WOODBURY — With winter sports approaching the midseason checkpoint, athletes start to look at their successes in the season so far. For three athletes on the Nonnewaug girls indoor track team, they have completed many accomplishments.
Freshman Maddie Garguilo, junior Sophia Garguilo, and senior captain Ellie McDonald all qualified for states, as well as making top-10 in their events.
As of Jan. 1, senior captain Ellie McDonald was ranked seventh in the 55-meter dash. Despite her impressive standing, McDonald believes there’s still more to accomplish for herself and her team.
“I am very proud of myself and my team, but we’re not done yet,” McDonald said. “It’s only halfway through the season, so I still have time to keep working and get even better.”
McDonald isn’t the only athlete finding success this season. Junior Sophia Garguilo has also achieved notable rankings in her events.
“I’m currently ranked fifth in the 600 meters and third in the 300 meters,” Sophia Garguilo said. “But I know that to stay in the top 10, I need to keep improving.”
But that’s not all for the Garguilos. Freshman sister Maddie also made an impact in just a short period of time. As of Jan. 22, she is ranked second in Class M for the 600 and the 1,000.
“I was very happy when I saw that I was ranked in the state,” said Maddie Garguilo. “Since I am a freshman, I have lots of time to improve and get better and just see where it goes. I definitely think that all the people I have supporting me makes the accomplishment even better, especially my parents and teammates, who are all very encouraging.”
But the work doesn’t stop there. Arleigh Duff, the girls track and cross country head coach, already knew that they were going to be an important aspect to the team.
“When I first saw them, I could tell by just the work ethic they would be successful here because they loved the sport, ” Duff said.
But how would a coach describe such incredible athletes?
“For Ellie, I’d say fierce and tough. For Sophia, definitely work and desire,” says Duff. “They both put in the work in the offseason.”
Track isn’t the only sport that McDonald and Garguilo are involved in. McDonald participated in soccer during the fall, Sophia Garguilo played field hockey, and Maddie Garguilo ran cross country. Once their seasons were close to an end, they put in the work early to prepare themselves for the upcoming season.
“I started training for track almost immediately after field hockey ended in order to be in good shape coming into the season,” says Sophia Garguilo. “I have also put a lot more focus into my running form and lifting in season.”
