In a strong winter season for Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School indoor track, the boys team has broken multiple school records and several athletes have qualified for postseason competition.
Sophomore George McDow broke the school’s indoor 300-meter record on Jan. 10 at the Massachusetts State Track Coaches Association (MSTCA) Division 5 Northeast Invitational, a massive meet that drew 5,200 athletes to the Reggie Lewis Track and Athletic Center in Boston. McDow clocked 38.52 seconds, edging out the previous record of 38.60 seconds set by Nick Pecararo in 2020.
And at the MSTCA Division 5 relays last weekend, the boys team knocked two more records off the board. Jamison DeMello, Lucas Martins, Enzo Reis, and McDow ran 23.56 seconds in the 4×50-yard shuttle dash, breaking the previous mark of 24.75 seconds set in 2020. In the 4×200-meter relay, McDow, Martins, Reis, and Kaniel Morgan posted a 1:37.72, breaking the 2016 record of 1:38.27.
Earlier in the season, Luis Costa, Reis, Anthony DaSilva, and Ben Fuller set a new 4×400-meter relay record in December with a time of 3:45.43, breaking the previous recordset by Daniel daSilva, Nick Pecararo, Jonathan Nortan, and Zach Utz in 2020 by over seven seconds.
“This is great,” said Head Coach Joe Schroeder of the record-breaking season. “We just put up a record board in the gym for indoor track. They’ve had the outdoor record board for a while, but now [with] the indoor record board, they get to see on a daily basis, and it’s inspiring.”
“It’s been fun to watch the kids take some of these records down,” he added.
Student-athletes from the Vineyard team are also standing out in state and league rankings. Luis Costa leads the Cape & Islands League in the 600-meter race and ranks fourth in Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) Division 5 with a season-best time of 1:25.94 set at the Northeast Invitational. Enzo Reis leads the Cape and Islands League in the 55-meter hurdles and is currently ranked eighth in Division 5 with a time of 8.14 seconds. Both athletes have qualified for the MIAA divisional championships and are milliseconds from securing spots at the Nike Indoor Nationals at the the Nike Track & Field Center at the Armory in New York City.
“Aside from the records, the kids have done really well,” said Schroeder. “We have seen total team improvement over the course of the season. I want to say 85 percent of my team is brand new to the sport. It’s been gratifying to watch them improve and learn.”
Looking ahead, the Vineyard indoor track team is finished with dual meets and is preparing for the Cape and Islands League championships scheduled to take place on Jan. 31 at the Reggie Lewis Track and Athletic Center in Boston. The meet welcomes eight other Cape Cod teams to compete, and Schroeder says the Vineyarders have their eyes on placing high.
“We would like to be in the top four for sure,” said Schroeder. “Things are going to have to break our way, but the way the meet is set up could benefit us. We are looking for a good score. We have some strong relay teams and some pretty high-ranked individuals for the boys and for the girls, so I’m just looking forward to seeing how things pan out.”