After a long and competitive winter season, the girls track team has clinched a back-to-back league championship title. The team pulled an impressive one-point victory over team rival Rye High School at New York City’s famous Armory track, with several individuals placing at the top of their events.

Senior captain Peyton Rees placed second in the shot put and weight throw. Her throw of 29’7.25” broke the school record, previously held by Rees herself.

Sophomore Zoe Winburn and senior captain Ella Stern took first and second respectively in the high jump. Winburn topped the event, jumping an impressive 4’10”, and Stern followed with an equally astounding 4’8”. Further, junior Charlotte Howard placed third in the triple jump and fourth in the long jump.

Senior captain Nora Tahbaz and seniors Emma Lauria and Stephanie Porfirio all earned their place in the 55m dash finals. Tahbaz took home the gold, with Lauria following close behind in fourth and Porfirio placing sixth. The distance team further aided in the victory with senior Claudia Dodge placing second in the 600. Senior captain Grace Miske and junior Morgan Sample stood out in their respective long distance races. Junior Emma Russello and sophomore Lucia Lavallee earned second and third respectively in the 1500m race walk.

The relay teams proved themselves vital in the overall success of the team. After placing first in the 4×200 meter relay, Pelham had been leading over Rye 88-85, a three-point differential. The only event left to score was the 4×400 meter relay. Though the Rye track team placed first in this relay, earning them 8 points, Pelham put up a competitive race. Sophomores Zoe Winburn and Emily Maher, and seniors Luca Rivera and Claudia Dodge ran an inspired race, earning them a second place finish. This finish allowed the Pelham girls team to collect 6 points, leading them to another league victory by an intense score of 94-93.

“League championships was an overall team effort. Our competition definitely had talent so at a certain point I think, as a whole, we realized that a second win was well within our reach, only if we put all of our effort towards our events,” Miske said. “We couldn’t afford to slack off in anything if we wanted a win.”

The boys team also showed great athleticism with races by senior Gabe Sucena, junior Damien Frank, and sophomore Josh Goldman, who all earned a place in the 55m dash finals. Sucena finished second overall followed by Goldman in third. The distance team further contributed to the boys’ success with senior captain Henry Driesen finishing third in the 1000m and 1600m races. The 4×200 and 4×800 relays placed second and third in their respective races. Freshman Thomas Shelton finished first in the shot put, and his impressive 42’09.00” throw ranked him the third-place freshman shot putter in all of New York State, and fifth nationwide. The boys team placed third in the league.