Mustangs ably cross finish line of Track and Field season

The boys’ team came in second in a close match, while the girls’ team secured third place in the team standings.

By Joe Yarkin For The Beachcomber • May 10, 2023 1:30 am
From left to right, Max McLaughlan (third place), Leif McBennett (second place) and Harrison Decker (first place) at the start of the 1600-meter race (John Decker Photo).
From left to right, Max McLaughlan (third place), Leif McBennett (second place) and Harrison Decker (first place) at the start of the 1600-meter race (John Decker Photo).

The McMurray Middle School Mustangs ended their 2023 Track and Field season on a triumphant note at the Nisqually League Championships on Thursday, May 4.

The event was held at the Vashon High School track, where the boys’ team came in second in a close match with Charles Wright Academy, while the girls’ team secured third place in the team standings.

The girls’ and boys’ teams both showed impressive improvements at the championship meet, with nine personal records (PRs) for the girls and twelve PRs for the boys. The girls and boys particularly dominated the longer distances, sweeping the 1600 meter boys race with a one-two-three finish by seventh-graders Harrison Decker, Leif McBennett and Max McLachlan, and the 1600 girls with a first place finish by Katherine Thompson and fourth and fifth places by Annabelle Thompson and Bridget Simmons.

In the 800-meter boys race, eighth grader Cash Nowicki claimed a decisive victory with Max McLachlan finishing in third place.

Other podium performances by the McMurray athletes included three second-place finishes: Ryan Ingalls in the 75-meter hurdles, and Brent Calhoun in the high jump, and the boys 4 x 200-meter relay team of Harrison Decker, Rafael Escovedo, Kellan Miller and Cash Nowicki.

The Mustangs also climbed the podium with third-place finishes by Cash Nowicki (200m), Dominic Coppolillo (400m), Cy Lawler (75m hurdles and long jump) and the 4 x 100 relay team of Weston Dorr, Rafael Escovedo, Jonathan Delgado and Kellan Miller. Another highlight of the meet was Edie Lopez’s third place in the girls’ 800-meter race (3:02.51), which set the 6th-grade school record in her debut at that distance.

Several other school records were broken during the track season: Ryan Ingalls set new sixth-grade girls’ school records in the 200-meter dash (32.2s) and 75-meter hurdles (14.4s), while Harrison Decker established a new seventh-grade boys’ school record in the 1600-meter race (4:55.0).

Kudos to all the Mustang runners, their coaches, and their supporters for a fantastic season. With many talented athletes returning for next season, the future looks bright for 2024.

Full results for the McMurray League Finals can be found at tinyurl.com/mcm-track.

Joe Yarkin is the head coach of the McMurray Middle School track team.