The Westbury boys track team recently took home the title of Conference 2 Champions, finishing their season undefeated.
With about 32 members on the track team, Westbury boys track is not a very large team to begin with. However, the team has a small amount of guys on the team that head coach Donald Ross can consistently count on to score in events. That group of athletes holds the team together. Ross calls that group of athletes the “Nucleus.”
“That ‘nucleus’ is the foundation of the Westbury track team,” said Ross.
A few of the Nucleus members include juniors Dave Lacroix and Brendon Alerte, as well as seniors Richard Taylor, David Demesyeux, and Carlos Ibarra Cruz.
Just two years ago, Westbury had won the County Championship title for eight years in a row, but fell short the past two years. Last year, Westbury lost the County Class AA Championship to Hewlett. This year, however, the Green Dragons were determined to take back their County title.
The county championship was held May 20 and May 21 as a two-day meet at Westbury High School.
“It’s a great thing that we have counties here, because it is considered a home-field advantage,” added Cruz.
Ross takes pride in having high academic standards for his athletes. They have to maintain good enough grades in order to be a part of the team. Ross doesn’t want his athletes to solely excel on the track; he wants them to excel in academics as well.
The members of the Nucleus have some of the highest averages on the team, according to Ross. The better a student is at being both academically and athletically well rounded, the better fit they are for the Westbury boys track team.
By Paige McAtee
westbury@antonnews.com
