Walpole Girls Indoor Track stormed the Reggie Lewis Center for their Bay State League Championship Meet on Thursday, February 6 and ended the night with 4 personal records and one Bay State League Champion. The following week on Saturday, February 15, the Rebels took 17 girls to the Division III Championship meet. In addition to setting a divisional team record of 21 points, the Rebels took home four medals and sent two athletes to the All State Meet.
At the League Meet, freshman Lindsay Cordopatri stole the show with a significant personal record in the 55 meter dash with a time of 7.79 seconds. Her record established her as the fastest freshman in Walpole school history for that event and qualified her for the Division III Championship meet on the following Sunday.
Meanwhile, on the track, sophomore Alyssa Murphy also moved up the ranks in Walpole record holders for the Mile. Murphy came in 9th and broke 5:30 for the first time to get 5:27. This time placed her as the 5th fastest girl in Walpole history for the Mile.
The Rebels were successful in the 600m. Junior Maureen Herlihy had a two second personal record bringing her time to 1:45.43. Herlihy’s personal record also resulted in qualification for the Divisional III Championship meet. Also in the 600m was senior Captain Gina Conti. Conti placed 1st in the 600m race with a time of 1:39.29, making her Walpole’s only League Champion.
The following weekend, 17 Rebels returned to the Reggie for the Division III Champions meet. Placing 6th out of the 23 teams, the team set a team record by scoring 21 points.
With her season best time of 1:36.91 in the 600m, Conti led point-scorers by placing 1st to add 10 points to the team’s score. Conti said, “My ultimate goal this season was to capture the 600m at Division III. I felt happy after I crossed the line and 1:36 was posted on the scoreboard.”
For the first time in her four years of running Indoor Track, senior Captain Kristen Coyne broke 12 minutes in the 2 mile. Coyne PR’ed with a time of 11:59.5 and placed 12th. Also PR’ing was senior Captain Ana Orfanidis in shot put. Although Orfanidis did not place high enough to earn points, her throw of 9.22m earned her 10th place.
Junior Allie Morris scored 4 points for the team by placing 5th in the 2 Mile with 11:25 — a time that established her as 2nd all-time in the Walpole indoor records. Although Morris did not get the automatic bid to All-States from placing in the top three, her time still qualified her from the at-large pool for All-States. The 4x400m team — with Conti, sophomore Tori Lynch, and juniors Emma Hunt and Herlihy — placed 5th and grabbed 4 points for the Rebels. In long jump, senior Captain Olivia O’Hara jumped a length of 15’09.5” to get 3 points for Walpole with her 6th Place finish.
At All-States, Morris placed 17th in the 2 Mile with a time of 11:35. Conti placed 7th in the 600m and missed qualifying for the New England Championship Meet by one place. On March 14, Conti will race in the 400m at the New Balance National Meet in New York City.
Head Coach Conor Cashman said, “This is by far the most competitive indoor team I have ever coached. The team record for points at Divisionals is a testament to the team’s competitiveness.”
