The 2014-2015 indoor track team was coached by Lara Widstatt, and it was a blast! The team was comprised of about 30 hardworking girls who persevered in the cold weather almost every day whether it be an interval day or a field day. Although it was cold, the weather never stopped us from bonding, having fun, and running. It was always easy to spot an indoor track girl in the new gym by all the layers she was wearing. The team was so close to one another, and I think everyone is sad that the season is over.

Winter is the longest season, going from November all the way to the end of January into early February. During the course of the season, we participated in six meets, four of which were located at Prince George’s County Sports Complex. The meets run for a long 6-7 hours and the complex is an hour away, but it was worth it. The meets were so fun, and an NDP girl never ran without one of her teammates cheering her on. The captains this year were seniors Megan Stone, Alex Keffer, and Maggie Rybak. The captains encouraged us to try our hardest and to have fun while doing so. They always made sure someone greeted us at the finish and cheered us on while we ran, jump, or threw. They set an unprecedented example to love your teammates and work hard while still having fun. All the girls worked so hard, but some stood out. Maggie Rybak took 7^th place overall in the 55 hurdles and junior Colleen Campbell took 7^th place in the 300 and 500 meter race. Many other girls also qualified for varsity at championships and ran extremely well, although we did not win any overall awards.

While the season was focused mostly on running, of course, we also did fun things. One day after it snowed, we had a team snowball fight on the middle level field and went sledding. That was definitely a day to remember. We also played dodge ball one day at practice, which was a blast. Our team was also obsessed with dancing and music, whether girls were doing it on the bus or before practice. The week of champs our captains organized spirit week as well. Each day had a different theme, and if you forgot, you had to do something silly in front of the whole team. We also had pasta parties the day before meets where we ate and bonded. One of my favorite parts was doing yoga the day before meets in the dance room. Our coach would lead yoga then while we did corpse pose, she would tell us an inspirational story about reaching your goals. Lara was a great coach and pushed us to do our best while still enjoying ourselves.

Sophomore Chloe Ober said, “Track was a blast this year, even if every day was freezing.” I definitely agree with Chloe. Deciding to indoor track was one of the best decisions I have ever made and would do it again in a heartbeat. Winter is my least favorite season, but track makes me dread winter a whole lot less. I strongly recommend doing indoor track to anyone who is thinking about, even if you’re not the best runner.