The 2018 girls winter track season is off to a great start. The teams had their first major event on January 2nd and on January 17th to take the meet’s title.

Runners from all grade levels competed at the Big North Frosh/Novice meet, and NVOT had its share of victories. “Our team is small this year but we have people in every event,” said sophomore Melina Kyprianou. “We didn’t win overall, but we had many [individual] wins…  winning a race always feels great.”

Some of the events that took home gold medals included the freshman pole vault and the freshman triple jump. Sophomore Kayleen Bae had placed second in the novice 1600m and won the novice 3200m in 12:46.9. “It was the first time I came in 1st…. I was very happy,” stated Bae. “I really like my team, and Coach Burns’ coaching helped me run faster.”

Beside Kyprianou and Bae, junior Taylor Newman, sophomore Marisa DiGia, freshman Ally Meeks, and many others competed. “I really like my team,” Bae mentioned, “we encourage each other to run faster.”

The girls’ winter track team later competed on the 17th at a meet in Staten Island, where they ended up winning the title with 140 points. Newman and junior Julia Powell, seniors Caroline O’Sullivan, and Mary Scrivanich also came in first in their personal events.

Although not everyone won events, they all had an impact on the final score. The team has placed in categories like pole vault, the 55 dash, and the 200m that helped contribute to the title. Bae placed 3rd in the 1600m and in the 3200m. “I was very happy that my time for the 3600m got 30 seconds faster [since my last meet],”  she stated, and also mentioned how she was happy that her time “contributed to the team score.”

Despite these personal and team victories, this is only the beginning for the Golden Knights. The next big meet will happen on Wednesday, January 24th. “We will try to get as many wins as we can,” stated Kyprianou.