The fall sports season is officially over. This past Monday, November 7th, one of Apex’s most decorated teams began practice. The Apex High winter track and field team, who finished second place in the SWAC conference championships last year behind Panther Creek,  looks very different this year with some notable runner and coaching absences.

The biggest and most notable absence this year is the absence of Coach Mark Trezona, who decided after thirty-three years with Apex, it was time to retire. Coach Trezona was the pole vault and jump coach for Apex; he was also the head track and field coach for a time before Coach Johnson and Coach Cooper took over leading the track team. Another notable absence this time on our distance group is the absence of Sarah Mitchell. Sarah was a two time State cross country champion as well as a state champion on the indoor 1600-meter race and the outdoor 1600-  and 3200-meter races. She is currently running at George Washington University this year. One additional absence this year is Ethan Villarreal, a four-year pole vaulter who made it to States two years in a row.

But with all those notable absences, there are also a few notable returners. The first is Coach Mozerka who is replacing Coach Johnson as the coach for sprinting events. The second notable return is junior Madelyn Flower, the SWAC champion for the women’s 200-meter dash and a member of the SWAC champion women’s 4×400 team. Another member of that 4×400 team is returning as well. Senior Ella Arnold was the  SWAC champion in the women’s 400-meter dash. The final notable return is senior Janzen Meyers; Janzen joined the pole vault team last year, and in that time he would PR at eleven feet and qualify for state championships. All of these as well as many notable freshmen joining our distance team makes the outlook for our team bright.

The Apex winter track and field team has its first meet on December 2nd at JDL in Winston- Salem where the team will showcase the skills of the new and returning runners.