Although the boys varsity track and field team has only had one meet so far, with another one coming up later in May, the team looks forward to continuing to improve and striving to win more points next time.
On Saturday, May 1, the team traveled to eastern Connecticut to compete against Marianapolis Prep where they participated in sprints, long jump, long distance, javelin, discus, and relays. Although the girls varsity team ended up doing better in terms of times, the boys too performed well in the first meet of the season.
Given that the team did not have any other meets prior to the one against Marianapolis Prep, they did not have any specific goals going into the meet except to become familiar with how a track meet operates. Assistant Coach David Baker said that this meet was more about readjusting and getting used to the sport. “For some kids who are freshmen, it is learning what a meet looks like and feels like and learning how to be on time for things,” he said. “If you’re doing long jump, but the 4×100 meter is about to begin, you need to go to the official and check out of long jump and then get to the 4×100 and get your marks and get set. It is truly a fast-paced meet.”
Senior Captain Matt Byzowckyj did exceptionally well, beating his own personal goal of running the 1500-meter mid-distance in 5 minutes. In fact, he ended up not only meeting his goal but going even further by doing the run in 4:47. His other goals included pushing himself to do events that are not familiar to him and to simply run well. “My goal was just to go fast, and I really had no other goals except for that,” Byzowckyj said. “Also, I’m normally an 800 meter runner and a 4×400 runner, so the fact that I did the 1500 was impressive.”
The team also excelled in the long jump event as they had five boys jump who all cleared 15 feet. Two boys cleared over 17 feet. Junior David Shi cleared 17.01 feet and Junior Isaias Wooden cleared 17.01 feet as well. Coach Baker noted that this was important in the meet. “That’s pretty competitive when you are at least at our level and our size,” he said. “When boys are jumping over 17 there, they’re typically scoring some form of points.”
Track and field has one of the largest Upper School teams. With the team consisting of 40 members, practices can sometimes be difficult. On many sports teams at KO, there are the team captains, who are usually seniors or juniors who have demonstrated leadership and exemplary sportsmanship. The role of the captain is to help lead the practices and to corral all the members to make it easier for the coaches. “Captains will usually form a warm up circle and lead static stretches and dynamic stretches so everything is warmed-up for running,” Byzowckyj said.
New to the KO track and field team, eighth grader Drake Fernald talked about his favorite parts of track and field. “My favorite part is the beautiful camaraderie that the team has,” he said. “I enjoy that we always come together [as a collective team] as well. It is good for developing relationships.” In the May 1 meet, he threw discus, javelin, and shot put and then ran the 4×100.
While the COVID-19 pandemic has affected a myriad of sports at KO, it has affected the track and field team by limiting the team’s access to a track. Currently, the team is running on a gravel track located at Sterling Park near Charter Oak Elementary School. This has made knowing the actual distance of the track a challenge. “Coach Kraus and Coach Goodman had to use spray paint and measure it and do calculations using a variety of different ropes and measurements,” Fernald said. “It’s actually amazing to see them do it. I don’t even know if our athletes even realize how much work goes into that,” Coach Baker added.
Byzowckyj said that the energy of the team has been strong during the pandemic. “I have to say it’s been pretty normal, the social distancing and all the [COVID-19] procedures make it a little different, but the energy is still there and the team spirit is still there, which is a good thing,” he said.
The team had another meet on Sat., May 22 at Hopkins School where they worked toward setting personal bests for each athlete and ending the season with the best times for the 4×100 race and 4×400 race.
As the team continues to practice and participate in meets, they will only get stronger and will continue to set and accomplish their goals.
