Record-Breaking Season for Hanover High Indoor Track Team

Records Are Made To Be Broken

By Bella Ciccolo, ’26

Staff Writer

The Hanover High School Indoor Track season may be over, but it will long be remembered for its legacy of success. Anna Egan, Altonio Royster, and Ben Willis all broke school records this season, along with the boys 4×800 relay and the girls 4×200 team.

The HHS track team competes at the Reggie Lewis Center located in Roxbury. Hundreds of students from across the South Shore gathered weekly to race, with the complex booming with fans cheering on their teams. Coached by Patty Nee and Brendan Sullivan, Hanover athletes used that atmosphere, and a lot of hard work, to reach their personal and team goals.

Anna Egan, a junior, broke the school record for the 55m dash that she first set in her sophomore year with a new time of 7.66 seconds. In a distance that short, every millisecond counts. Anna credits focusing on her start and continuous dedication at practice in helping her achieve this goal. Anna’s favorite quote is “Don’t wish for it, work for it” and this inspired her at practice.

Ben Willis, also a junior, broke school records in both the 600m and the 1000m. He ran a time of 1:29.71 to shatter the 600m mark, which had been standing since Adam Cook ran a 1:30 in 2008. Ten days after accomplishing this, Willis lowered his time – and the school record – even further to 1:27.42. At state meet, he broke it again with a time of 1:25.04. Midway through the season, Willis set his sights on the 1000m, setting a record time of 2:47.48 in his first attempt.

Altonio Royster, a sophomore, broke the school’s long jump record with a distance of 19’10.5.” The previous record was 19’5.25,” set by Marvin Felix in 2023. “There were a lot of weeks of just training and just pushing myself to be the best I could be,” Altonio said.

While track is often regarded as an individual sport, members of the relays must work together like a well-oiled machine in order to compete. This season, the boys 4x800m relay school record was broken with a time of 9:11:53. Willis and fellow juniors Matt Bell, Joe Lynch and James McDermod reached this goal at the Patriot League Championship meet on Feb. 8. Their time was 13 seconds faster than the previous record. The girls 4x200m relay set a new school record at the state meet with a time of 1:55:01. The relay included seniors Sam Baker and Ella Brinkman, junior Anna Egan and sophomore Callie Delaney.

With many members of the Indoor Track team moving outside for the spring season, it would be no surprise if the school recordbook continues to be rewritten. The team’s first home meet will be against Pembroke on April 9.

This article is published in partnership with Hanover High School. It first appeared in the Hawk, the school’s student newspaper.