By Lux Sheplee, Staff Writer
With winter in full swing, the end of January also marks the beginning of playoffs for winter sports. On January 29th, River Hill’s indoor track team stepped up to the line for their county meet. Each school selects its top three performers from each event to compete in this meet.
This season was different than most for the track team, as the indoor track at the PG Sports and Learning Complex was under construction. Senior Thomas Jayne said that this challenge “messed up the normal flow, but it was interesting to have to race at colleges until it reopened.” Stats from the season were also sparse due to complications. Thomas also addressed that there were many injuries this season, including his own which prohibited his participation in events.
Freshman Nikita Mohan also mentioned the effect snow days had on the track team’s training. Practice was not able to be executed as usual, and the outdoor conditions were taxing on the runners. Nikita commented, “I tried to stay as active as possible at home but it was definitely difficult to not be able to go for runs outside.”
Despite these setbacks, River Hill’s girls track came in third at counties and had a nationally ranked relay team. Lauren Virmani, a sophomore, took the gold for both the girls 1600 meter as well as the 3200 meter. With a time of 5:11.24 to win the 1600, and 11:20.30 for the 3200 Lauren says her victories “felt very good.” As for how she prepared for this moment, Lauren commented, “I worked hard at practice everyday, my teammates and I pushed each other during difficult workouts, working to get faster every day.” Lauren also credits the tough competition she faced throughout the season which challenged her to become even faster.
The girls 4×800 team also placed in first. This team is made up of one freshman, Nikita Mohan, and three sophomores, Marella Virmani, Lauren Virmani and Alyssa Mattes. Marella explains the training they endured “to prepare for counties we ran many hard workouts in the week leading up, and then had a few rest days before the meet to ensure we could perform our best.”
With a time of 5:24.36, Nikita came in fifth for the girls 1600 meter. As a freshman, this was Nikita’s first year as a part of the track team, and she competed in four events. Nikita acknowledges that, “of course there is always room for improvement, and I am hoping that I can improve my times and perform well in the upcoming regional meet and future comps.”
Although they faced obstacles, the River Hill indoor track team performed well at counties. With the girls placing third overall, they are right on track for regionals.