Track Finds Success at Interschols

Whether it was tossing the discus, leaping over hurdles, sprinting 800 meters or long jumping, Exeter track and field dominated in every single event at the New England Championships on Saturday, and the boys’ team received their second consecutive first place finish while the girls’ came in an impressive fifth.

The entire season seemed everything to culminate in a perfect performance for Big Red. Throughout the term, the team faced schools like Thayer, St. Pauls and Andover. Although they excelled in every single meet, there were still various aspects that had to be focused on throughout the season.

“The one thing that we can improve on is just more general support on the earlier field events,” senior Lloyd Campbell said at the beginning of the season. “I am a bit biased because I am in of those earlier events.”

Lower Chudi Ikpeazu also noticed several areas that the team should continue to focus on as the season comes to a close.

“The team should continue to bring the Big Red Spirit to each of the meets and we will grow together as a team,” Ikpeazu said. “Preps on the team also performed very well and I had underestimated them, yet there is room for further development.”

Whatever pitfalls the team members saw two months ago, though, seemed to work themselves out as the season progressed—Exeter has completely dominated the last few meets. In the meet that involved Andover, Governor’s, Groton, Thayer and Winsor, a competitive and selective group, no one school came within one hundred points of Big Red; similarly, against Hyde, Belmont Hill and Exeter High School, the Academy also finished with a 103 point lead.

Once the team made their way to Northfield Mount Hermon for the championship this past weekend, the athletes followed up their prior meets in a similar Big Red fashion.

“The boys team placed first for the second year in a row. Marcus Polk placed first in two events. 44 points of exeter's came from the throwers me, Mark Zavrl, Lloyd Campbell III, Marcos Dymond and Luke Gray,” Ikpeazu said. “This performance shows that the team has the potential to do well again next year, since the team has become good at supporting each other and encouraging each other more than any other sport on this campus.”

Campbell added, “Exeter performed incredibly at Interschols.”

After two years of first place for the boys, and a fifth place and first place finish in the last two year for girls, many have come to wonder what makes Exeter track and field so assertive. For most of the team members, it seems to come down to hard work, a special team bond and unusual quality for the team practices.

“I did not go to Interschols, but I can definitely attest to the team chemistry that we have as as group,” lower Matt Asante said. “Our team achieves success due to the competitive yet supportive atmosphere we have a practice. Individually, everyone on the team strives to be as great as they can be, and that causes a team dynamic where everyone is doing their best, an essential core that makes the team so successful.”

Even though Big Red has passed the toughest test, they are still training hard for their final meet on Saturday, May 24th, where they take on Andover on home turf.