Lady Vikings Progressing on Track

An influx of talented freshmen has provided a boost for Port Washington's girls winter track and field team, which is gearing up for the Nassau Conference II championship meet on Jan. 24 at St. Anthony's High School.

The Lady Vikings, with 14 ninth-graders, have impressed in the Friendship Games which concluded this morning at Nassau Community College.

"We've got a strong cross-country program at the middle school level and it's a big reason for the highest number of incoming freshmen we've had in the three years I'm here," varsity coach Kristopher Ocker said. "It's exciting."

Many of Port Washington's young guns made their presence felt in the Friendship Games, a series of three meets held over the span of a month. On Jan. 6, Ocker saw his all-freshman 4-x-800 relay team of Diane Lin, Nicole Ziv, Allegra Maldonado and Ashley Pollack place third in 10:56.20, and the 4-x-400 consisting of freshmen Sara Marinelli and Laura Brooks, junior Janayia Thomas and senior Meghan Byrnes finish fourth in 4:25.00.

"We've done well in relays," Ocker said. "The chemistry has to be there as much as the speed. You can save five seconds with clean hand-offs. We've been rolling with the same four freshmen in the 4-by-800, and Janayia has really taken the 4-by-400 under her belt."

Byrnes, a captain along with fellow seniors Stephanie Mejia, Eliza Feldman and Kori Lay, anchors the 4-x-400 and excels in the 600 and 1,000. Byrnes qualified for the Friendship Games finals in all three events, but she'll sit out the 1,000 since individuals are limited to two events. She finished first in the 600 in a field of 16 on Jan. 6, crossing the line in 1:47.50. "Meghan's capable and willing to do any event," Ocker said. "She's the most versatile athlete we've got. She always gives her all and has improved a lot from a strategic standpoint."

Lay is one of the top five racewalkers in the county and broke the nine-minute mark last Saturday at the Armory Track and Field Center. Another senior, Elise Ressa, has performed consistently well in the 55 hurdles and the triple jump.

While East Meadow appears too tough to dethrone as conference champions, Ocker believes the Lady Vikings can finish in the top three in the nine-team meet next Sunday as well as make noise in the county meet on Feb. 6 at Suffolk Community College-Brentwood.

"We've got a lot of depth, and this is our year to steal some points away from teams like East Meadow and Calhoun at the conference meet," Ocker said.