The Hawks are back and better than ever, ready to claim their title and throne as the Naugatuck Valley League Champions. With the advent of spring, people look to the newness of sunshine, planting flowers, and spending time outside. For the Woodland Outdoor Track team, spring marks the transition from their hibernation in winter and fall to the competitive nature and a new set of outdoor goals. Opportunities are broadened for athletes with several new events including javelin, discus, 100-meter dash, 400-meter hurdles, and so much more.
The Hawks started the season off strong with a 2-1 win against Torrington and Derby and loss to Class L’s Naugatuck. Team performances marked the start to an optimistic season with several athletes qualifying for NVLs and States.
**Note that the statistics below do not include any athletes that have qualified for NVLs or States as part of a relay team.
From the boys team, the following athletes have qualified for NVLs: Thomas Lewis, James Schwarz, Luke Cybulski, Sam Ambrocio, Gabe Diamante, Trevor Genthe, Chris Savarese, Bobby Gugliotti, Peter DuPre, Nate Bouffard, Ryan O’Donnell, Sam Rubano, and Blake Johnson.
Also from the boys team, the following athletes have qualified for NVLs and States: Ervin Owusu, Tim O’Connor, Alex Farr, Nick LaChapelle, Nate Messina, Brian Babo, Danny Hartnett, and Kian Sirowich.
Matching the boys’ strides, the following girls have qualified for NVLs: Caitlyn Molleur, Megan Hartnett, Kathleen Henriques, Emma Henriques, Leah Valentino, Emma Bunk, Sophia Ligi, Charli Hughes, Emily Ambrocio, Jenna Chicano, Payton Kane, Kyla O’Connor, and Eva Lynn.
And last, but certainly not least, the following athletes from the girls team have qualified for NVLs and States: Olivia Schwenger, Jamie Shaffer, Paige Letourneau, Laci Davis, Dani Celotto, Abby Bunk, Faye Carnemolla, Sarah Cooley, Emma Swanson, and Vanessa Krasnicki.
In addition to their NVL and State accolades, Laci Davis and Sarah Cooley also broke school records against Torrington High School on April 11th. The long jump record of 16’ 11.5”, previously set by Liz Galla in 2008, was crushed by an astonishing 2.5”, placing Davis among the top ten long jumpers in Connecticut. Last year, Davis shocked competitors with a new school record and personal best of 36’ 8.25”, a highly impressive feat in triple jump for this athlete’s first season.
On the other hand, Cooley dominates the throwing events with school records in shot put and javelin. Although this season’s just begun, she’s already broken Woodland’s shot put record of 37’ 2.75”, previously held by Jasmine Michie (‘19). Cooley has taken home many titles from NVL Champ to States Champ throughout her time at Woodland. Most recently, she concluded her indoor season with a Nationals Bag and personal best of 36’ 11”. There are many things to look forward to seeing from both of these powerful and impressive women, from shot put, javelin, and discus, to long and triple jump, we can expect great things this season.
As for goals and ambitions, senior captain, Alex Farr, offered some insight stating that he was most looking forward to the dual and tri-meets.
Farr also commented, “[I] definitely want to break some more records. I think that an overall goal is just to be the best, whether that’s in the NVL or at New Englands.”
Captains Sarah Cooley and Ervin Owusu most look forward to performance goals in relation to the popularity of outdoor teams.
“We did really good in indoor track with a small amount of people, so I’m excited to see what will happen in outdoor,” Owusu said. Cooley backed him with a determined outlook, stating, “I think it’s going to be very promising this year.”
The Hawks have high standards to uphold with numerous NVL titles in both indoor and outdoor. Although the team lost highly contributing ‘22 seniors like Kimmy and Chloe Poulos, Colin Slavin, Eric and Thomas Meade, Sara Alessio, and many more, athletes are not shying away from the pressure. Woodland’s runners, throwers, and jumpers are bringing their A-game, ready to not only meet, but surpass those standards. Watch out as the Woodland Hawks break barriers and records this season…there’s much to anticipate.
