Sky is the Limit for Timberlane vaulters (MA)

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http://www.eagletribune.com/pusports/lo ... 41510.html

Sky is the Limit
Timberlane's Patterson, Andover's Vetere prepared to rewrite record books
By Michael Muldoon
mmuldoon@eagletribune.com
To the layman, pole vaulters are reckless daredevils who foolishly tempt fate.

But the best pole vaulters don't even consider the ugly consequences of a horrible fall from scary heights.

"It's something I can't think about,'' said Andover junior Mark Vetere, who this winter became only the eighth area schoolboy ever to clear 14 feet. "If you think about it too much, then bad things happen. I've landed on my head a few times. It's not that big a deal.''

Vetere is fortunate to have a surrogate to do his worrying for him.

"My mom (Marianne) is always scared, but she's my mom and that's her job!'' quipped Vetere, who cleared 14-0 in three different meets.

Timberlane senior Lindsey Patterson may not need anybody to worry for her. She, however, has a slew of opponents worrying about her.

Since girls pole vaulting was added to the local track scene in the mid-'90s, nobody has done it better than the Patterson, a former youth gymnastics national meet qualifier.

Her 12-4 is a whopping 16 inches higher than former record-holders Courtney MacLaren of Londonderry (LHS '01) and Courtney Walker of Pinkerton Academy (PA '00) did in high school. And they both won New England championships!

"Honestly, there is none really for me," said the 5-foot-3 Patterson, when asked about the fear factor. "If you know the technique, there is not too much of a risk. It's pole vaulters that don't know what they are doing that make it dangerous.''

Patterson seemed destined to vault. She said her father, Bobby, was a champion vaulter at Acton-Boxboro Regional in Massachusetts.

"I think the highest he went (in high school) was 13-9,'' she said. "He had a picture of himself vaulting from the newspaper. That kind of inspired me. I said, 'Dad, I want to be a pole vaulter.' He didn't want me to do it because it's kind of dangerous.''

Both credit their gymnastics backgrounds for their fearlessness and early success.

Vetere, whose twin brother Adam is a talented distance runner and older brother Matthew is a senior sprinter for Andover, cleared 10-6 as a freshman. As a sophomore he hiked that to 12-6 and his work with the New England Pole Vault Club has helped him go 14-0 this winter.

The 5-9, 150-pounder feels that is just the tip of the iceberg.

"My goal is definitely to clear 15-feet,'' said Vetere, a formidable sprinter who also runs on Andover's powerful relay teams.

Patterson would like to strike a blow for equality.

"My worst goal is 12-6,'' explained Patterson, who is also a talented hurdler and heptathlete. "The boys' school record is 13-0 (Matt Bradley in 2003), that would be my ultimate goal.''

Timberlane coach Mark Behan has learned never to question Patterson when she sets her mind to something. Ranked 13th in a class of 378, she wanted to study agriculture, and she was accepted into the prestigious Cornell School of Agriculture. She wanted to be an elite vaulter, and, well, she did that a long time ago.

"At the end of her sophomore year in track, she said she wanted to do cross country,'' began Behan, admitting he thought she'd use it more just to stay in shape. "She went at it full bore, doing 8-9 mile runs. That shows how seriously she takes everything. ... She just gets it. She has that old-school work ethic."

Her personal bests were 10-6 as a sophomore and 9-0 as a freshman.

"It's pretty impressive,'' fellow Owls standout Katherine Grzejka said of Patterson's vaulting prowess.