All track athletes look forward to the Western Mass Championships. Athletes work hard throughout the entire season in hopes of qualifying for Western Mass and earning points for their team.

This year, many athletes succeeded in the championships that were held Friday, February 10 at Smith College. The Girls Indoor Track team came in 11 place with 12 points, while the Boys Indoor Track Team ranked 21 with 1.20 points.

Senior Alex Benjamin earned the boy’s points with his placement as sixth place overall in High Jump. Despite his disappointment in his height of 5’7”, the team can thank him for their rank.  

Senior Sullivan Kennedy lost his chance to score points early in the 1000 meter race when his back seized up. He could not finish the race, and the coaches assisted him as he stumbled off of the track.

On a more positive note, Freshman Baylee Edwards continues to achieve in the 55 meter dash. She made it to finals, in which she ran fourth place overall with a time of 7.73 seconds. Edwards is the only athlete on the team who will continue to the State Championships.

“I am shocked because I was intimidated when I looked at the information about my competition,” Edwards said right after the officials announced her placement. Her previous personal record was listed as the fifth fastest time for the race, so she did not expect to improve enough to place fourth instead.

Edwards is not the only freshman athlete making impressive achievements. Freshman Meagan Santos, the only girl who competed in Western Mass for high jump, finished in fifth place overall with a height of 4’8”. Next year, she hopes to reach 5 feet.

Sophomore Sofia Manuel competed in two different races even though she fractured her left ankle.

Manuel finished first in her heat for the 300 meter race with a time of 45.22. She felt excited about this accomplishment because the last time she ran this race, she collapsed because of her ankle and was unable to cross the finish line.

Manuel proceeded to take part in the 4×200 Relay, in which Ludlow High witnessed something they have never seen before. During the first 50 meters of the race, Manuel’s left shoe came off because of the brace she wore on her ankle.

“I noticed the rough feeling of the track as soon as my shoe fell off, but I knew I had no choice but to continue the race,” Manuel said. She did not take even a second to look back at her missing shoe.

The relay team came just one second short of qualifying for the State Championship, but still ran the fastest time this season, which is 1:55.75.