WJ track and field has gotten off to a fast start to begin their season. They opened up with a dual meet against rival Churchill High School. The Wildcats had meets cancelled prior to the Churchill meet due to bad weather, but showed no signs of rust, as they took care of the Bulldogs easily. The girls won by a score of 78-36, and the boys won by a score of 71-47.
WJ followed that meet up with a nice showing in the Cougar Relays, a meet comprising of only relay events, at Quince Orchard High School. The girls finished third out of the twelve competing teams, while the boys finished seventh.
Richard Montgomery High School presented a tougher challenge for the Cats. The girls emerged victorious by a score of 76-60, while the boys lost 85-50.
The girls thoroughly dominated the Bulldogs in almost every event. Senior Janet Scott helped lead the way, winning the 800 meter run with a time of 2:39.9 and winning the 1600 meter run with a time of 5:45.8. Sophomore Jenna Goldberg completed the sweep of the long distance events by winning the 3200 with a time of 11:53.3. The girls fared just as well in the sprint events, as juniors Erin Henderson and Kelsey Evans and sophomore Liana Wilkinson all finished first in their respective events. Henderson in the 100 meter dash, Evans in the 200 meter dash and Wilkinson in the 300 meter hurdles.
For the boys, senior Andrew Birgin helped set the tone for the Wildcats. Birgin won both the discus throw and the shot put events. The long distance team racked up points as well, with junior Rodrigo Yepez-Lopez 1600 meter run and was the only competitor to finish under five minutes, clocking in at 4:58.4. Senior Sean Murphy finished well ahead of the field in the 3200 meter run, finishing with a time of 11:02.8, 19 seconds in front of the next best finisher.
“The teams performance was good, but there’s still room for improvement,” Yepez-Lopez said.
In the Cougar Relays, the girls’ and boys’ team saw varying degrees of success. The girls won the 800 meter relay (where every runner runs 800 meters) and the distance medley relay. Andrew Birgin continued his great season for the boys, winning both the discus and shotput relays. In addition, the boys distance medley relay finished second.
Long distance running was the again the catalyst to triumph for the girls against RM. Goldberg won the,1600 and 3200 meter run. Senior Toni Kroye contributed points in the field events for the Wildcats, winning both the discus and shot put.
Although the boys lost, there were many individual highlights. Birgin won the discus and shot put yet again and Yepez-Lopez and Murphy continued their strong running, leading the Wildcats to victories in the 800 meter, 1600 meter and 3200 meter runs.
Overall, the boys are pleased with their start.
“We could be going to states if we keep up the good habits and don’t lose focus towards the end of the year,” Yepez-Lopez said.
