Newfield outdoor track and field races out to strong start

There are plenty of standout outdoor track and field teams in Tompkins County, and Newfield is no exception.

The Trojans have flown out of the gates to begin this season. As of April 15, both the boys and girls teams won their first two meets. They opened things up with a win in a combined meet with Union Springs and Moravia, then took down Tioga in their first home meet.

One of their biggest strengths this season is in their numbers. The Trojans have 43 athletes when combining both teams. Ricky Stewart, the head coach of the boys team, said this is probably the largest track team Newfield has even seen.

“Normally we have to sit out some events because we don’t have enough kids to cover them,” Stewart said. “Now it’s a little luxury to be able to fill every event and then fill every event with multiple people… The kids compete really, really well and practice as hard as they compete.”

This growth is especially evident for the boys team. After fielding 15 athletes last season, that total has more than doubled this time around with 29 athletes. Stewart played a big part in recruiting, and he explained why more students are joining in on all the fun.

“Track is a little different beast from some of the other sports, especially as far as competition-wise, because you form a bond with the kids on the other teams as well as your own teammates,” Stewart said. “You’re not out there with that ‘win or we’re going to kill you later’ attitude. The kids like that after coming off these competitive basketball seasons—football, soccer, and so forth—that they can compete, have fun, and still make friends with their competitors.”

While Stewart has been coaching a long time at Newfield, girls outdoor track head coach Richie Dorval is a relative newcomer. Dorval is in his second season leading the girls team, and he attributed the Trojans’ growth to the recent success they’ve had in the last couple of years.

“We’ve had athletes make it pretty far last year,” Dorval said. “We had a couple of state qualifier athletes, and then we even had an athlete (Hezi McCoy) make it to the state level. I think that kind of motivates athletes to join the team. They see success in the program, and they want to be a part of that.”

The girls team also boasted an athlete who took part in state qualifiers last year. Aaliyah McCoy was involved in the 100-meter and 200-meter dashes, and the senior returns this season as one to watch out for as the season progresses.

“She is one of the best motivated athletes on our team,” Dorval said. “She brings people up. She’s a team leader. She’s motivated to just work each day at practice. She’s always trying her best and giving her all.”

The girls team also has plenty of talented underclassmen. Madigan White is one of the top racewalkers in Section IV as only a freshman and is close to being nationally ranked in the event. Sophomore Emily Taylor has also impressed in the hurdles and triple jump.

The top returner on the boys team is Malcolm Jenkins. The sophomore also participated at state qualifiers last year in the 200-meter dash. Jenkins has also starred on the football and basketball teams, making him an incredibly well-rounded athlete.

“He’s what you would call a quiet assassin,” Stewart said. “He’s just multi-talented and very, very coachable. You tell Malcolm something, he will try his best to do it. Like Aaliyah, he brings up the other players ,even though he’s young and still has a few years to go. He’s a leader. He leads by example, and that’s in every sport. His success in other sports is also a reason a lot of the kids came along because they see that he’s a standout in basketball and in football, but he [also] does track and he’s been doing track since he was in seventh grade. He’s just one of those exceptional individuals that any coach would look at.”

The boys team also has a strong core of upperclassmen who have excelled in both competing and leadership. Senior Sawyer Emery has done well in the high jump and 800-meter run, junior Greg Taylor is one to follow in the triple jump and shot put, and junior Zakieus Vaughn continues to shine in the hurdles.

Dorval and Stewart have high aspirations for their respective teams. If the Trojans can keep up their great start, those goals will no doubt come to fruition.

“We have the opportunity to make it pretty far,” Dorval said. “We’re definitely going to try our hardest to make it as far as we can, make it to the state qualifier meet, and hopefully make it to the state meet.”

“My goal is to win the division this year, and I think both teams can do it,” Stewart said. “It’s just [about] putting in the work, taking care of your body, taking care of yourself, hydrating, and doing all the right things.”