Although his roster might not be as large as he expected, Head Coach Jon Rivera aimed for his Guilford indoor track program to compete with dynamism in many different events this winter. When they opened the postseason last week, it certainly appeared like the Indians delivered on their coach’s request.

Guilford’ boys’ and girls’ indoor track squads competed at the SCC East Sectional Championship on Jan. 28 at Floyd Little Athletic Center in New Haven. The boys tallied 29 points to finish sixth out of 10 schools and the girls came in seventh with 30 points among the 10-team fields featuring schools from the SCC’s Hammonasset and Housatonic divisions. While the Indians didn’t come home with any gold as a group, they still shined by recording many bright performances across the board in the sprinting, distance, throwing, jumping, and relay events.

“I thought both teams did really well here. Our numbers this year haven’t been what we would’ve liked, yet they performed really well,” said Coach Rivera. “Some of our goals adjusted midseason as we lost some kids, but they are still there in having a scoring relay in states. We also have some people with a shot at the State Open. We would like to get more kids to come out, so it’s a work in progress. But we always want to have a well-rounded team, which I think we have now.”

For the girls, the highest finish by an Indians’ athlete went to sophomore Jacqueline Guerra, who grinded it out to finish in the runner-up slot for the 3,200 with a time of 12:20.85—placing behind Cheshire’s Lauren Daddi (11:41.44). On the boys’ side, Guilford’s top showing came from senior tri-captain Ben Siciliano, who took second for the 1,600 in 4:37.32 and was only edged out by a slim margin by Kyle Beaudette (4:35.82) of Amity. Siciliano then claimed the same spot for the 3,200 (9:53.42) as Amity’s Harrison Block (9:44.65) won the race.

“Overall, both teams have developed well. We have some more experience and the guys and girls here have been very committed,” said Rivera. “Sectionals is important because it gets you in that postseason mood. Indoor season is a different type of regular season with invitationals and no win-loss records, but you always want to peak at the end of the year.”

Additionally on the day for the girls, Guerra finished third for the 1,000 in a personal-best time of 3:09.26; freshman Meredith Bloss raced to third with the 600 (1:50.64) and fourth in the 3,200 (12:38.24); junior Erica Vicino finished eighth with the 1,000 (in 3:22.56); sophomore Christina Nault was third and qualified for states in the high jump (4-8); and freshman Jalynn McCown threw to fifth for the shot put (33-3.5).

Rounding out the boys’ competition, sophomore Corey Sondak qualified for the 55 finals and finished sixth (6.88, a personal best); junior Finn Davidson paced himself to fourth in the 1,600 (4:41.15) and fifth with the 3,200 (10:26.84); the 4x800 relay in Davidson, senior Adam Germaine, junior Sam Sessions, and Siciliano was fourth (8:47.93); the 4x200 relay of junior Jordan Lembo-Frey, sophomore Evan Song, sophomore Kevin Cargos, and Sondak was sixth (1:40.16); and the 1,600 sprint medley quartet of Song, Sondak, Lembo-Frey, and Germaine came in sixth (4:03.07).

“Jalynn McCown has been doing well in the shot put and is one of the top freshmen in the area, plus this is also Christina Nault’s first time doing indoor track,” Rivera said. “We were pretty busy for the boys’ relays on the day, plus we had some different guys run pretty well, like Finn and Ben.”

Despite missing out on the competitions due to injury this season, senior Amy Puchini has more than made up for it as a stellar leader and sole captain on the girls’ squad. The boys started the season with captains in Siciliano and senior Lukas O’Callahan—who were fresh off their state championship season in cross country—but then Sessions earned a promotion to the captain’s rank during the campaign.

“Amy was injured, but yet she still practiced with us and did a really great job as captain,” Coach Rivera said. “Lukas and Ben did excellent in the fall and it carried over to the winter. They are team-first guys that are dedicated to helping the whole team. Sam has also done an excellent job this year, and he also qualified for states at sectionals in the 300 [9th, 38.97].”

Coach Rivera added that Guilford has paved the way for an even stronger and more prominent future behind a trio of diverse underclass athletes for the girls, plus a talented freshman duo on the boys’ side.

“As a sophomore, Jacqueline Guerra has the leadership already. She works very hard and sets a great example. Jalynn is one of the best throwers and Meredith Bloss is running well,” said Rivera. “For the boys, Will Dinauer and Rafael Siciliano are strong freshman that will move up and be a big help going forward.”

Guilford’s focus for the rest of the current season is the SCC Championship and the subsequent Class M State Championship meet. The Indians get a leg up for the state competition by virtue of being a part of one of the preeminent conferences in Connecticut.

“The SCC Championship is a great experience and, a lot of times, they are tougher than states. You are going up against some of the best athletes in the state,” said Rivera. “Hopefully for states, we see some of our best performances, new personal bests, and are able to send people to the State Open.”

From the Sidelines

Amity took home the boys’ title with 129.33 points at the SCC East Sectional Championship, while Cheshire won on the girls’ side by scoring 88.5.

Jon Rivera is in his first season as head coach for Guilford’s boys’ and girls’ indoor track teams and is assisted by Chris Skaggs, Rich Torrellas, Jim Ford, and Jeff Hedberg.

The SCC Championship will be held on Friday, Feb. 5 at 4 p.m. The Class M State Championship will be on Saturday, Feb. 13 at 4:30 p.m. Both events take place at the Floyd Little Athletic Center in New Haven.