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	The View A Heritage Newspaper Weekly Publication

Large numbers and good talent excites coach

By Dave Merchant, Staff Writer

PUBLISHED: April 3, 2008

The future is looking bright for the Belleville girls' track team this season. Second year Coach Anthony Munoz is excited with the talent he has to work with this year.

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"We have good numbers this season," Munoz said. "There are between 40 to 45 kids on the team."

Munoz explained that last season, he took 15 athletes to the state meet (boys and girls) and had at least one-person place at the meet (Varick Tucker was second in the 400-meter run for the boys).

Leading the way for the girls this season is senior thrower Leah Sykes who already took third this year at an indoor meet at Eastern Michigan University throwing a personal best 32 feet and two inches in the shot.

Another key senior this year is sprinter Jenay Donaldson and senior hurdler Ashley Wartley (who took fifth in hurdles at the EMU meet earlier this year).

He expects good things this season from junior distance runner Gabbey Boyer as well as from junior hurler Ivy Haralson who went 9'6" last year at the league meet. Munoz expects her to be in the 10 to 10 feet 6 inch range this season.

Junior Shakila Price will once again shine as a thrower this season. She has thrown 34 feet before in the shot.

"We are a young team this year," he said. "It should be a fun season I expect a good meet between both the boys and girls when they face Romulus."

Munoz sees his team and Romulus as two of the top squads in the Mega Red this year. They will see Romulus in league action and probably at the Ypsilanti April Showers Meet. Belleville will also be at the South Lyon Invitational.

"Romulus and us are usually so close," he said. "We are two teams that go back and forth all season long."

The Lady Tigers lost three girls to transfers this year but Munoz hopes the young talent can step up. One of the aspects of track that he doesn't like is that players run the regional event to qualify for state and then have to come back and run the league meet.

"With seniors you have to entice them," he said. "If they don't make it to the state meet you tell them the league meet is the state meet and sometimes if they make it to the state meet they don't try has hard at the league meet. They don't want to get hurt."

The first meet of the season was scheduled to be last Tuesday against Woodhaven and Dearborn Fordson. It has been moved to April 10.

Contact Staff Writer Dave Merchant at 697-8255 or dmerchant@heritage.com