Newtown High School’s girls’ indoor track and field team, with a wealth of returning experience combined with a large number of newcomers, is eyeing short- and long-term success.

The Nighthawks are also looking to both build off the spring season outdoor South-West Conference Championship they captured in 2023, in addition to being fueled by a close second-place finish in the indoor campaign last winter.

“Last year’s defeat by only a few points to Weston is still very fresh in the girls’ minds but so is the outdoor championship. We plan to be competitive in the league while also making a larger impact at the state level,” Coach Becky Bourret said.

The Nighthawks have 71 athletes on the roster with 30 of them being freshmen, many of whom are not only first-time high school athletes but also inexperienced in track.

“We are a very young team, grade-wise, but also being brand new to track. With so many girls and a limited/new coaching staff, I am relying on my upperclassmen and captains to help build the program. Teach the girls skills but also the grit, resilience, and confidence you need to be successful in the sport,” Bourret said.

Bourret returns with Coach Joe Smith (pole vaults) and Mark Silverman (sprints) and they are joined by newcomers Charlie Taubl who is the head boys’ team coach, and former NHS and College of William & Mary standout Carly Swierbut (multi-event record-setter in college).

Captains are seniors Jessica Zhang and Grace Chiriatti (distance), senior Kiera Budge (mid distance), juniors Grace Lyons and Rachel Albrecht (long sprint), senior Ella Hall (short sprint/ jumps), junior Aashni Shetty (hurdles and jumps), junior Lola Kessler (pole vault), and senior Izzy Khazadian (throws).

“We returned a ton of talent from last season and the athleticism and determination of the new girls is promising to an amazing season,” Bourret said.

In addition to the captains, returning team members include Amanda Reyes (multi event junior), Leah Morris (mid distance sophomore), Brooke Buckley (mid distance junior), Nadia Andrew (mid distance sophomore), and Olivia Doersch (jumps, sophomore).

New to track and having already made an impression are Natalie McLean, a sophomore sprinter who qualified for the State Championships in her first ever track event; Blake Heim-Sherwood, the team’s first freshman to qualify for postseason in the hurdles, and who has been impressive in jumps; and Brianna Pellicone, a senior softball standout who has joined track and is showing promise in short sprints and throws, Bourret said.

Newtown had a solid start to the season in the mid-December Hillhouse Invitational with four relays qualifying for State Championships, ten individuals qualifying for SWCs and six more for the state meet. What’s more, Aashni Shetty broke the school indoor triple jump record.

“Our times and field marks are already beyond where we were last year, which is super exciting,” Bourret said.

Sports Editor Andy Hutchison can be reached at andyh@thebee.com.