The potential for excellence on the girls' track team

The 2015 High School for Math, Science and Engineering’s girls' outdoor track team was made up of a majority of underclassmen. Interestingly, this didn't come as a surprise to coach Tom Henning.

The track team usually attracts a lot of freshmen runners every year. This season was no different, as the outdoor girls' track team consisted of 67% freshmen. These freshmen, Savanna Hang, Anna Mumford, Cindy Zhang, and Yong Yi Zhang used the track team to adjust to high school.

Yong Yi Zhang (l.), Cindy Zhang (r.) /Ed Yaker 

“Track, especially cross country, helped me meet students I wouldn’t have met before,” Mumford said. “Cross Country was before school started so that helped me make friends I wouldn’t normally make. The same thing happened with track.”

Inexperience was a major obstacle that the team had to overcome in order to succeed. Mumford recalled junior Michelle Lee’s excellent leadership which kept the team composed throughout the season.

“Michelle led by example," she said. "She showed up to practice even when she didn’t need to. She was always the fastest runner, the fact that she came to practice everyday displays her excellent leadership”

Success is probable for the next few seasons considering the team’s youth. Their potential for excellence was displayed this year. A motivated Lee and a promising group of rising sophomores will improve with more experience.

The most prominent family at HSMSE

Kleant Daci 2013 / Tom Henning

The High School for Math, Science and Engineering has a limited amount of sports; however, a great number of students aspire to achieve in cross country. The Flying Dragons' success as a team, in size and in competition, is due to the friendly environment that the runners create for each other.

Cross country is the most popular sport in the school because it attracts all different types of student-athletes.

“I believe many people joined cross country because we built up a reputation of being a very supportive and kind team, but also it is a place for those who probably aren't the most coordinated of athletes but happen to be talented runners instead,” said three year member Kleant Daci.

Even though cross country is fundamentally an individual sport, the members of the Flying Dragons are very unified. Although they usually don’t run with each other, they still work out together like any other team. The practices help the team devise strategies and build mental endurance for the races, helping each other reach their full potential.

“It almost feels like a big, big family,” said freshman runner Chae Young Kim.

There is a small number amount of girls on the cross country team, but they work hard to keep up with the guys.

“I don't know if I would enjoy [having more girls on the team] more because being on a co-ed team encourages me to run as fast as the guys,” girls captain Michelle Lee said. “I can't just give up because I'm a girl.”

The outcomes of this unified and family-like team helped them reach the city finals. A large number of new students are expected to join cross country again next September. Using what they learned this year, they seem more than ready to stay as a family and look to run even farther than they did before.

New running grounds for HSMSE

The outdoor track team / T. Henning

The High School for Math, Science, and Engineering’s outdoor track team is entering the PSAL this season. After only one invitational meet with the PSAL last year, the team is now officially a part of the league. What happens this season will be a mystery, but they look to build upon it.

“I have no idea how we are going to do since this is our first season in the PSAL” coach Tom Henning said. “We’re here to set the starting mark.”

Henning has also brought cross-country to HSMSE. The cross-country team entered the PSAL in 2012. During the 2013 season, the cross-country Flying Dragons impressively dominated most of the top 15 spots in the 5K Grand Prix at Van Cortlandt on September 24th. Some of the athletes from the cross-country team will be members of the outdoor track team once the season starts.

Junior Michael Alvin is one of the many cross-country runners who will transition into outdoor track this season. You have to look no further than the aforementioned race in Van Cortlandt where he placed 9th out of 56 runners to see that he has the potential to perform well in outdoor track.

Junior Julian Galperin will also join Alvin in transitioning seasons. Though his experience in cross-country suggests an easy move to outdoor track, Galperin recognizes the difference between the two sports.

“Track is a completely different sport so even if someone is a great cross country runner, they might be a horrible sprinter,” he said. “I'm one of the faster kids on the cross country team, but probably in the middle for track.”

The team is by no means expecting to be the best runners right away, but rather to gain experience.

“Our goal is to do the best that we can with what we have and learn how to do better next year,” Henning said.

By: Velid Mulic and Kofi Odame