Stanton, Misiukiewicz jump right in to outdoor season

A little more than 24 hours after competing at the New Balance Nationals indoor track and field championships in Boston Sunday, Cameron Stanton was back training with the Southold/Greenport girls’ outdoor team Monday afternoon.

Stanton and Olivia Misiukiewicz, who also competed in Boston, were out on a windy day on the Settlers’ track, practicing with their teammates.

It says a lot about their dedication to the sport — and to their team.

“Both of our coaches have told us that we’re allowed to take like a week off if we wanted to,” Stanton said. “But we decided that we really want to be there.

“I mean, I love it. It’s not like it’s a chore.”

Stanton sounded pretty upbeat after she and Misiukiewicz finished with divergent results in Boston. Stanton fouled in all three of her long jump attempts.

“I wasn’t really upset or felt sad about my result because I knew that just being there was something to be proud of,” she said. “Not many people get that opportunity.”

The senior was over the line by just a fraction on her first two jumps, an “almost infuriatingly small amount of margins,” Southold coach Tim McArdle said.

She said that two factors determined her fate.

“The board that I jumped off was different than anything I had jumped off at Suffolk Community [College],” Stanton said. “That board is the same material as the track but at New Balance it was like a wooden board. I don’t think that really messed my mark up too much. I think it got in my head a little bit and that’s what pushed me to foul.

“I was just super pumped up. My adrenaline was high. I knew that if I didn’t sprint my absolute fastest and do everything that I’ve been working on, that I wouldn’t be able to do my best. I pushed it all three times on the runway, but it didn’t work out. … I don’t regret anything.”

In the high jump, Misiukiewicz, also a senior, cleared the bar with a leap of 5 feet, 3.75 inches, finishing 23rd.

“Olivia performed exactly the way she normally performed,” McArdle said. “She gave us one of her better performances of the year. She almost hit 5-5 and three-quarters, which would have been her best jump. Olivia relied on her experience in big meets throughout her career. She felt great going into the competition. She was excited. She was ready on all levels.”

Stanton’s younger sister Devin competed in the freshman long jump. Her best leap was 14 feet, 11.25 inches, finishing 37th.

“I’m very proud of her because as a freshman it’s extremely daunting to go into a situation like that,” Cameron said. “Devin did very well, considering the circumstances. I don’t think Devin has long jumped indoors at any place other than Suffolk Community College.”

Added McArdle: “Here’s a freshman who’s competing at a national event. The experience that she gets from that is so invaluable that I wouldn’t know where to begin.”

Stanton refused to allow her performance to douse her enthusiasm.

“All the athletes there were incredible,” she said. “I witnessed multiple national records being broken, which in itself is super inspiring. One girl ran the mile in 4:36, which I thought was just insane. I was cheering for her; I did not even know her. It was so cool.”

That was Sadie Engelhardt of California (4:36.36).

The competition level was through the roof. McArdle noted that athletes came from all four corners of the country, including California, Michigan, Florida, Texas, the Carolinas and even Canada.

“There were tons of future football and basketball stars, future Olympians,” he said. “There were so many kids who were star-studded.

“Kids actually compete for elite club-level teams. We competed just through the school.”

When she showed up for the first day of spring track on Monday, Stanton was astonished by a record turnout — 48 girls and 30 boys for the track teams.

“It’s crazy because for indoor we only had 13,” she said. “It was a fun thing. I’ve never experienced having a big track team before.”

McArdle said that “practice went off with a bang. It is pretty unbelievable.”

The Settlers start their Suffolk County season at Babylon on April 5.