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Unlike his friend, Drew Pickul will be able to compete again.

"I'm not quite sure how I'm going to deal with it," he said. "I have to figure it out when it comes."

Dan Castro stopped 12 shots and made the Generals' 6-1 halftime lead stand up with stellar play in the second half as the Generals topped Hanover 12-7. Hamilton-Wenham (6-3) won its fifth straight thanks to three goals apiece from Casey Colyer and Jay Allsopp. Chipping in a pair of goals were Ryan Gendreau and Jake Cotter as H-W was able to quell a late Hanover rally.

On an exceptionally beautiful day along the marsh at Triton High School, the track teams of Amesbury, Newburyport, Ipswich, Pentucket, and Triton gathered for the annual Triton Triple Classic for a special occasion to honor the man who first started the event back in the early 1970s.

Timberlane trampled Manchester West 106-38. Cole Dresser won three events. Cam Lyle launched both the shot put and the discus for wins.

Lawrence's KB Oshodi has been one of Central Catholic's best and brightest track stars. And he has the Raider football program to thank for it.

"In my freshman year, the football coaches wanted to get us to do track," Oshodi explained. "They said it would be good to try and do a lot of different stuff. In the triple jump, in my first year, I was doing better than the varsity guys. I did well and I just continued to improve."

The 32nd annual John Ottaviani Haverhill Invitational, one of the top boys outdoor meets in New England, will get underway with field events at 10 a.m. tomorrow at the Sapienza Track. The running events will begin at 11 a.m.

Londonderry downed Salem, 91-54. D.J. Post took the shot put and javelin for the Lancers. Mike Marshall shined for the Blue Devils, winning the long jump, high jump, 110 hurdles, and 300 hurdles.

Whittier's boys defeated Greater Lawrence, 89-46. Chris Pendleton won three events for the Wildcats, helped in the 4x100 relay, and set the school record for his 20-10<1/4> long jump. Freshman Brian Stanley won two events, including the mile and 800 meters. Rogers Bencosme of Greater Lawrence won the shot put and the Reggies took the 4x400 relay.

Coach: Ken Spellman (40th year)

Last year's record: 4-5

Runners to watch: Nick Philpot, Sr., 400/Long Jump; Sam Thomas, Sr., Distance; Sam McMahon, Sr., Hurdles/ Triple Jump; Greg Krathwohl, So., Mile/800; Chris Pinto, Sr., Pole Vault/300 Hurdles; Adam Dillon, So., Jumps

Santi Costello's journey to becoming a track standout began unexpectedly.

"When I was 4 years old I got beaten up," he said. "My dad said, 'That's not going to happen again. You're going to learn how to defend yourself.'"

Coach: Steve Derro (13th season)

Last season: 4-5-1

Returning lettermen: Jon Andreas, sr.; Max Arthur, sr.; Eric Froton, sr.; Eric McDonald, sr.; Adam Roberts, sr.; Jake Buzzell, jr.; Brian Cormier, jr.; Garrett Froton, so.; Dan Kowalewski, so.

What are your personal goals for the upcoming track and field season?

Are you aiming to beat your best time in the 100 meter dash? Are you trying to beat the state record throwing the shot put? Are you trying to make it through a hurdle run without knocking any over?

Schedules are now available for the majority of high school baseball, softball, lacrosse and track teams for the 2008 spring season. Over the next couple of weeks, stories previewing what the spring holds for each team, rosters, and team and individual player photographs will begin to appear on RallyNorth. If your team has a schedule or roster that we do not have yet, please e-mail it to rallynorth @eagletribune.com.