The varsity track team continued its impressive streak at the Peninsula Athletic League (PAL) Championships on Saturday, May 10, with many athletes qualifying for the upcoming Central Coast Section (CCS) trials. A highlight of the meet came from senior Avery Boyse, who cleared 13 feet in pole vault and broke the previous PAL record of 11 feet, 7 inches.

For junior Stella Newman, the meet was an important stepping stone in her recovery from an ankle injury that sidelined her for most of her season.

“Going into PALs, we were doing a lot of time trials, just to see where I was at because I hadn’t raced at all,” Newman said.

While the track and field team typically carries a large roster, the numbers have thinned as they head into the end-of-season PAL and CCS meets. Newman said that the smaller team does pose some challenges, but the sense of community remains the same.

“It’s a little bit harder mentally. Because it’s just me and the track, and I’m the only one doing this workout right now, and I just have to do it without the support of your teammates,” Newman said. “But at the same time, everyone who’s not still going has been super supportive, showing up to meets and supporting us, and like the core group that we have that’s continuing on is really strong.”

A difference between regular league meets and the PAL finals is the significantly larger number of teams competing, as opposed to the usual two or three schools. Seventeen teams from across the Bay Area were present at this meet, and Newman said that this was challenging because she was running without accurate information on her opponents.

“You definitely see people that you have never seen before, or you hadn’t seen that year before. So that’s always interesting, because you don’t really know what they’re doing,” Newman said.

Sophomore Elizabeth Carroll also delivered a strong performance at the meet, winning the womens’ varsity 800 meters. But Carroll isn’t finished yet — she is focused on qualifying for CCS finals and setting another personal record in the 800 meters. She credits her performance to the atmosphere created by the crowd and the support she received from her friends and family.

“It makes such a difference to hear people cheering my name as I’m running, it just boosts my mood. And I’m like, ‘okay, I can do this,’” Carroll said.

Newman, who qualified for the womens’ varsity 4×400 relay and 1600 meters, hopes to carry the momentum to CCS trials.

“The real goal is to get to CCS feeling good and feeling healthy and run as best as I possibly can,” Newman said. “I have not had that experience this entire season. I haven’t run one race that I felt good in. So I’m just hoping to get there healthy and have a good warm-up.”