at golf,” said the Newbury resident.  “I practiced a lot and I lifted weights.  Every day I’d hit balls for probably two hours.  It paid off as I started to hit the ball real well and won a couple of tournaments this past summer.”

Andrew is not sure about his future in golf.  He is certain, however, that he wants to go to college in the South where the weather is warm.  His first choice is Duke and the National Honor Society member has applied for early admission – “I visited there and loved the atmosphere.” 

Golf could well take a backseat at Duke although Andrew expects he will still play a lot privately and possibly try to be a walk-on to the golf team his sophomore year.

Until Andrew heads off to college, his most competitive golf could well be with his father at Ould Newbury.  “I probably should let him win,” joked Andrew, “but I can’t.  It’s very competitive.  Last time I played him was in the club championship (which Andrew won).  I’ve enjoyed being his partner in father/son tournaments.”

( Appeared in The Town Common November 19th )

Leave a comment

Filed under Andrew Fecteau, Cape Ann League, Town Common, Triton

Tagged as , , ,

June 10, 2008 · 1:34 am

Athletic Director Dave Dempsey Talks About Triton Athletics

Lack of experience did not prevent Triton High School from hiring Dave Dempsey (pictured above) two years ago to be the special education coordinator or from hiring him last year to be the school’s athletic director.

One of the numerous side effects of tight budgets is the necessity of adding staff that comes cheaply and spreading the staff around that already is in place.

“I interviewed at Triton two years ago wanting to move to the administrative level in special ed after 25 year of being in the trenches with some of the most difficult population in Lynn and Peabody,” explained the 55-year-old Boxford resident in a recent conversation I had with him in his office.

One year later the Triton administration decided to spread Dave a little bit thinner by offering him the athletic director’s job.  By itself, not so bad, but combined with the special ed job not so easy. 

In our interview, Dave spoke often of the need for athletes and coaches to be willing to give more than what is expected of them.  By taking the AD job he set a fine example in that regard.  His willingness to add the AD job to his workload enabled the Triton district to hire a full-time physical education teacher instead of just a part-time one.  That hiring allowed juniors and seniors to have physical education instead of being housed in 50-60 student study halls in the library and cafeteria. 

“Taking on both positions certainly has been a challenge to say the least both time-wise and management-wise,” explained Dave.  He mentioned that in this year alone he had gone through a schedule of 158 special ed meetings. 

Becoming AD at Triton had challenge written all over it.  All you need to know is that last year there was no athletic department or director at Triton.  High user’s fees and significant donations from Viking Heroes paid the bills and the coaches took care of their teams the way they wanted to.

This year there’s a budget of over $400,000 so the money part is less of an issue.  How the programs are run, well that’s Dave’s issue.  He knew right away that organizational concerns would be a priority.  He also knew that his being a newcomer, and there being no department last year, might be problems.  “Change is difficult for everybody,” he understated.

When the changes involved coaches, things turned bitter among some in the Triton community.  “I do not hire and fire coaches,” he added referring to the departures of the football, hockey, and cheerleading coaches.  “Many of our coaches have been here for a long time.”

Dave has a background in coaching.  He coached football, track, and girls’ basketball during a combination of 20+ years at Lynn Classical and Peabody.  “I wasn’t an administrator but I saw what it takes to make athletics function.”

Some of the changes he’s made at Triton include; (1) bringing athletes, coaches and parents together before each season to hear the academic and athletic expectations from the principal, athletic director and coach, (2) advertising coaching positions two seasons ahead of schedule, and (3) bringing players and coaches together for group pictures the Saturday before the season starts.

Close to completion, and subject to school committee approval, is; (1) a handbook for coaches and (2) an evaluation tool for evaluating coaching performance.

A bumper sticker at Triton reads, “Winning takes place in the off-season.”  With that in mind, the remodeled weight room should be a busy place this summer.  “We expect to have it reopened on July 7th and with some new equipment,” said Dave.  “The new football and hockey coaches are putting together a summer workout program for all athletes.  The weight room will be available for eight weeks on Monday through Thursday for two hours each day.”

Dave also has plans for next school year.  Some of these plans include; (1) setting up a Homework Club at the middle school that would involve academic assistance as well as supervised physical activity, (2) evening study halls for freshman athletes several nights each week, and (3) ten to twelve athletes in uniform traveling monthly to the three elementary schools in the district to read to kids there and talk about sports.

As Dave described the dual role he has at Triton, it was easy to see how overwhelming it could be.  He insisted on telling me how important his secretaries, Karen Atherton (athletics) and Sandy Soucy (special ed) are.  “They really keep things running,” he explained.  “They both handle the paperwork.  They care tremendously about Triton and people need to know how valuable they are.  I couldn’t function without them.”

 ( Produced for The Town Common for publication on June 18th )

 

Leave a comment

Filed under Town Common, Triton

Tagged as , ,