Sinclair Richman

Sophomore Amaia Depestre hurdles during the Knights’ practice on March 19. The team is looking to qualify many athletes for the state meet.

After the 2024 season finished with eight runners going to the state meet, the girls track and field team is looking to break records and win the state championship as a team and individual championships in certain events.

Six-year head coach Josh Washington said despite a slow start to the season last year, he saw improvement and eventual success throughout it.

“[Last year], we honestly started off kind of rocky, but as the season progressed, the team got to know each other,” Washington said. “We built a lot of chemistry with one another. We saw major improvements, especially from some of our upperclassmen, as well. We ended the season on a really high note. We qualified about eight girls for the state meet, which was good.”

Senior Grace Lisbon, who competes in the high jump, the 400m, the 4x200m relay and the 4x400m relay, said she was happy with the way the season turned out last year for her and the team.

“My season went well last year,” Lisbon said. “I did much better in the 400m than I’ve ever done, I was able to make it to the region finals, which is pretty good. Our 4x400m team also made it to state. I also was able to place eighth at the state championships in high jump, bringing home a medal.”

Washington said, because most of the team is returning, this season should be as competitive, if not more so, as last season.

“The team this year, the senior and junior classes that we have, is the type of team where, when they’re freshmen, as coaches, we look at them and we say that, when they become seniors, they’re going to be really good,” Washington said. “That’s kind of where we are now with our team, where we lost a few [pieces] last year, but all of our major pieces, they’re seniors and they’re juniors this season.”

Washington said the talent on the team is at a level he hasn’t seen before and that it is enough to break a large number of school records.

“I’ve been coaching for 10 years, and this will be the sixth year that I’m the head coach of the girls,” Washington said. “This will probably be the most talented team that I’ve ever had. And I suspect, probably by the end of the season, we will break about 90% of the school records.”

Sophomore James Roberts, who runs the 800m, 1600m and the 3200m, said they joined the team after having a successful cross country season. They have been preparing for the season with help from assistant coach Jamal Willis.

“I decided to join track because I really enjoyed the cross country season, and following me leaving gymnastics I was looking to continue my running journey,” Roberts said. “I also was a big fan of coach Jamal’s coaching and felt like I would make big improvements to my times if I were to continue through track. I have been running and following the spreadsheet Jamal gave us. I also did postseason cross country, so I used that to train for track this year.”

Washington said he’s looking at a few newcomers from Howard to have a positive impact on the team this season.

“We have a couple of freshmen and sophomores that I expect to have an impact, including [freshman] Cali Smith,” Washington said. “She came from Howard, and I actually saw her for the first time last year when she was training with Howard, and I knew that, when she came to Midtown, she would be a really good addition to our team.”

Smith, who runs the 200m, 4x200m relay, the 400m and competes in the long jump, said she joined the season to continue her passion for the sport.

“I joined track because I really enjoy it, and it was lots of fun in middle school,” Smith said. “I won the last meet in long jump, and I really like the sport. I want to test how far I can go and how much I can improve physically, mentally and emotionally throughout the season.”

Washington said the talent on the team was already there; so in the offseason, he worked on improving mindsets to make sure the team was ready for competitions.

“The big thing we’ve been working on is becoming mentally tougher,” Washington said. “The physical is going to be there. None of that matters if you can’t show up the day of and do it when it counts. I’ve been sharing quite a few affirmations with the team; we do a lot of mindfulness things during practice, which works really well. I’m also being as positive and encouraging as I can possibly be so that when they step foot on the track, they are not only physically prepared, but they are also mentally prepared, as well.”

Lisbon said the mental preparation Washington puts the athletes through is extremely impactful on the success of the team.

“Coach Josh is the most motivational coach, and he always has the most inspirational and motivational things to say to me and my teammates that encourages us, not just in our workouts but in our daily lives, too,” Lisbon said.

With this motivation, Washington said he wants the team to become a championship winning team.

“As successful as I’ve been as a coach, I am not yet a championship winning coach,” Washington said. “I would love to be a city champion this year; I would love to be a region champion this year; and if all the pieces and everything align the way it should be, fingers crossed, we could be a state champion this year.”