By Mianna Burke ’28
With winter settling in, Derby High School’s indoor track team is excited to begin its season on Dec. 4. As the weather turns colder, the energy from Derby High School’s indoor track team raises and continues to fire them up. Student athletes are ready to strengthen their skills and set big goals for this upcoming track season. They are also hopeful to build their confidence and talents along the way.
Quincy Carter ‘26, number one for Connecticut Class S state championships for the 55 meter dash and Derby’s number one boys sprinter expresses his enthusiasm for the challenges ahead stating, “I’m most excited for all the fun races that come up and that I get the opportunity to better my times from last year.” He shares his drive to beat his own personal goals and what it means to strive for excellence when it comes to competition.
Cesar Rueda ‘26 who is currently number one for Derby High School’s indoor boys shot put and top 12 for Class S schools in Connecticut states he is “excited to just be doing track” He highlights how he believes that track is “a great thing to do, it’s a fun sport and, it’s a good way to get to know other people.” His perspective shows the impact indoor track has on and shows a sense of belonging in Derby’s indoor track team.
Motivation is a key part to the athletes in indoor track. Carter and Rueda share their thoughts on what their motivation for this season is. Carter states, “What motivates me is state championships. I really love competition in going against people and, you know, winning and just trying to do better for myself. So everything about track as a whole sport just motivates me.” He reflects his love for competition highlighting victories and self improvement. Following that, Rueda states, “I think what motivates me is that for indoor, I am the number one thrower in the Naugatuck Valley League. I am the current number one returning thrower for Derby and I am top 12 in Class S.”
Indoor Track has shown a sense of leadership and inspiration. Head Coach Matthew Nicolari states, “One improvement I want to see is I want to see leadership. We keep asking for it, then we keep getting a little bit more, but it needs to be more. I want to see underclassmen step up and hold each other accountable. I want to see upperclassmen try and fill the role of captain. I want to see seniors who are ready to be leaders to step up and use their voice when it comes to competing.” Shane McAdams ‘29 finds his motivation and leader to be Carter, stating, “Quincy Carter is my motivation for indoor season.” McAdams acknowledges that role models make impacts and can leave an impact on the underclassmen.
Nicolari is looking forward to a big change this year. He is excited to see how the team, especially the freshman, will come together and meet his expectations. As he said “I want to see you as an athlete improve, because if you improve throughout the whole season, the whole team improves throughout the whole season, we reach our goals.” He is a transformational coach and is not obsessed with the result, but with making each person the best they can be every day in practice.
With the season approaching, the school should keep a watch for these hardworking athletes. Nicolari is eager to see Alison Echeverria-Soto ‘26 compete at a higher level, Jayson Drayton ‘26 have his hard work from last season pay off, Mianna Burke ‘28 reach league champion this year, new incoming people like Jayden McNeil ‘29 run distance, and all the veterans on the team improve. The hard work and dedication of all these athletes shows a promising track season.
The Raider Press 