Huntington Boys’ Track & Field is a Work in Progress

Ronald Wilson is a competitor. So the Huntington High School boys’ spring track and field head coach has his sights on developing champions at as many events as possible.

Returning as New York No. 12 ranked in the 400m intermediate hurdles is junior Titan Elysee. The teenager is among Newsday’s top 50 returning track and field athletes this spring. “His versatility coupled with his tremendous athleticism and strength has earned him the name ‘Titan,’ which he is affectionately known as,” Wilson said. “He’s one of our team’s top long jumpers and plays an important role in all three of our relays.”

Not only is Elysee a great sprinter, but his strength and speed helps him to run a great leg on Huntington’s 4 x 800m relay, which placed second at the Levittown Invitational last Saturday. He went on to earn gold medals in both the 110m high hurdles and the 400m intermediate hurdles as well. His personal best time in the 400m hurdles of 56.61 seconds almost earned him a berth in the state championships last spring. He placed a close second to Jordan Peck of North Babylon who won the top spot to go to states last season.

Coming in behind Elysee in the 400m hurdles is Blue Devil sophomore sensation, Eric Heinz, who recently placed second at the Levittown Invite in an excellent early season time of 59 seconds.

“Heinz is generally our top distance runner, but lackluster training during his cross country season, has negatively affected him in distance events,” Wilson said. “He has now been utilized in middle distance and field events where he is showing great promise as well.”

Like Elysee, Heinz loves the weight room and it shows in his performances. “He’s able to handle any event ranging from the 400m to the 3200m,” Wilson said. “He’s also one of our top high jumpers and long jumpers. He plays an important role in both the 4 x 400m and 4 x 800m relays. He placed a close second in the county pentathlon last year. We are expecting a better performance this year.” The school record of one of Coach Wilson’s teammates from 1993, Tom Lannen, might actually be broken.

In the circles of the shot put and discus, junior Matt Ross continues to show great promise as well. Ross placed second in both shot put and discus at the Levittown Invite, losing to former teammate, George Garcia who transferred to Massapequa back in the fall. Juniors Jean Riboul and Banny Soc Concua and sophomore Zach Matthews also show great promise.

Senior Dominic Mattio traded in his lacrosse stick this season and is doing a phenomenal job on the track. He opened his season with 51.73 in the 400m dash earning a gold medal. He plays a role in both the 4x100 m and the 4x400 m relays. “Dom has great leg speed and will continue to improve as the season rolls on,” Wilson said.

Senior Carlos Marroquin narrowly missed qualifying for the winter indoor state championships in long jump, placing fourth in the Section XI state qualifier with a leap of 21’8.

“Carlos is expected to go well over that mark this spring season. He’s got great pop and decent leg speed, which is needed to compete in the jumps. He easily won long jump at the Levittown Invitational with a leap of 20’8. He went on to also win the triple jump in 38 feet. He plays a role in both the 4x100 m and 4x400 m relays.”

Returning back to track and field is junior Yasir Jones, who said he has not competed in the sport since he was about nine years old. “Jones is one of our top short sprinters on the team,” Wilson said/

Smith along with senior Jordan Thorbourne earned medals in the 100m dash. They both would later team up with junior Jacob Guzik and sophomores Joseph Raymundo and Zayvion McCoy in the 4x100m relay earning a silver medal in the event at Levittown.

“We have a very young team this year and are eager to see how they compete both physically and mentally,” Wilson said. “Suffolk County boasts some of the greatest marks in track and field in the state.”

Some of those talented underclassmen include sophomores Robbie Campbell and Adan Ntambwe and freshmen Michael Grover, Rasiere Blizzard and Artturi Landau “who all performed well at the Levittown meet earning medals,” Wilson said.