After a strong outdoor season last year, capped off with an eighth place finish at state, the boys track team is training hard once again. The team members hope to take first in indoor conference and condition themselves for the competitive outdoor season in March.

“We return a good core of athletes that ran in state finals last year,” assistant coach Luke Taylor said. “[We are] trying to get them into form, so when they get outside they are prepared for some more high caliber meets down the road.”

The coaches have been emphasizing strength training and conditioning, something they have not focused on as much in the past at the start of a season, Taylor said. This will allow for a strong foundation going into outdoor season and help improve running form.

“Last year we had a lot of good seniors that graduated that meant a lot to the program,” Taylor said. “They did a really good job as far as leadership, and they were pretty talented. But we also have some upperclassmen juniors and seniors that are doing a good job right off the bat [this year].”

The team has many returning state runners, which gives LT an advantage, Taylor said. Three legs of the 4×400 meter relay are returning, including Ben Cranny ‘18, Griffin Vizgirda ‘18 and Xavier Armand ‘19.

“A lot of us already have a tight bond and know how we run, so we know what we need to work on,” Armand said. “When we’re practicing during indoor season we have to critique each other a lot because that’s what will set us up for a good.”

The team has competed in three meets this indoor season. On Feb. 10 they raced in an Invitational Valentine Relay Meet at Proviso West. The varsity 4×400 meter and 4×800 meter both placed second. On Feb. 15, they finished first in a home meet against Plainfield and Benet. In their most recent meet on Feb. 24 at Proviso West, they finished __.

“I think this team can surprise many people and really grow,” IHSA Cross Country State champion Danny Kilrea ‘18 said. “We are not on anyone’s radar but have a talented group who can really accomplish more and more as time passes and everyone gets better.”

The boys’ next meet is at OPRF on March 2 at 5 p.m.