The boys and girls winter track teams are working harder than ever as the championship season approaches.  With incredible upperclassmen and underclassmen runners, both teams look forward to great success in the coming months. 

Last year, both the girls and boys winter track teams were outstanding.  The girls team fell short of a conference championship by only two points, then rebounded to finish 4th in the county.  The boys team finished 6th in the conference and 17th in Nassau County last year, turning in competitive times from a variety of runners.  Both teams lost some incredible seniors last year, but the teams have strong younger runners who were able to fill those lost roles.  The teams hope to perform even better this year, and a variety of team members are turning in promising times and scores.

“Both the long distance and sprinting squad have raced some incredible times and everyone has been stepping up to the plate and running fast times,” said senior Carolyn Stoller. 

The runners have certainly put in a great deal of effort and it has paid off.  The girls runners received numerous metals in a competitive Saturday meet at the Nassau County Coaches Invitational at Ocean Breeze.  Sophomore Emily Benson Tyler placed fifth overall in the 300 meter dash.  In addition, the long distance squad turned in impressive times, as senior Sam Krayeski and sophomore Kaeliegh Romero placed 7th and 10th, respectively, in the 1000 meter.  Senior Caroline Pangbourne also placed 5th overall in the 1500 meter race. 

Notable performances were not only individual, as relays are also crucial to the team’s success.  At the same meet, the relay consisting of sophomores Page Nettesheim, Jenny Van Cott, Emily Benson Tyler, and freshman Joanna Webber placed 3rd in the freshman and sophomore 4 x 200 relay.  The girls team’s runners hope to improve upon the current success, as they work towards the most important meets. 

“Right now we are working towards our conference meet, which is at the end of January. Everyone is training hard and doing their part to help the team,” said junior Abby Hurt.

The boys team is also putting impressive and promising times on the board.  At the same meet at Ocean Breeze, the boys runners raced some particularly great times.  In short distance, senior Tyler Streim and freshman Joe Green ran great times in the 300 meter dash, with Green medaling in the freshman and sophomore race.  In the mid-distance 600 meter race, sophomore Colin Funk ran an impressive race as well. 

These times were further complemented by success in the boys long distance squad.  In the 1000 meter, Port took both 2nd and 4th place, as junior Oliver Melara-Perez placed 2nd and freshman Kevin Taylor placed 4th.  Junior Noah Loewy also turned in an impressive time in the boys mile.  Overall, the boys and girls teams are displaying great success in the early meets.

While individual times and scores are important, the team can only succeed with the effort of every team member.  Both the girls and boys display great versatility and all around strength.  In addition to both long distance runners and sprinters, both the girls and boys teams strive to earn points in field events such as weight throw, shot put, long jump, and high jump.  It is the culmination of all these events that had led to the teams’ successes. 

At the recent Nassau Coaches Invitational meet, team members delivered promising performances in the field events.  For the boys, sophomore Charlie Bosworth placed 1st in the high jump for freshman and sophomores.  On the girls side, junior Abby Hurt medalled in high jump, placing 3rd, and also turned in an impressive performance in the triple jump, where she placed 9th.  A great performances were also turned by senior Ali Turner, who placed 3rd in shot put and 2nd in the weight throw.  

For both the girls and the boys, Port Washington has displayed a well rounded teams, with top runners in races of all distances, as well as high scores in the field events.  The team practices every day after school and early on Saturday mornings. 

“So far, winter track has been full of hard work and team camaraderie.  Everyday after school, the entire girls track team warms up together to run hard on the track in order to earn some great personal records in races,” said Stoller.

As the teams continue to work hard, they are gearing up for an incredible end of the season.  While they are doing great up to this point, the focus is on the championship part of the season. 

“The team is showing a lot of strength and potential heading into the championship part of the season. I think we have a good shot come conferences and counties,” said senior and boys team captain Tyler Stream. 

For both teams, success in the past meets acts as fuel for the next meets, including the conference, county, and possibly even state meets.  The girls and boys winter track teams are teams to watch as the championship part of their seasons approaches.