Exploring Madison girls’ and boys’ track & field sport season for the 2022-2023 year. We dive into student-athlete interviews, Coach Monaco’s statements, the vigor of the practices, and expectations for the season.

On December 8th, 2022, the girls and boys track & field teams lined up on a panel in the Madison High School Media Center to discuss the in-progress winter track & field season. Together, the student-athletes articulated the unity, goals, and practice that encompasses the teams. Additionally, Coach Monaco, Madison’s track & field coach, expressed his confidence within the track & field team during our personal interview.

Both the girls’ and boys’ track & field team’s answers revealed that the sport doesn’t solely rely on competition and athleticism, but from unity from teammates. Additionally, Coach Monaco communicates his expectations for the season. 

“Whether a sprinter, distance runner, or thrower, there’s a shared pain that naturally brings people together in a strange way,” says Henrik Hamilton, a 12th grade distance runner for the MHS track & field team. 

“You meet a lot of other people that you don’t even know. You become so much closer to the community and the school,” says Lena Dressler, a 10th grade thrower for the MHS girls team. 

On December 7th, 2022 Marshall Molina, an 11th grade student studying Broadcast Journalism, observed the practice at Madison’s Ted Monica stadium. The girls and boys performed various exercises such as hurdles, shot put, and distance running. Molina recalled the vigor from student-athletes demonstrated during practice: “They were active and excited to share their activities and routines. Their coaches kept them on topic and their dedication to their tasks was admirable. There were a lot more runners than expected.” 

Molina then had the opportunity to record videos of the running, throwing, and jumping for a ‘hype video’ assignment assigned to the teams. “All of the athletes were vigorous and put forth immense effort.” 

Michael Keller, a 12th grade sprinter for MHS boys track, speaks to how the team keeps unity in such an individualized sport, “We train together everyday except Sundays. It’s a very difficult sport, so sticking with each other and encouraging each other through the difficult days, the difficult workouts – it’s how we kind of build unity. And on those race days we’re always encouraging each other.”

Coach Monaco states, “We have about three distinct groups of athletes: distance runners, throwers, sprinters, jumpers, and hustlers. Each group has a coach or two coaches that make all the preparations for the season. In terms of practice we practice six days a week. All practices are typically an hour and half, two hours in length. We just expect a lot of our athletes.”

While interviewing Coach Monaco, he said his outlook on the season is that an athlete or two should make it to the Meet of Champs (the highest individual track & field event in New Jersey), preparing for spring track, and just improving everyone’s fitness. 

Marshall Molina and I asked Coach Monaco to encapsulate the track & field team in one sentence. Monaco states, “The track & field team is made up of a diverse spread of athletes of all different ability levels that show up everyday to try to be successful in what they want to; you can only compare yourself to you, you can’t compare yourself to other people.”

The winter track & field season ends around February 2023. Good luck, Dodgers!

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