The Mineola High School girls spring track and field team has been making tracks and breaking records so far this season. The squad has completed its five regular season league meets. They've faced 13 different opponents and rang up a record of 10-3.

"We've emerged as one of the top teams in our conference," said coach Kristin Degnan.

The Mustangs are led by veteran captains Julia Yan, Lauren Massa, Katie Keegan and Nicole Lapin. Other veterans helping lead the Mustangs to great heights are seniors Jess Donahue and Samantha Graham, juniors Lauren Napolitano, Christine Medlock, Chelsea Rosner, Samantha Hegmann, Courtney Barry, Jamie Silva and Bethany Brown and sophomores Alia Fater and Jenn Pawlowski. Newcomers to the spring squad who are doing very well include Liz Campbell, Jenelle Fiori, Divya Kasaraneni, Annemarie Kowalczyk, Maria Massa, Jamie Medlock, Meredith Minsky, Jess Pawlowski, Jill Shanahan, Nicole Vlavianos, Nicole Wissler and Monicka Aquino.

Four school records have already been set since the season started on March 21. Lauren Napolitano set the record in e 400-meter fun with a time of 64.7 Alia Fater set a new mark in the 1,500-meter run at 5:35.7 Julia Yan broke her own school record in the 400-meter hurdles with a time of 74.7. The 4X400-meter relay team of Yan, Fater, Christine Medlock and Napolitano broke the school record with a time of 4:23.1.

In the field events, Nicole Lapin set a school record in the long jump with a leap of 15 feet, 8 inches. Lapin also tied her own school records in the high jump with a leap of 4 feet, 8 inches and in the pole vault at 7 feet, 6 inches. Samantha Hegmann and Jess Donahue are two of the top throwers in Nassau County right now. Hegmann threw the discus 101 feet, 5 inches to become the second best thrower in the county while Donahue threw the discus 98 feet, 6 inches, making her the third best in the county.

The aforementioned 400-meter relay team also reached a level of performance that has accorded the runners quite an honor. Yan, Fater, Medlock and Napolitano have qualified for the prestigious Penn Relays for the second straight year. That meet will be held at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia April 28 through April 30. The next meet for the Mustangs was to be April 23 at Uniondale High School. The division championships will be held Monday, May 9.

It's certainly been a terrific season already for the Mustang girls.