The Guilford boys’ outdoor track team’s 2016 season was one that featured several athletes striding along a path to the postseason, while laying the foundation for greater feats at the state level.

Head Coach Chris Skaggs’s Indians finished seventh at the SCC East Sectional before placing in 14th in the SCC Championship. After that, Guilford shined its brightest at the Class MM State Championship by taking 13th place, while advancing several competitors to the State Open, including the 4x400 relay of junior Jordan Lembo-Frey, senior Ben Siciliano, sophomore Will Smith, and junior Sam Sessions, along with Siciliano and junior Finn Davidson in the 1,600.

“Our main goal for the season was to get as many people as we could in the upper-level meets, such as SCCs, states, and the State Open. We had our 4x400, plus Finn and Ben to the Open, which is more than we’ve had there the past few years. About three [to] four years ago, we had only one guy to the Open,” Coach Skaggs said. “I was very happy, though, to see the strong numbers for the state meet.”

A big part of Guilford’s success stemmed from its captain’s core of senior Lukas O’Callahan, Siciliano, and Sessions. O’Callahan qualified for states in the 3,200 after missing the indoor season with shin splits, Siciliano was the SCC and Class MM state champion for the 1,600, and Sessions was a specialist in the 400. Coach Skaggs said that a crucial common denominator among all three young men was an undying dedication to their craft and the squad.

“Lukas had a great work ethic and was one of those guys we could ask to run in any event. He also created these workouts called, ‘Lukas Fun Time.’ They were tough workouts, but he had fun coming up with them and made them entertaining. He also encouraged the guys to push through them,” Skaggs said. “Sam earned his spot as a junior captain because of how dedicated he was. He always worked hard and encouraged the other guys. He worked every day towards getting better and he demonstrated what hard work can do. Ben’s stats speak to his talent. All of the things he did on the track were as great as what he did off it. He came mentally prepared for practice each day. The younger guys saw his successes and know that dedication pays off.”

Siciliano’s double-gold postseason was a huge moment in both Guilford’s season and the history of the program. Coach Skaggs added that he felt proud about the measures taken by his relay runners to reach their next threshold of greatness.

“Ben winning states was great because it had been 15 years or so since the team had an individual state champion. It was huge to see him win the 1,600 at both SCCs and states,” said Skaggs. “I also loved what our relays did and how our guys got behind them. The guys dedicated themselves to competing well in them and getting to the State Open. The 4x400 had an electrifying race at states and it also gave them the experience and the confidence that they can get to that level.”

Siciliano raced his way to a spot on the All-SCC and All-State squads and he was also named Guilford’s Most Valuable Player. Elsewhere, Davidson won the Indians’ Hardest Working Award, plus the Future Award that goes to up-and-coming underclassmen was presented to freshman Joe Walters for the sprinting events and Smith for distance.

“Finn improved an incredible amount in three months. He dropped about 20 seconds on his mile time this year,” said Skaggs. “He gave 110 percent in the races to the point where he would collapse after them. It was evident that he was pushing himself as hard as he could.”

With Sessions and Lembo-Frey slated to serve as team captains in 2017, the Indians will look to keep adding representatives for the state meet, while cultivating a multi-faceted team that will be led by savvy veterans with postseason experience.

“Jordan turned into an elite sprinter this year and came into his own. He became the best sprinter on our team and probably the best one on most teams. He and Sam will lead the sprinters, plus we have other strong athletes coming back like Corey Sondak, Liam Roberts, and Jacob Pierpont,” said Coach Skaggs. “It’s a matter of depth. We are starting to fill in with numbers and become a more well-rounded team. We had three juniors make the State Open this year, so experience will be a big thing next year.”

From the Sidelines

Chris Skaggs completed his third year as head coach of Guilford boys’ outdoor track and was assisted by Jeff Hedberg, who works with the high jumpers, along with throwing coach Rich Torrellas and distance coach George Cooksey.

The Indians finished 3-5 for their dual-meet season.

Ben Siciliano scored all four points for Guilford at the State Open Championship with his fifth-place finish in the 1,600-meter run behind a time of 4:20.39. Also competing for the Indians at the Open were Finn Davidson, who took 10th in the 1,600 at 4:29.75; and the 4x400 relay of Jordan Lembo-Frey, Siciliano, Will Smith, and Sam Sessions, which finished 23rd in 3:32.06.