On April 9 the track and field team had their last district meet of the season and will soon be sending members to the Area Finals. As the first complete season since COVID-19 cancellations last year, its end carries a little extra weight for the team members.

“It’s meant a lot to me and especially the seniors this year,” junior Graylan Spring said. “With last year being cut short we are taking full advantage of every meet this year.”

Athletes in the track and field program usually run several different events throughout a meet and each athlete has their preference. Athletes from several different events are progressing to the Area competitions for Vandegrift.

“I went to Area my freshman year and it was a little intimidating since I didn’t know what to expect,” junior Taylor Mathis said. “I am running the 3200 and I finished in 3rd at the district meet this past Wednesday.”

It’s easy to separate sports like baseball, where all players are already six feet or more apart. However, with the number of events and the number of athletes crossing over between events, COVID-19 would seem to be a concern for the track and field program. According to Spring, that’s not the case.

“There have been no struggles that I know of with COVID this year,” Spring said. “It hasn’t had much of an effect.”

There is a mix of feelings going into the final meet of the season. For the seniors, this is only their third season, as they were robbed of their junior year by COVID-19 shutdowns.

“[It’s] kinda sad that the season is already closing to an end, but [we’re] happy we all got to compete and run in meets,” Spring said. “The end of districts is definitely important to me. I’m trying to go out and get some points for my team.”

Although this is a hard season for the seniors of the team, the outlook is bright for the future of Viper Track and Field, and spirits are high coming into the Area competition.

“I feel that the team’s greatest strength going into Area is how we get to have it at our home track,” Mathis said. ”We have all worked so hard in practice and should feel confident in our training.”