Every year, the track and field program has hit the ground running whenever indoor season comes around. On January 28, the girls won first place, snapping Dunbar High School’s five-year win streak, and the boys took second at the DCIAA Indoor Track and Field Championships in Prince George’s County.
Through it all, the team shone most brightly by setting a new meet record time of 4:11.88 in the competitive varsity girls 4×400 meter relay.
With success not being a stranger to the program, what’s led to it is an emphasis on family. “My team has been family-oriented since I got here and the bonds I have created from this team I hope to continue for life,” said senior sprinter Indie Wallace-Persaud.
This sentiment is emphasized by the program’s renowned head coach of girls’ and boys’ cross country & track and field Tia Clemmons. Health teacher by day, Clemmons hails over 20 years of track and field coaching experience. Under her tenure, the team has continually been atop the DCIAA and a strong contender in the DCSAA meet, which will take place February 11.
Clemmons always reminds the team before all meets that “they’re the team to beat.” She puts this into practice by doing planned team bonding, allowing the team space to talk about their goals both on and off the track.
Clemmons was pleased with a positive start to the season. “It started off with a bang and we turned in some really great times.”
To open the 4x400m, senior Amalya Westray took her place at the starting line. Each of the girls that took part in the relay had multiple individual events before taking on the final event of the day. “We were all coming off a race, I had the 800m and they all had the 300m. Honestly, we just wanted to get out good, make a nice lead in front of everyone else, and do what we can with what we had left because we were all fatigued.”
Amalya brings just over two years of running experience to the squad. Along with her individual medals in DCIAA and DCSAA competitions, she was honored as one of the team’s Most Improved last outdoor season.
“We prayed before, we just had faith,” added Amalya. “We’ve been in positions like this and knew that we could do it.” This group’s tradition brings them together both physically and emotionally before they take on the grueling two laps around the track.
In the race junior Olivia Purce was the second leg. “Me and my team, we always put our best foot forward, regardless of whether we’re tired or not. Knowing that we were all tired, we all had to work. If it wasn’t for ourselves, it was for each other.”
“We went in expecting to win,” said Purce. “We knew even that if we didn’t get the result we wanted, we had to do our best to get the win for our team.”
Purce has been a avid member of the team for five indoor and outdoor seasons. She has received Rookie the Year and leadership awards for her dedication to the team.
In terms of the record, Purce “didn’t have it in [her] head at all.” The previous record, which stood at around 4:13, is something that the JR team manages to fall under during every meet of the season for both the boys and girls.
Wallace took hold of the baton when the team was second in position, just behind the Dunbar High School runners. “We were close enough that I knew I could close the gap.” In a strategic move, she was placed in the usually-slowest third leg spot. “We use [the third leg] to our advantage.”
Wallace brings a long resumé of awards: 2023 and 2024 DCIAA Athlete of the Year, 2024 Washington Post girls track athlete of the year, 2025 DCIAA Indoor Track Athlete of the Year, 2025 All-Meet Track Girl Athlete, MVP for both indoor and outdoor seasons throughout her four years on the team, and Nike All-American honors in the 55m as a freshman. Along with her numerous awards, she has received several offers to run track collegiately.
Amalya, Wallace, and Purce were members of the program’s prestigious Penn Relays win in 2024, where the team ran a school record of 3:59.03 in the same event. Despite a member of the group graduating, the core squad continues to see success in all race distances.
Sophomore Ariele Westray, Amalya’s younger sister, took home the win as the anchor leg. By the time she took hold of the baton, she had some nerves. “To begin with, I wasn’t even prepared for this [race] as I hadn’t run the 400m since spring of last year. But having a team that you can rely on to get you where you need to be pushed me.”
“Knowing I was in the lead gave me that boost of adrenaline,” she shared. “Since I PR’d in my 300m, I had to use that mindset for another 100. I used the strength from God, from me, and [the other girls] to bring it home all the way.”
Ariele has member of the track since spring of last year and winning the 4x400m alongside her sister earned her her first medal!
The team ran their traditional victory lap following the award ceremony, where Tiger athletes were crowned victors for each competition they took place in throughout the day. “We do things with integrity and confidence. We are very humble,” Clemmons said. “I always remind them that when you do things with integrity, you’ll generally be the one to see success. We can walk away knowing we did everything we could.” •
