Photo courtesy of Lifetouch

Sophomore Ben Cope (left) and Junior Declan Stablow (middle) spring into action for WJ. Both the boys and girls teams performed well at the Last Track to Philly meet and MCPS Championships.

WJ indoor track posted fantastic finishes at the Last Track to Philly meet on January 26 and MCPS Championships on January 16. They were both great tests to prepare for the upcoming State Championship on February 19.

Strong finishes in the 1600m sprint medley for both boys and girls stood out from the most recent race, as well a first placed finish from senior captain Rodrigo Yepez-Lopez in the 3200m Run. In the MCPS Championships, the girls finished second overall, with many runners putting in strong performances. This includes winning the 4x800m with sophomore Jessica Zito, senior Adrienne Bruch, sophomore Sophia Morales and sophomore Ella Gaul. WJ also finished third in the 4x200m with senior Erin Henderson, senior Sierra Agarwal, junior Ally Hilligoss and senior Kelsey Evans, boasting top three finishes from Henderson in the 55m dash (second) and 55m hurdles (third), junior Jenna Goldberg in the 3200m run and Evans in the long jump (third). Boys finished 8th overall, featuring emphatic times from Yepez-Lopez who finished third in the 1600m Run, 5th in the 800m Run and fourth in the 4×800 relay along with juniors Jake Marks, Allen Moises and Dillon Solorio. Marks also finished second in the 3200m Run.  

The meet marks an impressive midseason milestone for the team, cementing their place once again as one of the top track teams in the county. The team also placed higher than at last year’s MoCo Championships, with boys improving from 10th to 8th place and girls staying in 2nd place.

Bruch has been on the girls’ track team all through high school and believes the sense of camaraderie among the group has helped them consistently be one of the best teams in the county.

“I think our girls team is always good because we have a really strong sense of family and leadership on the team. Ever since I was a freshman, the juniors and seniors have led the freshman to feel more comfortable and confident because running is a very mental sport,” Bruch said.  “We make really strong friendships and that really helps us get through hard workouts and races,”

Bruch and others have seen the effects of the team atmosphere in full view during the season so far and are confident they will have another successful year.

“I think the county meet went really well. Lots of people had breakout races and I’m excited to see how regionals will go,” Bruch added.

As for the boys, Yepez-Lopez has worked with his teammates to instill confidence and be a helpful mentor to the underclassmen.

“Being captain has made me not only be a runner on the team, but also a mentor for all the younger runners. As captain I have tried to inspire a culture of excellence in the team,” Yepez-Lopez said.

He has high appraisal for his teammates and expects big things from everyone on the team..

“The team has been improving greatly since last year,” Yepez-Lopez said.