As soon as the indoor track season began  on Dec. 4, the Phoenix athletes put their best foot forward. The 4×200 team, composed of junior Kamaal Reel, senior Stephen Hudson, and freshman Troy Boateng, ran the ninth fastest time in the school’s history at the Dec. 16 meet. At the same meet, sophomore Elyjah Dangerfield placed eighth in the school’s record for high jump times, and ran his personal best in the 55m dash with a time of 7.19 seconds. As the season continues with meets in February, the chance for Phoenix athletes to break additional records is just around the turn of the track. 

Elyjah Dangerfield

The 21-22 winter track and field season was sophomore Elyjah Dangerfield’s first year participating in high school track. Dangerfield, who started running in seventh grade, is primarily a sprinter. According to Dangerfield, he was not a strong runner to start, but through hard work he improved as an athlete and fell in love with the sport. 

Q: How do you feel when you run?
A: In life, there are many things you can’t control, so if I am on the track running a race, I feel like that is one of the only things that I am in control of. 

Q: What type of exercise do you do to prepare for meets?
A: At home, I focus on calisthenics workouts and in school, the workouts are more leg oriented. 

Q: What is your overall goal for track? 

A: As of right now, I strive to get a scholarship, hopefully D1. 

Q: Do you have any family members that run?
A: My mom ran in high school and broke multiple high school records in Germany. She broke her schools 400m, 200m, long jump, and triple jump records.

Q: Who is your favorite professional runner?

A: Matthew B, who is a runner at North Carolina A&T. He first caught my attention in his senior year in high school and seeing him run was always inspirational to me.

Q: Is there someone you look up to on the team? 

A: I would say Diego Martinez Lara, a senior. He is my favorite on the team because he’s almost like a third coach and has always been a sort of mentor for me. 

Q: Where do you see yourself 15 years from now?

A: If I am not running in the Olympics, I see myself in some field of cyber security or maybe psychology. 

Bhargav Kuniki

Freshman Bhargav Kuniki is a sprinter who is also running track and field for the first time this year. Kuniki started running for basketball, and participating in the sport has helped him with quick outbursts and getting used to playing with athletes who are older than him.

Q: How do you feel when you run?

A: It is really fun. Those short runs, I love the burst of energy. 

Q: What type of exercise do you do to prepare for meets?

A: I am in the gym doing explosive drills. 

Q: Do you have any family members that run?

A: My mom ran in high school and this inspired me to run now. I thought, why not do the sport my mom did to help me with other sports. 

Q: Is there someone who you look up to on the team?

A: Steven Boushra, a sophomore, because he is extremely fast.

Q: What is your overall goal for track?

A: To apply [the skills and training from track] to other sports and eventually get to states.

Steven Boushra

Sophomore Steven Boushra joined track for the first time this winter and participates in the sport to prepare for football and soccer. Boushra is a sprinter and practices two times a week with the goal of reaching the district or state level of track.

Q: What got you into running to start?

A: I knew a lot of people on the track team, and I wanted to get better at running for football.

Q: How do you feel when you run?

A: I feel a lot of things, during the start of the race I’m focused in my head to do exactly what I practiced for, but once I reach the last 100 yards, I just go full out and I can hear all the people screaming on the side. It’s pretty fun and nerve racking.

Q: What exercises do you do for track?

A: Basically anything to legs [such as] bulgarian split squats, squats, barbell squats, and I try a lot of explosive exercises.

Q: How competitive are the sports you play compared to track?

A: [Track is] pretty competitive. Since it’s a one man sport, whatever you put in, you get out.

Q: Is there anyone you look up to on track?

A: Yes, I really look up to the coaches because they motivate me to do better. 

Q: For the people you run with, do you run with people your own age?

A: No, you really go against all of the grades but there’s different heats which are your groups of the race and depending on which heat you’re in shows your skill.

Q: Do you hope to get some sort of scholarship for track or football?

A: Yes actually, I’m grinding really hard trying to get a scholarship. I honestly would go wherever I just really want to make it to the next level.

Q: Where do you see yourself in 15 years?

A: I hope I’ll be playing professionally for a sport.

Lilia Jones

Freshman Lilia Jones is a sprinter and practices six times a week. Jones puts in extra practice time to improve and overcome opponents on the track. Additionally, Jones competes on a club track team, demonstrating her dedication to the sport and growing as an athlete. 

Q: What got you into running?

A: My family does it, I’ve had everyone in my family do track.

Q: Which of your family members run?

A: Both of my brothers and my parents. They are inspirational and motivate me to practice harder. 

Q: Who do you look up to on the team?

A: I look up to the seniors because there’s a lot of them on the team and they’re really nice.

Q: Who is your favorite professional runner?

A: Allyson Felix. She is very inspirational [because] she has been in the Olympics so many times. 

Q: How do you feel when you run?

A: Usually I feel tired [and] whenever I’m running at meets, I feel good because I’m in the front.

Q: What type of exercise do you do to perform better?

A: I lift weights and I build my endurance by running.

Q: Is running a competitive sport?

A: Yes, it’s surprisingly really competitive. You don’t think of it as a competitive thing, but once you get to meets, these girls are running insane times. Rock Ridge is going to a track meet with 110 teams and our girls relay is running against the number two fastest 4×2 in the country.

Q: Do you run with people your own age?

A: Out of school I run with girls who are 15 and 16 so they’re around sophomores and freshmen like me.

Q: What is your ultimate goal as a runner?

A: My goal is to be state champion and get a scholarship.

Q: Where do you see yourself 15 years from now?

A: I see myself not running anymore, but being successful in a different job that track put me through.

Roya Cranford

Senior Roya Cranford is a sprinter who also competes in track events including hurdles and high jumps. Cranford joined the Phoenix track team and started running at age 15.

Q: What got you into running?

A: My brother ran. He motivated me to run so I decided to do it. 

Q: Do you play any other sports?

A: I currently do horse-riding and I didn’t think I could do two sports, but my brother helped me. 

Q: How do you feel when you run?

A: During the running itself, I hate it, but I know that it’s good for me, so I feel really good about myself and my body after the run.

Q: How often do you practice?

A: About three to four times a week and I also go to the gym almost everyday to help with track.

Q: What type of exercise do you do to perform better?

A: Going to the weight room and building up muscles in your upper body and lower body helps. Also running more than you would race.  If  I was gonna do a 200 meter dash run, then I would run a 300 or 400 to help me.

Q: What is your ultimate goal as a runner?

A: Well as of right now, my goal is to make it to regionals for high-jump and regionals for hurdles. 

Q: Do you hope to get a scholarship for college?

A: It would be nice, but I don’t know if that’s really ideal for me, but I’m always striving to get my best.