The 2026 Indoor Track season has concluded and the Championship season brought so many great results! With numerous Region, State, and even National qualifiers, the Wakefield Track program continues to flourish.
First, we start with the Liberty District Championships, featuring three individual District Championship wins from Chris Gilpin in the 55m dash and Long Jump as well as Devin Carlson in Pole Vault. However, the success didn’t stop there, Carter Lyons got on the podium in the 300m dash as well as Andrew Coe (me), and both the 4x400m and 4x200m relays to round out the boys running events. On the girls side, AJ Jordan placed 3rd in the 300m dash, Dru Kukawa had a 2nd place finish in the 500m dash, and the 4x800m relay placed 2nd as well. Also, that was without the field events. DJ Rich and Gabriel Bishop placed 2nd and 3rd in High Jump, and Diego Fernandez joined Devin Carlson on the podium by placing 2nd, too. Kayleigh Williams placed 2nd in Shot Put to round out the podium finishers for the Warriors. Chris Gilpin even said himself, “it felt great knowing that the extra work I put in this season like plyometrics and lifting paid off in the best way possible.”
Next up was the Northern Virginia Regional Championship which featured another all-star performance from Chris Gilpin, placing third in the 55m dash and second in the Long Jump. The boys Pole Vault squad followed that up with a similar performance from the District Championship, as Devin Carlson and Diego Fernandez once again placed first and second. On the girls side, Olivia Barr and Kayleigh Williams placed third and fourth respectively, securing key points for the team. And finally, the girls 4x400m relay earned bronze to close out the Regional Championship.
At the State Championship, the girls 4×400 placed 14th and also set a new school record of 4:06.97! The success didn’t stop there as Devin Carlson placed second in Pole Vault! Setting a new school record of 14-6 while Diego Fernandez placed fifth, vaulting 12-6. Carlson had one last meet, Nike Indoor Track Nationals where he earned All-American status by placing 15th. A terrific season for the future Tufts University Vaulter. He said, “to get here I spent the past 5 years training relentlessly, with morning sprint practices and lifts, and off-season training with my teammates. I love it, it’s so rewarding being able to train with my teammates and see success. Being an All-American is just the start, I can’t wait to get into training and competing at the collegiate level next year!”
With the Outdoor Track season now in full swing, and this being the last season for the Seniors that make up a large portion of the team, everyone will be pushing to the max to have one last hurrah. The boys Outdoor Track team just won the Arlington County Championship and the girls placed second! The District Championship is next Wednesday, 5/13; it is Senior Night, so come out and support our Warriors at 4:30pm!